03-16-22 Crescent City, California (Day Trip

03-16-22 Crescent City, California (Day Trip - Grove of the Titans)

- March 20, 2022

03-16-22 Wednesday

Crescent City, California

Crescent City

Jeeps in Parking Lot: 2

Drive Time: 0

Miles: 0

Arrived: 0

Woke up to a beautiful morning. Simple breakfast of cereal and a banana. Cleaned up a bit and ready to explore the Redwoods. We stopped by the KOA office to let them know our cable signal was very snowy and the cable line had water in it. Also asked about the channels. The channels listed on the paper with the map of the park is wrong. The woman behind the counter says they change cable providers often so it’s never right....uuummmm. No comment from me. We bought a couple of nice lightweight jackets and off to the National Park Visitor Center in Crescent City.

Zoom in for details

At the visitor center I got my passport stamp and purchased a few stickers for my passport book. The Ranger behind the counter pulled out a map and showed us how to get to Howland Road and some ideas for hikes in the area. One he told us about was a hike to the ‘Grove of Titans.’ This hike has not been open long and park is still working on some of it. He also told us to be sure to take the Newton B. Drury Scenic Parkway off 101. It was worth the detour off 101. We headed out with a plan to drive Howland Road and take the hike to the 'Grove of Titans.'

It was an easy drive to Howland Road from the NP Visitor Center. Howland Road turns into gravel after you pass through a gate and is 13 miles long. The road is a single lane road with turnouts. Our jeep did a great job navigating the road. It’s hard to explain the wonder and awe you feel while driving through this area. Mother Nature has once again left us speechless. The rivers, moss hanging from the trees, the quiet you hear when turning off the jeep motor, light filtering through the trees. Such untouched beauty as Barry stated during our drive.

As we slowly made the drive, we looked for landmarks on the map the ranger gave us so we could stop and take pictures. We didn’t talk much but enjoyed the drive and the huge trees. We finally came to the trail marker for the ‘Grove of Titans.’ We parked, threw on our day packs, and started our hike.

The hike was about one and a half miles on a wet and windy trail with a gradual climb to the top along with a few switchbacks. Moss laden trees, fungi growing on trees, ferns and what looked like clover covered the grounds all mixed with stunning scenery and fresh crisp clean air. It was nothing short of amazing.

At a certain point we went from hiking on the ground to raised steel platforms. We made it to the grove and ran into a ranger. She explained to us the park decided to install these to protect the forest floor and the area around the ‘Grove of Titans.’ She was drilling in these small yellow plates on the platforms to help with depth perception. They had people complaining about it. She was standing next to one of the Titans and it was absolutely amazing how huge this tree is. An astonishing site. We hiked a little further up to see the other Titans. As I write this, I find it hard to explain how I felt at the moment standing next to these giants. I never imagined how large these trees truly are.

There are two small plaques on the top of the railings of a platform by the Titans. One plaque has a brass image of a banana slug, and the other was of a marmot. The plaques briefly explained how important these animals are to the forest. I was impressed by this, and the brass has not started turning green yet. What a beautiful idea. I have never seen anything like this in other National Parks.

There was a small side path that led to a platform overlooking the river. On the rail was a plaque with a small brass statue of a Coho Salmon. From this view you could see upriver. The water was so clear you could see the bottom. All we could hear was the water flowing.

This slug was about 4 inches long

We started back down the hill and saw a few banana slugs. What a great hike and one we will always remember. Hiking through this forest is humbling and again Mother Nature is quite the proprietor of our planet.

Another five miles on the road and we were back on pavement. We drove out of the park and a few miles to Hiouchi Visitor Center, and I was able to get another passport stamp. It was 4:30 and we were hungry so we searched for a place to eat. We found a brewery in Crescent City, Port ‘O’ Pints but what a dive bar so we left. Drove to SeaQuake over by the water. Great place and the food was excellent. Beer, cider. calamari and a pizza. Bought a 4 pack of cider and headed out. We drove to the pier and walked to the end. We could see SeaQuake from here.

Back at the RV Barry lit the firepit and made us smores. I was writing so he brought it to me. Have I said before how much I this guy? Night all.

ADDITIONAL PHOTOS OF THE DAY

SeaQuake is the blue and gray building

This was one of my favorite areas. This tree had fallen and the path had to be diverted around it. It broke in half and this portion was about 75 feet in length. It was between 12 to 15 feet high.

Burned from the inside

Same tree as above

This photo is a great example of how an old fallen tree is
the base for new growth. We saw this all throughout the woods.
Even ferns sprouted on the fallen trees.