No more rain overnight, but still a dull and foggy start to the day. After breakfast we (Lyn) packed up a lunch and off we went. There are two main areas of Redwoods left, one that we drove through on the way here, and one to the north of us, that’s where we are headed.
Before we got to the redwoods we stopped off at Fern Canyon. The road into the canyon was the worst road I think we have traveled on (including those in Scotland!). The potholes were enormous and very difficult to see due to the shadows on the road. At the end of a tortuous 6 mile drive we arrived at a little hut belonging to the local State Park authority, where they want to charge us for the privilege of nearly wrecking our suspension on their roads! Luck was on our side as this was one of the few State Parks that accepted a National Parks Pass. Thanks to our friends Alan and Marie, who we met in Alaska last year, we had the required pass; they bought one which was good for a year and donated it to us when they flew home. Thanks guys!
This area is famous for its herds of Roosevelt Elk, and almost immediately upon entering the area we saw two of them at the side of the road.
Unfortunately these were the only ones we saw, we were hoping to see the males with the large antlers.
We drove another couple of miles to the parking lot for Fern Canyon, and started out on a walk where, surprisingly, there were ferns.
and even a few toadstools
The walk was invigorating, plenty of ups and downs some mud and towards the end plenty of water.
The wall looped around, and then descended onto the canyon floor.
The walk was interesting along the stream, in many places bridges were created using fallen trees. Along the canyon walls many areas were moss covered with water trickling down.
Plenty of clear cool water.
Remains of a landslide on the way out
Next item on the trip was the redwoods. These are the largest trees on earth, growing up to 300 ft tall and 20 ft across at the base; they can live for up to 2000 years.
Once we had driven for about 9 miles through the redwoods we headed off to the beach for some lunch and a little more exercise.
At the entrance to the beach was a large bench seat made from an old tree root.
A little further round the coast were some bluffs with a view along the rugged coastline
Our final stop was at Trinidad where there was a memorial lighthouse that had been restored by the local community.
The weather could have been better, but it also could have been a lot worse.
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