The Road to Petrolia! The Lost Coast! My brother knows all the good spots up here. He has lived up this way for the past 13 years and knows all the roads, scenic views, ins and outs etc of Humboldt County. He took us through Ferndale and then we hit this road for a little drive. This road is pretty rough. Potholes, uneven ground, gravel, 2 lanes turning into 1, bumps etc. If you have a 4wd, you will be fine. We had a Chevy Sonic rental car, and my mom was bitching and complaining about the bumps the whole way up lol. You know what though? It was worth every single bump and bruise done to the car and our asses! This road is absolutely beautiful! It's a windy road that goes for about 40 miles. We didn't take it the whole way, but did go about 20 miles on it. Took us about an hour in, mostly uphill (we stopped to snap a lot of pictures!), and only about 30 minutes coming out, mostly downhill. This drive had everything! Beautiful scenery at every turn. Cows roaming freely in the fields, tons of beautiful ferns, bushes, trees etc. You would go from high up the hills, through thick fog, down into clear skies where you could see for miles and miles. I'm telling you, this road had EVERYTHING! We wound up down by the beach and stopped to take in the sights. Absolutely stunning! Appropriately named "The Lost Coast" due to nothing being developed out this way, no main highways/roads that connect to these small communities along this road. If I won the lotto, I would buy a house up this way. Nobody for miles and miles! If you have some time, I would highly, and I mean HIGHLY recommend this drive. Off the top of my head, I can't think of a more scenic drive that I have encountered in my 39 years on Earth. It was beyond beautiful and I'm glad my brother took us on this path. read more

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Rough road, best taken in something with some suspension travel to cushion out the bumps. I took it in my mildly lifted Samurai which was perfect. Take your time and be careful through all the blind curves. SPECTACULAR views, some of the best I found in a weekend that includes Highway 36, Crescent City and plenty of redwoods. The view of the coast and beaches was a wonderful treat. I will be printing pictures from this trip. read more

Mattole Road - Local Flavor Near Me - Ferndale, California

The Lost Coast is a mostly undeveloped section of the California North Coast in Mendocino and Humboldt Counties, which includes the King Range. It was named the "Lost Coast" after the area experienced depopulation in the 1930s. In addition, the steepness and related geo-technical challenges of the coastal mountains made this stretch of coastline too costly for state highway or county road builders to establish routes through the area, leaving it the most undeveloped portion of the California coast. The region roughly spans from Rockport to Ferndale. At the south end, State Route 1, which runs very close along the coast for most of its length, instead turns inland at Rockport before merging with U.S. Route 101 at Leggett. At the north end, State Route 211 begins its journey at Ferndale, heading towards Highway 101 in Fernbridge. Section 511 of the California Streets and Highways Code still says that "Route 211 is from Route 1 near Rockport to Route 101 near Fernbridge", but it is very unlikely that the portion south of Ferndale will ever get built. Gayle and I once took Mattole Road south from Ferndale, through the Lost Coast and Petrolia, and finally out. Make sure that you have plenty of gasoline in the car, good tires, and a a full compliment of power steering and other fluids. The scenery is stunning, the road is narrow, the curves are often sharp, the elevation changes frequently, and except for a few ranches, there's no civilization on any side of Petrolia. This is one of the best scenic drives ever. Getting "Lost" never felt so good. read more

I can't believe I'm Yelping a road (actually this is my second "Yelped road"...see: http://www.yelp.com/biz/pinto-ridge-road-aka-stratford-road-moses-lake#hrid:Ac0ZrvXhvxuv4JEQT63tig)! "Anyways", I say in my Nacho Libre voice. There are many scenic drives out there (Pacific Coast Highway, the Columbia River Gorge, etc.), but this one is on the top of my list. You have everything with this drive. You start out by driving through the nice little Victorian town of Ferndale to get to it, and then you pass the big "Cape Town --- Petrolia sign", and then you are on your way. You're on Mattole Road and on your way to the Lost Coast (http://www.yelp.com/biz/king-range-national-conservation-area-the-lost-coast-whitethorn). Within seconds you are whisked up a ridge overlooking Ferndale proper and its huge cemetary, and within a few minutes--that's it, no more civilization. From here on in, you are left to a narrowly paved road with generally no centerline stripe. You are left to your wits to manuever the many hairpins, bunny jumps, and vista points. Pot holes and missing parts of the road are common place. I love this drive. One passes a farm house or cow pasture here and there, and then for a while you are on top of the King's range zipping through grassy hilltops (I always think of Ireland or Scotland during this stretch), and then you drive down a mountain with a several-switch-backed stretch of asphalt---there must have been a road bike race here, because on the road are painted inspirational words like: "you can do it, dad!", "You're almost on top, don't puke!" This part of the road reminds me of a scene from the Alps in the Tour de France. Then you make it down to the valley of Bear River, for a mile of low-riding, and then it is back up (it has to be close 40 degrees of vertical climbing). Once again you are up on top of the King's Range. This is where you get the epic view. The view of the Pacific. The panoramic view of the Lost Coast. The memory-maker of vista points along the Lost Coast's Wildcat Ridge. Here is Cape Mendocino. This stretch of road is the climax. Here the wind will blow in your hair. You will see your first long stretch of the Lost Coast. As quickly as it appeared, you quickly jet down Wildcat Ridge, and then drive as close as close gets to the water. For six glorious miles, you drive among the breakers, sea rocks, sand, and ocean spray. This road is bumpy, but it has character. This road is narrow, but it has width. I'm glad this Coast is Lost. It should stay that way, until I find it next. read more

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Alright, I'm going to give this 5 stars because the views are spectacular and I love a good drive. However, PLEASE read my warnings below before attempting this road... 1.) Bring a vehicle that you don't mind trashing the suspension on, preferably a rental car. I brought my 2012 Lexus. While the car handled the road well, I feel like I have degraded the life of the suspension by about 20,000 miles. The road surface on Mattole Road is AWFUL. It's absolutely full of potholes throughout the entire journey. 2.) Bring a clear head. The pothole dodging is mentally taxing. 3.) Bring a lot of free time. Although this road looks relatively short, it can take about four hours to complete. 4.) Don't be afraid to pee in the wild. If you are the kind of person who needs the comfort of a restroom, forget it. 5.) Bring snacks or lunch. There are lots of nice places to enjoy the view while eating lunch, but there is basically nowhere to buy food once you leave Ferndale. Petrolia has a little general store, but don't expect much. 6.) Keep in mind that if the weather sucks, you're not going to see much. This road can be challenging during wet or foggy weather, particularly as you gain altitude and find yourself driving through the middle of a cloud. And once you descend down to the ocean, it can be cold, wet, and breezy. I imagine this would be a much more enjoyable drive on a clear and sunny day. All in all, Mattole Road is a unique experience and something that should not be missed if you are in Humboldt County. read more

Amazing amazing... Be sure to plan ahead as this drive is not for the faint of heart. Make sure you have plenty of gas, water and if you can stop along the way being a picnic and enjoy the views. Do NOT take your sports car. The road is VERY rough, potholes are the norm not the exception, I actually found one very small pothole free section. There are several places with no pavement, just gravel, some of it is like a washboard. So if you are still game you need to go. You cannot beat the beauty of the mountains, rugged coastline, the valleys and meadows below. You will probably see some deer up in the mountains. You will be in awe the entire trip. The prestine mountains and coast is simply awe inspiring. It's a trip you will never forget!!! read more

Go here with a vehicle that can handle off-roading, a full tank of gas, and time to spare. This is one of the most beautiful areas on any coast in The States. If you appreciate a good view, you'll love it here. read more

I completely agree that this road, it's scenery receives 5 stars. I did it as part of a bike ride, "Unknown Coast" organized by Chico Velo. It was the most awesome ride I've ever done. One could think of it as a cross-training ride because some of the road are so steep that I had to walk a bit. We very much lucked out with the weather. The views, beach, river were stunning. The road, particularly the section between Capetown and the Coast is very rough. It's a very steep climb up from Capetown towards the coast. I rode the road coming from Petrolia towards Capetown and some of the switchbacks and descents were hair- raising with very rough, bumpy road. Parts of the road feel like it went through an earth-quake and has become a roller-coaster. A section of the road between Ferndale and Capetown is gone and becomes gravel. It's not very long but it's a surprise if one is not aware going downhill. The section that is in Humboldt Redwoods State Park is very peaceful and beautiful even if you pass through in the fog. This section is close to Hway 101. If one comes from 101 (south of Ferndale) then the Mattole Rd. is marked. Take some time to get out of the car (or of your bike) to spend a few minutes amongst these Giants. read more

wanted to visit ferndale, ca. and also find a place to take a little run nearby. after asking the locals, finally decided to head out mattole road towards cape mendocino. the weather was spectacular. after climbing through forrested area for about 10 miles, finally came out to beautiful rolling but steep hills overlooking the ocean. the view was breathtaking-one of those fantastically beautiful views that make you want to get down on your knees and be thankful for your very life to be able to experience. had to stop the car right in the road and start taking pixs. continued down to cape mendocino down the narrow poorly paved road that ended at the ocean. looking back there was cape mendocino with an immense seastack rock just offshore. this was the westernmost point of the continental us. parked the car just outside a farm at sealevel, and started up what is probably about a 40 degree pitch for the first quarter mile or so. then it continued to climb more gradually until it crested at probably 1500 feet. ran for about 3 mi. total and then turned around. i thought i would get back in time to watch the sunset, but miscalculated. instead as i descended, just as cape mendocino came into sight, the huge golden globe of the sun descended into the ocean. as i saw this, i heard the sudden noise of a large animal just next to me off the road. knowing that cougars hunt their prey at sunrise and sunset, i was immediately on guard. what i saw though again made me be thankful for being alive. next to me and just ahead of me and bounding with huge graceful leaps was a doe. it didn't race ahead but stayed just in front of me for about a quarter of a mile. the combination of the the sunset and the doe was an experience of a life. thank you mattole road. i only hope that others can experience this beautiful remote area and feel the same feelings i felt that day. read more