Redwood National Park and its Ancient Giants

On August 31st, we spent the day at Redwood National and State Parks. At first, we did some small hikes to the Stout Grove and Grove of the Giants. Entering the redwood forest was impressive and it’s hard to put the experience in words or capture it in pictures. The huge, tall trees tower over lots of fern, bushes, and the red-brown soil. Some of them are up to 2000 years old! The fog coming from the coast makes it look somehow mysterious. Plus, it also brings the humidity for this ancient rainforest. All in all, it makes you walk in silent awe between these gigantic trees. There’s even a “forest in a forest”, as huckleberries, ferns etc. grow on the thick branches, where soil accumulated over time.

We continued driving along the Howland Hill Road, which is a narrow road winding through the redwoods. Unfortunately, we didn’t get a permit to drive to Fern Canyon by car, so instead, we took the long hike there via the James Irvine Trail and the Miner’s Ridge Trail back. We had to hurry, because it was already afternoon. It only took us a bit more than 4 hours for 20 km and almost 900 m elevation gain. And it was worth it. Fern Canyon lives up to its name with its walls covered all over with ferns. A couple of banana slugs were crawling along the way, and once you see them you know why they’re called like that. Part of the path also leads along the coast, where we could see pelicans and even a male elk with beautiful antlers while the waves were crashing next to us. We spent the night at the Flint Ridge backcountry camp. It’s only a short walk there, but after all the hiking we did that day, our legs were glad when we finally arrived.

The next day, we woke up to a nasty surprise. Apparently, somebody tried to break into the car and left an ugly impact in a window. We reported it to the park rangers and they even called an officer to have a look, but of course, they couldn’t really do anything as nothing was stolen. Fortunately, it was no problem at all when we returned the car later because the insurance covered it. Phew!