"and we are now in the Redwoods!"

We are now in California and in the redwoods.  The coast is not quite as spectacular as the Oregon coast but it is still quite beautiful.  Night before last we spent the night in Crescent City, just over the Oregon border.  I was telling someone from Oregon about my opinion of North Bend, Oregon (the armpit of the Oregon coast), and she said that Crescent City, California would make North Bend, Oregon look nice.  I think perhaps she really evidenced the strong anti-California bias most of Oregon has towards California.  Crescent City was pleasant in comparison to North Bend. Crescent City is not a Carmel, or La Jolla, but it was pleasant.  It’s only blemish was the steak dinner we had.  I think we “enjoyed” the most durable steak I can remember.  I could not finish it. 

Friday we rode from Crescent City to Arcata, California.  This meant we would ride through Prairie Creek State Park.  Prairie Creek State Park was one of my favorite places to visit and camp when I was young and my family would spend their summer vacations camping their way up the Pacific coast.  One of my most spectacular childhood memories was watching two bull Roosevelt elk dual and fight and clash antlers for about 45 minutes over a small herd of cows.  I was really looking forward to seeing the herds of elk again.

Friday’s ride was 75 miles and 4500 feet of climbing.  A good portion of that climb was right out of Crescent City, before we had a chance to warm up.  It was a heck of a way to warm up.  I also had one of my closest encounters with a semi-truck.  An eighteen wheeler passing you at 55 mph about 24 inches off your left shoulder while you are laboring up a hill with no room to go to the right is downright scary.  That has been my closest encounter of the trip, not fun.  After the climb we descended to the coast and took a quick break on the coast.  The northern California coast is beautiful.  This has been a spectacular ride.

After the coastal break, we rode through Del Norte Coast Redwood State Park.  This is where I learned that one of the primary goals for Jim was to see the redwoods.  And his goal was met, he was loving the redwoods.  The California coastal redwoods are not as big in diameter as the giant sequoias in the California Sierra mountains, and in Sequoia national park.  But the coastal redwoods are taller, and they require a wetter environment to thrive.  They also grow a bit closer together, and  the combination of growing close and growing tall and growing very, very big makes for a very dark ride through the forest when you are in the middle of a grove of giants.

After the Del Norte Coast Redwood State Park and a few more miles south down the road, we arrived at the north end of Prairie Creek State Park.  We were also diverted off of 101 and we were able to ride through the park on a smaller, less trafficked road.  The trees were spectacular, but it was so dark and so damp that we found ourselves really, really cold, but still the ride was quite beautiful.  Huge, tall trees; green ferns; the moist smell of the deep forest; it was very sensory. 

After about ten miles of riding in the dark forest, we emerged into the sunlight and the meadows where the herds of elk were when I was a child visiting Prairie Creek State Park.  Just about every 10 yards there was a sign posted that either said, “Elk Meadow”, or “Elk are wild”, or “Dangerous, Do Not Approach the Elk” and other similar signs.  Everything was there … except the elk.  I was highly, highly disappointed.  Oh well, ride on.

After Prairie Creek we were back on 101 and heading for the coast.  We took a break overlooking Trinidad Bay, very nice and then headed south.  Our route again diverted off on 101 and onto a road that paralleled the beach.  But after a few miles the pavement became really rough, and then became gravel, and then became single track climbing back up the bluff.  We were on the wrong type of bikes to be riding single track.  Once we got to the top of the bluff, we found a break in the fence and got back on 101.  The rest of the ride into Arcata was very nice and uneventful, through coastal farmland.  And Arcata was a very cool college town and we had burgers and beer at a local brew pub.