Day 4: Overlooks and Mesmerizing Roads

Today we tackled a mix of things.  We are only here for a couple more days, so we wanted to squeeze in as much as possible.  To kick things off, we made the long drive back up into the park along Highway 101.  We headed off down Requa Road to wind our way up a 500 to 600 ft. hill to the Klamath River Overlook.  The neat thing about this location is that it offers one of the few, rare spots in the entire area where you can see miles in all directions.  Besides being able to see the beginning of the Coastal Trail to the north, one also has a magnificent view of the shoreline to the south.  From the parking lot at the peak, there is a little trail that heads off down the hill to an outward spot that sits closer to the ocean.  It was only a half-mile trek, but it was a 300 ft elevation change.  While the picture opportunity was pretty amazing out at this location, the walk back up was grueling to say the least.

After pausing for some snacks (and our breath) up in the parking lot, we headed back on our way.  Today we were bent on making it to the furthest northern reach of the park, the Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park.  Aside from offering another unique scenic drive and various hiking trails, this park was located east of Crescent City and was home to many beautiful rivers.  And of course, the park was the home a couple old growth stands, one of which we were aiming to see today.

What we didn't actually plan for was the road heading into and through the park.  We didn't take the scenic route via Howland Hill Road; rather, we followed 101 up through town and eventually hopped onto Highway 199.  While we were intending to stop at a roadside lot to jump onto the Stout Grove trail, we ended up missing the target entirely.  The highway, you see, was incredible.  It wound its way up through hills and into a beautiful section of redwood forest.  Quite literally, we were mesmerized.  It was similar to the deep, lush stand of forest we had hiked through two days prior, though we were driving through this one.  The road was wet and the air was damp.  The windshield was slowly collecting water, though it wasn't raining at all.  There was a light fog throughout the landscape, one that brought out the deepest of greens in the surrounding foliage.

Needless to say, we drove right through the last little town of Hiouchi and cruised down the road for miles before realizing our mistake.  Despite the loss of time, we didn't really complain with getting the opportunity to drive back through the forest.

I have to say, the trail (once we found it) didn't seem to be the greatest.  Initially it was very close to the highway, so for the first half mile you could hear cars and such going by.  After dropping down and ending up near the Smith River, the trail evolves into something completely new.  It takes on a different character, winding around the landscape overlooking the river.  There were various streams and downed trees here, adding a varied characteristic similar to that of the Tall Trees Trail from the day before.  It was beautiful and well worth the work.  The Stout Grove we came to at the end of the trail was serene in nature.  It was peaceful.  These trees, like all of their brethren we have encountered in the last few days, command an incredible presence.  When you walk among these giants, you just can't help but look up and strain your neck to look higher.  You feel them, without ever touching them.  There is no other way I can put it.

At the end of the day, my family brought me into Crescent City and treated me to dinner at a random hole-in-the-wall Mexican restaurant.  It was my 21st birthday, you see.  And, lo and behold, the food was incredible.  So if you ever find yourself in Crescent City, go find Los Compadres.  It doesn't look like much, but their food is wonderfully authentic and they offer a host of Mexican imported beer.  So go there.

Here is the link to the photo album for the day on my Facebook page: Day 4 photos