Day 7: A Day in the Redwoods

We started out our day the same way we have the whole week: cereal and milk, but the dense fog was a new addition. We drove on north on 101 into the forest, and stopped at the Ladybird Johnson Grove hiking trail. This was a scenic 1-mile loop hike through some of the oldest redwoods in the area.

This area actually has an interesting history. The public realization that old-growth redwood forests were disappearing far too rapidly led to the establishment of three redwood state parks in the 1920s and Redwood National park in 1968. Presidents Nixon and Johnson joined Governor Reagan in dedicating this 300-acre grove to Lady Bird Johnson and her campaign to preserve the towering giants. According to Frommer’sNational Parks of the American West (thank you to Maura, our friend who so generously lent us this book to take along with us), we should be very happy when the sun comes out due to intermittent patches of fog and drizzle. We noticed our moods instantly lift as the sun began to peek through the giant branches of the redwoods and in the shade we could see the forest coming to life. There were more banana slugs, colorful millipedes, snails and birds galore. Moss covered almost everything, lichens hung from trees, and the ferns grew over our heads. Pink rhododendrons grew overhead and we found many forest lilies growing in the moist undergrowth. Sadly, we could still see clearings where loggers had cut down hundreds of trees many years ago, and it was evident that the forest was still recovering from this stress.

There were many wooden plaques that guided us along the trail and we made mental notes of all the interesting information they offered, some of the most intriguing being the growth of these huge trees. Capable of ascending to heights over 360 feet, coast redwoods tower over all living things on the planet. Most of its height is gained in its first 100 years. With adequate sunlight, a redwood can grow more than 30 feet in its first 20 years. If shade, drought, or fire does not inhibit its growth, it will grow two to three feet per year, reaching the forest canopy by its 200^th birthday. Once a redwood reaches the canopy and the uppermost foliage is exposed to direct sunlight, strong winds, and lower humidity, its upward growth slows to two or three inches a year. Turning its energy to its core, after 400 years the trunk of an old-growth redwood averages five to seven feet in diameter; at 700 years old, 10-15 foot diameter trunks are possible. After our hike, we drove further up the mountain to a look out point. Here we had a beautiful view of the redwoods far below and the ocean even further in the distance. From way up here, we could see the fog creeping through the tops of the trees, but we were still above it in the warm sunshine. The sun was wonderfully warm as we basked for a while in the sun.

After this, we headed back down the mountain and to the sea town of Crescent City, about 30 minutes away. On the way, we took a pass for elk viewing and we saw about 20 elk grazing in the fields. In town, we drove along the ocean for a while before we headed to the center of the town. Apparently, the cool thing to do in this town is to sit on top of the cab of your giant truck or furnish huge on the road dog cages out of the bed of your truck. Unfortunately, without a truck we could not partake in these townie rituals, so all we could do was enjoy these happenings from the seats of our small-enclosed car. Since our attempt of a birthday dinner had flopped miserably last night, we did the next best thing and celebrated with Crescent

City’s idea of Chinese delicacy.

With the experiences of the night behind us, our next stop was Wal-Mart to stock up on long underwear, hats and mittens for the cold night ahead of us. We bought out the entire winter-wear section (not very expansive during summer); there was a knit Oakland Raiders hat, a bright pink pair of gloves and a white headband. With our new knitted loot, sandwich bread and ginger snaps Martina couldn’t possibly live without, we headed out of Crescent City back towards our campsite in Trinidad. Along the way, we stopped by a state beach and collected a good amount of driftwood in the setting sunlight. We planned to use this for a campfire because we felt $8 was a bit exorbitant for a small bundle of gas station wood. California had one last surprise for us this evening; we rounded a bend in the road and hit our brakes to avoid a herd of 12 – 15 elk contemplating a road crossing. Most of them were females along with a couple young bucks with velvet on their antlers.

We had a much warmer night this time around thanks to a raging campfire and multiple clothing layers. No joke – Stephanie wore 2 pairs of socks, long underwear plus pajama pants, 6 layers on top and the white woolen headband, while Martina braved the cold with only 1 pair of socks, her cuddle-duds and pajama pants, seven layers on top, her Raider’s hat and the pink pair of gloves. We both slept snugger than two bugs in a rug!!