After leaving Crate Lake we drove to the coast and stopped in Crescent City.  This is a little town nestled in the redwood forests.  We picked this location due to its proximity to Jedediah Smith National Park.  The first stop was the Stout Grove which was a very quick hike that quickly has you walking next to massive giant trees.  The pictures don’t do justice to just how large these Redwoods are.  They can grow to over 350 feet tall and have an average age of 500-700 years.  The oldest trees can be over 2,000 years old.

The next day we went for a 5.2 mile hike on the Boy Scout trail which was the most beautiful hike I have ever been on.  Almost the entire time we were walking past enormous trees through a lush fern-filled forest.  If you have never seen Redwoods or Sequoias I would highly recommend it.

After Crescent City we started the trek to Lake Tahoe and stopped in Trinidad along the coast to stretch our legs.  For most of the drive we encountered coastal fog and Trinidad Beach was no exception.

Please click on the photo below to start the slideshow which will also have captions describing them.

We arrived in Crescent City to view the redwoods. Little did we know that our campsite actually had some decent size redwoods surrounding us.

Our first stop was the Stout Forest which was a great little hike. These trees are huge.

Here is a nice view of some live and fallen redwoods.

Daddy and I next to the root bulb of a fallen giant.

Mommy and I with the sun shining through. It was absolutely beautiful here.

These trees are so big you can’t fit them in the frame unless you take panoramic photos. These trees can get over 330 feet tall and average 500-700 years old. Some of the largest ones can be over 2,000 years old!!!!

Mommy and I at the base in Stout Forest

Here’s a view of a fallen tree with new trees growing over it. When the trees die it can take over 100 years for them to fully decompose.

Nice pano of the trail on the way to the Boy Scout Tree

The Boy Scout Trail is a 5.2 mile trail that takes you through an old growth forest in Jedediah Smith Park

This was a great hike and I led for most of the walk

These trees are sooooooo bigggggg

Here’s a dead tree that is starting to decompose and is covered with mushrooms………

Closeup of the fungi……for Ellen, her favorite.

We finally made it to the Boy Scout Tree. It is so big these photos don’t do it justice.

Pano snowing the Boy Scout Tree. It is called that because it is made up of two trees that have fused together and resemble the Boy Scout hand sign.

These trees are all over 300 feet tall and the canopy they create blocks most of the light. They are so high so they can capture moisture from the coastal fog that is present in the mornings. The redwoods can gather 40% of its water needs this way.

Each of the trees in this photo are giants

Next to a live giant with one that fell beside it.

The next day we left Crescent City and started our drive down to Tahoe. We stopped at Trinidad beach and stretched our legs.

The fog was rolling in and it made for some cool photos. This one rock looked like a man siting and facing the ocean.

Tony doing some rock climbing

Walking back