Northern California coast

Leon worked in Trinidad at one time so we slowed to look over the town. What a pristine refreshing coastline we saw with the bluest of water. We enjoyed a rest stop just marveling at the beauty.


I got a message from Cissy just as we stopped so sent a hello to the girls who were convening for gossip and good times.


Soon we found ourselves down at the beach where people braved the cold wind to play in the sand. Leon ventured further than I.




We were peacefully driving north again when everyone began to slam on their brakes and dodge other vehicles. The culprit and cause of all the excitement was a herd of elk grazing on the meadow grasses. There must have been forty but none with antlers.


Our next stop was near Klamath at the home of Paul Bunyan, 50 ft tall, and Paul, the blue ox, only 35 ft. I couldn't remember the author of the book but couldn't check online either as there was no service. I would have been surprised if there had been. We sat in the van and ate ice cream cones that Leon procured in the wayside stand/gift shop and watched while Paul turned his head or waved his hand while commenting to the onlookers below. There are also tours and other tourist attractions at this spot which we opted not to take. Ice cream made me happy enough.


The beautiful coastline traveled with us for miles. It was the first bright blue water we have seen.





Crescent City was our destination for the day where we enjoyed a nice free parking spot in the tiny Elks Lodge parking lot. Before retiring for the peaceful night we wandered around town and I finally ate some a bowl of clam chowder. Leon suggested we might walk over to the 1856 Battery Point lighthouse and I offered that it was too windy and chilly for me, but we did wander to a nearby geocache.


The next morning we took advantage of the wifi at McDonalds while visiting with the homeless fellow who shared his booth near the electric outlet. He is a crab fisherman but the season doesn't start til December. Each town in this area seems to have way more than their share of homeless.

Arcata

I thought we would spend several days in Arcata but the cold wind blew us out of town rather quickly. We walked around on the plaza and stopped in some of the cute shops around the square.


They seem to have a problem with the homeless also and in this part of California it seems to be mostly young people who either can't find jobs or just don't want to work. Signs are posted everywhere as to what you can't do! Must be a sign of the times.



We spent some time at the Arcata marsh which is really their sewer treatment plant for waste water. But the parking lot was a nice place out of the wind while we took a break. They have a myriad of walking and biking trails and we almost hopped on the bikes, but a gust of wind changed my mind. The town surprised me with its many hills and I appreciated the many Victorian homes.


On up the coast we went.

Eureka

And what a Eureka moment it was. This little town of 27,000 is filled with lovely Victorian homes which are in strange contrast to the number of homeless people wandering the streets. Our first stop was in Old Town for a bite to eat.


Then we wandered around the downtown area but not for long as it was windy and cold. It seems that almost everyone carries a back pack. The ordinances are very strict about no parking in parking lots due to so many living in their cars. We stayed at the Moose Lodge where most would be homeless but could afford an old rv or a tent and a Moose membership. A nearby geocache search early in the morning provided me with not a Moose, but two deer with velvety antlers.


We decided to focus on the positive side of the town and away we went to see the ultimate in Victorian. This house built in the 1880s by a lumberman is most impressive and set an example for others in the community. It is now a private club enjoyed by only a few.


And what a view they had of the bridge to Samoa and Humboldt Bay.


Across the street is the house that lumberman Carson built for his daughter.


The Carter House Inn is a re-creation finished in 1982 from 1884 blueprints of a house in San Francisco destroyed by the 1906 earthquake.


Nearby an early morning walk along the boardwalk below provided us good views of Humboldt Bay. It was odd to see elderly people sitting in the sun on the side of the path. There were other trails in town that we thought it would be wise to avoid.


The town began as a Gold Rush transport center and later was a mining and logging town which was full of brothels and card rooms patronized by sailors and loggers. Logging is a principal part of their local economy still. A drive over the Samoan Bridge that crosses Humboldt Bay led us to the Samoa Dunes Recreation Area where we enjoyed a walk on the jetty.


On the opposite side of the road we watched the waves roll in while many brought their dogs for a run in the ocean or spent the morning snuggled in their sleeping bags.


Nearby at the Samoa Cookhouse, the last of the old time cookhouses that fed the loggers, our food was served family style and plenty was provided.


It also included a room with old logging artifacts. Check out the blade on this chainsaw.


Next door we visited a small nautical museum where the old gentleman minding the museum was from Searcy, Arkansas, but he had left in 1948. This industrial area gave a glimpse of what it must have been like in busier days. We had a quick tour down to the Woodley Island Marina as we crossed the bridges back to Eureka. The marina has berths for 350 vessels. A sculpture stands at the end of the island and is dedicated to the fishermen who have lost their lives at sea.




At one point we pulled off the road into a cemetery so Leon could take a phone call. It sure looked like a car wash to me!


There must have been twelve sprinklers running with a tremendous force so we strategically parked Hernando in various spots for a bath. Looking good, so we moved on to Arcata.

Loleta

Just off highway 101 between Ferndale and Eureka lies a little hamlet with a well known bakery that has lemon poppyseed scones. How can we not stop for breakfast dessert?


We also left with a loaf of homemade bread.


I had also read about the Loleta Cheese Factory just around the corner and knew I would need some bread to serve with my cheese.


I do like little towns with old buildings. Inside there were two windows where you could view the cheese making process. First the vat with the milk and then the one where curds and whey are being made. These folks sell curds which I adore - the squeakiness and taste - but I opted for the herb flavored block.




Across the street is a block long building that sits vacant. The Humboldt Cheese Factory shut down in the 90s. I can only wonder what happened with all the employees. There are only about 800 residents in the town.

Ferndale

As if an ocean drive and a trip through a redwood forest weren't enough excitement for one day, we ended the day with a tour of a Victorian village.


Ferndale is situated in a pastoral setting not far from the lost coast and the redwoods. So many of the town's Victorian homes have been preserved that the entire town is designated a state historical landmark. I was just in heaven.

This is just the perfect town in which to ride a bike but it kept being a little bit too cool for our taste.


Our campground is a $10 dry camping spot at the county fairground. We are parked in a lovely spot by some picnic tables away from most of the folks in the grassy field. A real surprise has been the girl that keeps trotting by on her horse.


The top listed thing to do in Trip Adviser is a visit to the cemetery. Ah, perhaps we should check on the former residents. I can see why so many people go. How picturesque it is climbing the side of the hill. And climb the hill we did once we learned there was a geocache there. It was at a spot where the movie Salem's Lot, based on the book by Stephen King, was filmed. What a view of the town we had.


The town was founded by Vermonters in 1852, but the Danish established the dairying industry in the 1870s. We listened to the cows that live across the road in the evening. With only 1300 people they might be outnumbered by the cows.


And as with most farming communities in this area there is the local creamery.


While geocaching at the bottom of a hill that leads to the lost coast we were surprised by the log trucks that ascended upon us. We had read that the road was rough and decided we shouldn't go in the van. I can't imagine if we had and met these guys. The road further south is named the Lost Coast because when they built 101 they decided that area was too rugged for a main highway.


Before leaving Ferndale we did drive 5 miles through the beautiful pastoral countryside dotted with cows to the coast and cooked breakfast there. Then we were ready to head north. I thought the graffiti was interesting as there were no gang signs among the messages. Just innocent teenagers announcing their existence!

Avenue of the Giants

As we were traveling north through the redwoods along 101 we opted to travel on a parallel road at a much slower pace. The road which runs through Humboldt Redwoods State Park and is 31 miles long with various pullouts and groves along the way. This is the largest stand of virgin redwoods remaining in the United States. Imagine 51,222 acres of magnificent redwood groves. Our first stop was at the Chimney Tree. We went inside and had fun exploring this hollow giant. It is hard to believe they keep living.


Why there is Leon on the back side of the tree.


We stopped shortly after entering the drive for lunch in Miranda. Our lunch seemed to coincide with the high school's lunch break and there was a long line of students waiting to get pizza or salad at the place we stopped. Next door some older men visited while one sat by a truck about his age to sell his wares.


We passed many pullouts and groves and stopped at one. We walked down to the Eel River that runs alongside the road. The groves provided nice places to pull off the road and wander.






We drove for hours along this 31 mile stretch going at a snail's pace and enjoying the view. There wasn't that much traffic on the road with it being a Monday and the schools aren't out here for four more days. The Eternal Tree House and its accompanying little restaurant and gift shop was another stop. It reminds me of a large scale fairy garden.



And the hollowed tree was complete with little four pain windows and a guest book. What a shame all the homeless people I see can't just go into the forest and hollow out a tree.


And all around the grounds were handsomely carved wood sculptures.





On to find a place for the night!