Redwoods
Park 8 | June 2018
Redwoods National Park is the past and present home of the Yurok, Tolowa, Hupa, and Karuk, who have inhabited the redwood forests of California’s North Coast for thousands of years. In 2024, the Yoruk Tribe entered into a historic agreement to acquire land in this region to manage their own historical park, O’ Rew Redwoods Gateway.
Part + Park 2 (of 3) on the birthdaymoon road trip.
After spending a couple days in San Francisco, we opted to take the long way north along the Pacific Coast: Iconic Highway 1. It was a perfectly sunny day, turning the Pacific a brilliant cerulean punctuated with the crisp white of the sea froth as waves rocked back and forth against the cliffs. We stayed at Sue-meg State Park (previously known as Patrick’s Point). After dinner, we walked a short trail to an outcropping over the ocean to watch the sunset, equipped with wine in our camping mugs and Ghirardelli chocolate from the factory in San Francisco in our pockets. We still regularly count that sunset as one of the most memorable we’ve witnessed together: The sea peaceful and calm, the sky awash with golden light, the wind gentle against our faces.
The next day we drove to the redwoods and I struggle to have words to describe how I felt there. It’s a spiritual place, each tree its own cathedral, its roots interlaced with those of each neighboring tree. The hum of the world quieted as we walked on the soft red ground. We observed banana slugs and garter snakes, spiderwebs and walls of ferns. The air was heavy with the smell of tree: earthy and rich and mildly sweet. It was as if time stopped when we were there, something that feels increasingly rare.
We spent the majority of the day weaving in and out of the trees, exploring nearby Fern Canyon, and marveling at my first sighting of elk on a rocky beach. We eventually reluctantly took our leave so we could make it to our campsite near the mouth of the Klamath River that evening, but it remains a place that left a deep and lasting impression on us both.
Pictured below:
Ocean views from the Pacific Coast Highway.
Campground and sunset at Sue-meg State Park, California.
Redwoods National Park, California.
Klamath River Overlook, California.
