Using this website- "The Official Travel Site of Humboldt County"- we rented a house for the…read moreweekend. The house we rented was- vacation house in the redwoods- listed number one under vacation rentals for avenue of the redwoods. The owners accepted our deposit, sent us written confirmation and then one week before our planned vacation called and told us they made a mistake and had rented it to someone else that weekend. Total, complete flakes who should not be running a business.

There is so much I didn't know about Humboldt County. The Humboldt County Convention and Visitors…read moreBureau provides so much information so I know where to take my family and friends when they visit. I even found some new favorite spots for myself in Humboldt. There is so much to explore.

As a local I really enjoy shopping at the Humboldt Hometown Store. I Love that it's the old bank (…read moreearly 1900's), still has the original teller windows & bank fault! Fun fact: Guy Fieri owns the building and you can even buy autographed Guy merch there. What I truly like about this shop, It's a great place to buy locally made, unique affordable items. The variety of hand-crafted things to buy is amazing, I can truly gift shop for my whole family in one spot! There's also a great selection of locally made food items, one my favorite tea blends (wildn'wise) is at Humboldt Hometown store. We recently tried The new Escape Room while our friends were visiting. Everyone (4 adults, 3 teens) had a blast trying to escape, we made it out with 2mins to spare! I definitely recommend checking this place out if your just visiting Ferndale, for unique one of a kind items or a totally fun indoor experience! :)

I love all the locally made crafts! I never leave this store without buying a handful of beautiful…read morewares.

What a lovely drive. Even if you are not getting out and walking or camping in the park, the drive…read morealong Avenue of the Giants, which parallels Hwy 101, lets you experience the majesty. If you had someone in the car who was of limited mobility, the drive through is a must! The Avenue goes through the Redwood State Park. Within the park are opportunities for camping, walking, and river access. You can see the river from the Avenue drive.

Avenue of the giants is a great way to drive along the freeway with a more scenic route. It was…read morebeautiful and gorgeous drive and they have stops that you can go to for view points. I suggest you go early to avoid crowds if you want to get to every site and not have toooo much traffic. Also Make sure to get the map at the first stop so you can read about each stop and decide which ones ha wanna go to.

I visited Humboldt State Park on the first weekend of Spring, and spent most of my visit on the…read moreNorth Bull Creek Trail (8 miles round trip). My destination was the Tall Tree, and I passed miles of banana slugs, moss, lichen, spring wildflowers, and the refreshing surge of Bull Creek with its turquoise hues. The park was far from crowded, and I was pleasantly surprised to see Park Staff tending the maintenance needs (weed abatement). I felt safe & incredibly relaxed on the trail. There are over 100 miles of trail in this park and plenty of river access, providing something for everyone. If you only drive through the Avenue of the Giants, it will be time well spent in this gorgeous paradise.

As with many of the California State Parks this park is a jewel not to be missed. For starters,…read moreadmission is FREE! The many old growth redwood groves are interesting and beautiful to saunter through. Way finding is easy and park maps and internet resources make for a wonderful road trip. Visitor centers are well stocked, have clean bathrooms with ample parking. Volunteer staff are well informed and helpful. Trails are well marked and very clean. Surprising lack of random trash so volunteers and visitors do a great job. We have learned over the past few years to avoid the crowds and cost of visiting National Parks in California when we are truly blessed with such exceptional California park options. This park is amazing and fascinating with manageable visitor sizes. Take the time to experience the area small towns too!

This was our first stop while exploring the Redwoods Parks, and I'm so glad we came here! The park…read morerangers were incredibly helpful and provided tons of useful information. They took the time to recommend hikes based on what we were looking for whether easy or more challenging, which made planning our day so much easier. One ranger even let us know that a couple of the trails we had planned to visit were actually closed due to an event. That alone saved us a lot of time and hassle, which is why I definitely recommend stopping by a visitor center first to check what's open before heading out. They also have restrooms and a small gift shop, which is a nice bonus. Overall, this stop really helped us make the most of our trip!

This is a nice but small facility compared to other NP visitor centers. The staff were friendly…read moreand there is quite a bit of information here. They also have a movie room that has an informational video playing continuously. They also have a small gift shop to grab things to remember your trip. There quite a bit of parking available and if you go early it will be nearly vacant.

Beautiful scenery…read more There are so many different areas to go and see. All in different cities. The Redwood National Forest spans over a great distance. I drove from San Francisco. To see everything, I had to stay in a hotel overnight. With the exception of driving through carved out tress, all the sites are free. Driving through trees was $15 at each of the 3 sites I visited. There are several rest stop areas while driving to and from there.

You had me at tallest trees in the world…read more Visiting this park feels like stepping into an ancient, enchanted realm where towering trees hush the wind and misty trails invite quiet awe. It's humbling, cinematic, and deeply restorative. Here's what makes this experience unforgettable: Home to the tallest trees on the planet, some stretching 370 feet and have stood for more than 2,000 years. Walking among them feels surreal, like wandering through a cathedral built by nature. Filtered sunlight, moss-draped trunks, and the scent of damp earth create a sensory-rich almost spiritual atmosphere. Fern Canyon is a must, a lush gorge with 50-foot walls blanketed in prehistoric ferns, famously featured in Jurassic Park. Other trails range from gentle strolls to challenging backcountry hikes, revealing old-growth forests, and coastal bluffs. The park isn't just forests. It embraces the northern California coast, with driftwood-strewn beaches and many areas remain quiet, offering a rare kind of solitude. Fun facts: best time to visit is Summer for best weather and accessibility, and there's no entrance fee. If you're drawn to places that blend grandeur with intimacy this park will linger long after you've left.

Humboldt Lagoons State Park is on the Redwood Coast between Orick and Trinidad. There are three…read morelagoons - Big Lagoon, Stone Lagoon, and Freshwater Lagoon. These lagoons are a collection of landlocked waters right on the coast but protected from the Pacific Ocean. You can rent kayaks and paddleboards at Stone Lagoon Visitor Center. I stopped by Stone Lagoon to rest after a long day of driving to chill and relax.

We had such an amazing time at the state park. Great scenery with rock formations. The…read morewashed up driftwood was good. We had such a great time looking for agate and different types of rocks. Great stop.

We did a beautiful 2.2 mile loop from the visitor center at Prarie Creek Foothills/Trailhead. It…read morewas a very easy hike and still beautiful. We were able to see Big Tree! Would do it again.

We drove here per a recommendation from someone we talked to where we were camping. We hadn't been…read morehere before and it really was worth checking out! Gorgeous big trees and the information center was awesome as well. Something for everyone visiting here and I did a lot of walking and forest bathing. We visited the "Big Tree".

Fern Canyon, within the Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park, is one of the most stunning natural…read moreattractions you will ever see. A one mile loop hike through a canyon with 20-foot walls covered in at least 7 different species of ferns? It's mind-blowing. And film-makers agree; one of the Jurassic Park movies was filmed here and I can see why. It's like going back in time to pre-meteor days, when dinosaurs roamed the Earth. Pictures truly don't do justice to the sense of awe and wonder you'll experience visiting Fern Canyon. The trail is basically the creek bottom. Planks are placed over the creek to keep your feet dry but you may still get wet in certain places. Wear rubber boots or waterproof shoes. Take a good camera and be mindful that there is no cell phone service in the Canyon itself (there is spotty service on the beach nearby). It's a bit of a drive out to the trailhead and yes, there are a couple of creek crossings, but nothing too crazy in summer months. (My SUV-wannabe car made it just fine.) You must reserve a permit ahead of time during the summer months; the "day-ahead" reservations are gone right at 9 am daily, so set your alarm. It will be worth it. https://www.nps.gov/redw/planyourvisit/ferncanyonpermits.htm Grateful indeed for the California State Park system which preserves national treasures such as Fern Canyon.

Beautiful short walk !! Amazing views! Not very long, some construction occurring at the end…read morebuilding some additional walkways