This was our “campsite” by the river last night. It was a pretty nice spot, but we are so tired of sleeping in the front seats of the tiny Yaris!
After leaving the campsite we were off to Redwood National Park. The park actually covers a pretty large area along the coast of northern California so we “entered” the park before we even got close to our actual destination.
During the drive Evan spotted a harbor that he wanted to stop at. Almost immediately when we pulled in I realized why. He knew I was a little disappointed that we didn’t see any sea lions during our time in Washington and Oregon and he had spotted some and wanted me to cheer up. I was so excited! There were tons of seals and sea lions on 3 different barges! They were goofing around and talking so loudly!
On the other side of the harbor there were gorgeous views of the Pacific.
We went to a visitor center and figured out all of our stops for the day. First stop was the Klamath overlook and the views there were beautiful too!
As we were driving to our next destination we came up on a huge herd of elk! They had to be accustomed to people because they didn’t seem to even care when we stopped to admire them.
Shortly after the elk sighting we finally started to see some really big trees!
We're inside a tree!
Look how massive!!
And then we arrived to the grand finale, BIG TREE!! Big Tree is the biggest redwood at 304 feet tall and 21.6 feet wide with a circumference of 68 feet. The estimated age is 1500 years! How amazing is that?!
We look like ants compared to Big Tree!
After admiring Big Tree’s greatness, we headed to Fern Canyon which was the other recommended stop for today.
To get to the parking lot you had to drive through a few shallow streams and oversized mud puddles. Most people opted to park their car and walk in, and they sure did look at us crazy as we drove little Honu right through them.
Once we started into the canyon we were amazed at the walls around us. Imagine walking through a narrow canyon where 80 foot walls are completely covered by ferns and mosses dripping with moisture. That describes Fern Canyon and it was actually in Jurassic Park 2: The Lost World.
To get to the parking lot you had to drive through a few shallow streams and oversized mud puddles. Most people opted to park their car and walk in, and they sure did look at us crazy as we drove little Honu right through them.
Once we started into the canyon we were amazed at the walls around us. Imagine walking through a narrow canyon where 80 foot walls are completely covered by ferns and mosses dripping with moisture. That describes Fern Canyon and it was actually in Jurassic Park 2: The Lost World.
Here is a picture of Honu driving through one of the “puddles” on the way out of the park.
About 2 minutes after I got back in the car, we were barely into another stream and got quite a surprise. Out of nowhere the jerk Californian that had been behind us decided we were going to slow and sped by us on the right hand side. Not a huge deal, right? Except that I’m pretty sure he knew my window was down and thought it would be funny to purposely flood some Texan’s car. It’s a funny story looking back, but man we were mad at the time! The water splashed so far in that it even got Evan’s lap wet and muddy. My phone was drenched, there was an inch of standing water in the floorboard and everything in the front half of the car has muddy water spots covering it. There was actually even stuff in the backseat with muddy water on it. I was not a happy person at all. We think he just wanted to get a shout out on our blog, so here it is, butthead!
So dirty! :( Except of course the passenger window...
We called it a day and started driving towards our destination for tomorrow. On the way we found a BLM campground called Steiner Flat Campground in Douglas City. We were welcomed with this sign upon arriving :P.
Wild SEXY Scenic Trinity River! Lol!
We drove around looking for a campsite and the place definitely came off as a little sketchy. There is supposed to be a 14 day stay limit, but we are pretty sure some of the people had set up compounds and just lived there. The campground was pretty full, but we managed to find a free spot with an ok river view. We set up camp, ate some delicious ramen, and called it an early night. It is our first night to sleep horizontal in 5 days. It sure would be nice to take a shower though…
Tomorrow we get to visit Lassen Volcanic National Park. It’s one of the parks we’ve never heard of before this trip so we’re excited to see what it’s about. Until next time, goodnight!
Lesson of the Day: Always keep your windows rolled up around water. You never know if there is going to a be a jerk who thinks it’s funny to try to ruin your day.
Word of the Day: tannin
Lesson of the Day: Always keep your windows rolled up around water. You never know if there is going to a be a jerk who thinks it’s funny to try to ruin your day.
Word of the Day: tannin