Redwoods - Northern CA Coast - San Francisco (22)

Breakfast at a local eatery helped delay our departure from Crescent City. We were hoping the ever present fog would lift in time for our drive through The Newton B. Drury Scenic Drive.

Click Pictures to Enlarge

Luckily, the fog had lifted somewhat giving us a good view of the magnificent giant redwoods.

If you have never had the opportunity to stand beside a giant redwood and gaze up at it's height, you are in for a treat.

Large groves of these giant trees line the road on both sides like soldiers, centuries old. For me, there was a very distinct cathedral like feeling in their presence.

This is "The Big Tree". It is only when you see something of a known size that you begin to fathom the true girth and height of these enormous trees. It is quickly apparent these trees are some of the oldest living things on the planet.

We stopped at the "Hanzel and Gretel" like Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park Visitor Center on the way out of the park.

Soon we drove through Eureka, CA on our southward trek. While in Eureka, we found the very private Ingomar Club. As the sign says, it's the former home of a lumber baron and now a private men's club. If it is nothing else, it is very unique and almost spooky.

The Avenue of the Giants

Following CA Hwy 101 south, we found many small redwood forests in addition to The Avenue of the Giants.

It is almost impossible to stand beside a giant redwood and see it's top. Some of these trees approach 300 ft. I never fully appreciated the size and majesty of these giants until we stopped and walked a trail beneath these giant trees. Many have stood in place for nearly a thousand years.

Some of the most impressive sights are the fallen trunks. You really do get a feel for the trees former size when you stand near one.

This sign is beside one of the larger (or once was) trees outside of the parks. Many of the trees inside the parks are of equal size.

Along with Carhinge in Nebraska and The Wall Drug Dinasaur in South Dakota, let me submit The One Log House in Northern California.

Eventually, we crossed the coastal mountains and dropped down to Hwy 1 and the beach. As you can see, the low lying fog had the beaches socked in.

Many years ago, Carolyn and I had the opportunity to watch whales swim by the seaside point at Mendocino. That was not to be this trip. ( A note to Dwight, I could not agree more, Mendocino is a beautiful place, not to be missed!)

After stopping in several beach towns, including Fort Brag and Mendocino, we again turned east on the very curvy Navarro River Highway (Hwy 128), passing through The Navarro River Redwood State Park and crossing the mountains to Hwy 101 at Cloverdale.

We found a room in Petaluma and then drove into San Francisco to see the city at night. This is the Palace of Fine Arts.

We toured Fisherman's Wharf and the surrounding docks as it began to get dark.

Pier 39 - Fishermans Wharf - San Francisco, CA.

The Trans America Building in downtown San Francisco at night.

From the docks we explored the downtown skyscraper area, and the very unique ethnic neighborhoods. Even with the light fog, the city was bustling and full of life.

If this trip has taught me anything it is that I need a better camera. My trusty old Sony still takes great snapshots, but I have found a real need for a good SLR. The hunt will be on when we return home.

A man's character may be learned from the adjectives which he habitually uses in conversation. ~Mark Twain~

Crater Lake, OR - Crescent City, CA (22)

Our two goals today, visit Crater Lake National Park , and return to the northern California coast via The Redwood National Forest.

Leaving Roseburg, we continued east on Oregon's Scenic Umpqua River Highway (Hwy 138).

The road follows the Umpqua River, ascending a long narrow canyon filled with some of the most scenic vistas anyone could imagine.

In places, trout fisherman line the banks of this beautiful river.

About a hundred miles later we arrived at Crater Lake National Park. This was one of Carolyn's destinations. Several years ago, she saw a documentary about the lake, and has wanted to visit ever since. Today, she realized that, and was not disappointed. It was everything she envisioned, and much more. An awe inspiring sight! Pictures do not even come close to it's beauty. You cannot believe how blue this water is.

We circled three quarters of the crater on The Rim Road. Scenic vew points can be found at many locations along the sheer cliffs overlooking the lake.

Crater Lake is six miles long and four and a half miles wide. It is the deepest lake in the US at 1,943 ft. It's 26 mile shoreline is encircled by lava cliffs that rise 500 to 2,000 ft. Elevations in the park range from 4,250 ft near the parks southern boundary to 8,929 ft at Mt. Scott. The highest elevation around the rim is at Cloud Point at 7,800 ft.

Crater lake receives an average of over 500 inches of snow each winter.

The park is surrounded by magnificent fir forests and snow topped mountains.

Volcanic outcroppings of pumice can be seen in orange. You are never far from the fact that this is the top of a volcano.

It is impossible to take a bad picture at Crater Lake.

The island is called the Phantom Ship because it resembles a ship at first glance. The island has been dated at over 400,000 years old.

The temperatures today ranged from a low of 66f at Crater Lake to a high of 100f at Grants Pass.

After leaving the park, we had lunch at Grants Pass, Oregon. From there we followed Hwy 99 southwest, through The Redwood National Forest to Crescent City, California, where we are staying tonight. The temperature at Crescent City was 66f degrees with light fog. Quiet a change from the 100f at Grants Pass.

These Redwoods are simply enormous in size and height.

Tomorrow we continue down the California coast where we plan to visit several Redwood Forests. The goal is to finish just north of San Francisco where we will turn east.

All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them. ~Walt Disney~

The Oregon Coast (21)

(I should note that due to our late night city adventures, and the lack of decent Internet Service, we have been behind on our blog posting. I have posted three days at once tonight to correct this.)

We drove through downtown Portland on our way to Highway 26, westward. This took us over the beautifully forested coastal mountains to Hwy 101, where we turned south.

Along the way, we had an opportunity to see the end result of clear cut mountain logging. As much as we both know our country needs this resource, it is none the less painful to see. We can only hope the logging industry and the government manages this beautiful resource responsibly.

As we came over the mountains, the fog thickened and dropped down to obscure most of the coastal scenery. Not good! We were both afraid the beautiful coastline would be hidden by the increasing fog.

The fog began to lift at Yaquina Head Lighthouse. The Oregon coast is ruggedly beautiful. The waves crash in and out of the coves with such mesmerising fluidity.

By the time we reached Newport, the fog had lifted and beautiful blue skies were abundant!

The bridge and harbor at Newport, Oregon has a wonderful atmosphere. It has quaint shops and restaurants along it's bay that yearn to be experienced.

Jaw dropping beauty at every turn!

Notice how far out on the point these houses are built. Can you imagine the sunsets from here?

The Heceta Head Lighthouse just north of Florence, Oregon. This picture says it all when it comes to the Oregon Coast. The lifting fog made us feel we were lost in the clouds.

A late afternoon seafood lunch/dinner came at Mo's in Florence, Oregon. This dockside eatery is well known for it's clam chowder. Coming from two clam chowder aficionado's, it's a bit overrated.

The fisherman's harbor at Florence is a true working fishing village.

Just before reaching Coo's Bay we turned east, toward our first goal for tomorrow, Crater Lake. Along the way ,we spotted a small herd of Roosevelt Elk along side the road. It is truly a privilege to view these magnificent animals at such close range.

A quick side note about the amazing weather. As mentioned, we experienced fog as we arrived at the Oregon coast this morning. The fog gradually cleared out by the time we reached Newport.

The temperatures stayed in the high 50's and low 60's the entire day with a light, steady wind. Truth told, it was very pleasant. As we turned east and climbed over the coastal mountains, the temperatures began to rise quickly, reaching a high of 97 in Roseburg, less than 80 miles later. That is quiet a dramatic temperature change for such a short distance. We are expecting hot temperatures (high 90's) until we return to the northern California coast later tomorrow.


We are spending the night near I-5 at Roseburg, Oregon.

Time is the coin of your life. It is the only coin you have, and only you can determine how it will be spent. Be careful lest you let other people spend it for you. ~Carl Sandburg~