Glenn County Hike

Wetlands Walk Trail

Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge

May 2017

CA Counties Hiked in 2017: 4/58

Lisa was in Chicago for a long weekend visiting family, so we decided to drive north a little ways to look for wildlife and hike a few trails. Our first stop was the Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge. After driving the auto tour to observe many birds, we hiked part of the Wetlands Walk Trail. It was very hot for a May afternoon and the views played tricks on our minds as we could see snow capped mountains not that far off to the north and west. 

Mendocino County Hike

No Trail

Smithe Redwoods State Reserve ? 

April 15, 2017

California Counties Hiked in 2017: 3/58

We wanted to hike one last county during our spring break week in the coastal redwoods of northern California, and Mendocino County made the most sense. Looking at the map, it appeared that we would drive right by Smithe Redwoods State Reserve on our way back to Roseville. After looking online, the park seemed like a perfect place for one last hike through a redwood grove.

Not trusting the map alone, I decided to use GPS to guide us to the park. When we arrived according to my GPS, an unsigned side road led into the redwoods. However, it was completely blocked by a temporary orange fence. The road didn't have any signs and the traditional sign announcing the State Reserve was also missing. 

There was a small unmarked parking area not far from what would appear to be the entrance to the Smithe Redwoods and we pulled over to consider our options. Both the map and GPS said we were at the right spot, but the reserve's website didn't say anything about the park being closed for any reason. It was too late to research another plan (Lisa was waiting at home with everything needed to color our Easter Eggs), so we decided to go off trail and hike through the redwood forest in front of us that was calling our names. 

It was the right decision since we didn't see any "No Trespassing" signs because we had the grove all to ourselves. I've written before that hiking through redwoods is one of the best places to push Kellisa because of the total lack of roots, rocks, and undergrowth. It's a pushiking dream! In fact, Laurel pushed Kellisa from start to finish on our hike. 

Del Norte County Hike

River Trail

Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park

April 14, 2017

CA Counties Hiked in 2017: 2/58

Del Norte is a small county in the far NW of California along the Pacific Ocean, a place where giant redwood trees thrive below 2,000ft. due to the heavy winter rains and mild summers. When we first visited the area, we didn't hike in Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park. Instead, we decided to hike through one of the farthest north groves of redwoods in southern Oregon because at that point in the summer of 2014, Laurel had never visited Oregon and the girls needed to hike in the "Beaver State" as part of our Hike in all 50 States Project. 

The rain fell at a constant rate as we drove along the rugged northern California coast. The road varied from sky scrapping redwood groves to cliffs dropping away to the rocky Pacific far below. 

Humboldt County Hike

Owen R. Cheatham Grove

Grizzly Creek Redwoods State Park 

April 12, 2017

CA Counties hiked in 2017: 1/58

We knew we wanted to start hiking in all 58 counties in California, but we had no idea where to start as the girls started their Spring Break. It was already getting hot in the southern California Desert Counties, plus those are the farthest and we had a late start to the week off due to Laurel's participation in the 2017 Sacramento Doggy Dash. Most of the central valley counties were flooded from the unusually high amount of rain that has fallen in the last few months and most recreation areas are closed. The Sierra Nevada counties are still covered in snow measured by the feet and rain was forecast for much of the rest of the state during our week off in April. 

We turned our attention to the far northwest of California which is known for it's Redwood Forests. Yes, rain was predicted for every single day, but the temperatures would be reasonable and we knew that we would not have to deal with snow or a long drive. The girls are desperate to go camping since it's been well over a year since we've gone, but with all the rain in the forecast, I decided to get us a hotel in Eureka for the week to use as our dry base camp. 

We had no idea when we picked this trail, but some of you (Star Wars enthusiasts) may recognize the picture above or some of the pictures below as the redwood forest where the famous Speeder Bike Scene in Return of the Jedi was filmed. Laurel was anxious to share this fact with the "boys" at school who love the Star Wars movies. For those interested, we've posted the chase scene below.