Visiting the Redwoods in California!!

After the great visit to Crater Lake it was time to move on down the coast to see the Redwoods. We stopped in Crescent City, California and stayed at the Village Camper Inn. It's a nice campground with plenty of shade. California is our 12^th state to visit on our trip and the coast and redwoods are really something to see. Crescent City has some beautiful coast and we enjoyed seeing the ocean. The fog was heavy on our drive down the coast and you were really deprived of seeing the ocean the majority of the time. But when you did see the ocean, the views were really fantastic. There was a tsunami in March 2011 that hit the coast of Crescent City with an 8ft surge of the ocean. We ate at a restaurant at the harbor and saw pictures of the tsunami damage. The restaurant wasn't damaged but the docks and boats were washed ashore. There is a piece of the old dock where sea lions and seals now gather. It was neat to eat and watch the sea lions and seals from our table.

If you want to read more about the tsunami, click on the link below
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2011/03/11/national/main20042243.shtml

The Redwood National and State Parks are really great. The groves of redwoods are mostly named after people who have either donated or given the area to the park system. The park is very big and runs down the coast of California, so there are many areas to visit. Some of the places to visit are private, like Tour of Tree, which you drive thru and Trees of Mystery, with some very large trees. We did several of the Scenic drives, the coastal Drive Loop, which takes you by the old World War II radar station, disguised as a humble farmhouse and barn. The fog was so thick we could not see the coast that day. We also drove the Newton B. Drury Scenic Parkway which takes you by some of the redwoods, some close to 2000 years old. There are also some nice trailheads which gave us some nice views of the redwood forest. You really don't get the whole effect as to the size of the redwoods unless you get out there and walk among them. It is really fantastic!! On our way down the coast to our next campground in Ukiah we drove the Avenue of the Giants a 32 mile scenic drive. It has the largest remaining old growth coast redwood forest in the world. This scenic drive you can take your camper on, the others are not for campers.

Overall a great visit to the Redwood National and State Parks. Put this place on you bucket list of places to visit. Also Hwy 101 would be a great ride on a motorcycle.