Today we took a spin up the Avenue of the Giants, a stunningly beautiful drive through the Redwoods. We started by heading north on 101 which passes right in front of our campground. Immediately we entered Richardson Grove State Park where it looks like the campgrounds are open but the visitor center is closed.
We had to stay on 101 for about 10 miles until getting on the Avenue of the Giants at Phillipsville. The Avenue runs down the Eel River on the opposite side from US-101. There are many impressive groves of old-growth Redwood forest alongside the road with some truly impressive trees right next to the road. The groves of trees look like giant clumps of attack submarines standing on their bows. At a couple of the groves with places to get off the road, Peggy and I bailed out of the truck for some strolls through this magnificent forest. The floors of these groves are pretty clear except for an abundance of ferns, massive windfalls and plenty of poison oak waiting to to make the unsuspecting itch.
Peggy and I took a very pleasant stroll through a place called The Founders Grove, an astonishingly beautiful wonderland of giant Redwoods. We had almost finished our hike when we found a sturdy bench where we could get off our feet and commune with nature. We happily took a seat and settled in for a few minutes of admiration. It was almost silent with the whispering of the breeze passing through the trees and some bird calls as the only audible sounds we could detect. It was dark and shady due to the almost opaque canopy. We could tell it was sunny above the canopy because sparkling shafts of light pierced our cool, dark, quiet observation post. Then a large party of Oriental folks arrived, chattering loudly in a language we do not speak (Not English) and gathering into a noisy crowd around the nearby stump of the gigantic Founders Tree. Once they had a quorum, they started down the trail, passing right behind our comfortable bench. About the third platoon of the noisy visitors were passing behind us, making loud undecipherable sounds, when one of the girls blasted out a very melodious, plainly audible fart without missing a beat in her conversation. It was all I could do to restrain myself from asking the perp if she couldn’t do that next time downwind. I looked over at Peggy and she was grinning like the Cheshire Cat. She isn’t deaf, you know, and farts can be funny. We are so culturally unaware that we didn’t even know that Orientals fart but we do know that Blacks and those with Hispanic surnames definately do.
We continued to the north end of the Avenue at Pepperwood which somehow has its name transformed into Peckerwood in my mind. I must have watched too many movies about the Old West and that portion of America referred to as “The South.” We could have taken 101 south back to our RV park but instead we turned around and headed right back down the same road we had used to get there. The Avenue of the Giants is just as impressive going south as it is going north. I would suggest that anybody passing through the Eel River Valley take the Avenue instead of nearby US-101. The Avenue is a bit slower but the scenery is unforgettable.
Once we got back to Richardson Grove, we struck up a conversation with our neighbors in the park and they indicated they were evacuated from our next destination in Cloverdale due to the proximity of some of California’s current forest infernos. We may have some schedule changes coming because we originally intended to leave tomorrow and that looks pretty grim now.
We did get some nice woodsy shots you can see if you click here