The Majestic Redwoods

We took the lovely route of the 101 to the Redwood forest. We stopped along the way and had delicious oysters; we had beautiful scenery along the way, and that night I had a shower before bed because we were staying in a hotel. Showers are a marvelous birthday gift.

We decided to take the Hiachi Trail to Stout Grove at Jedediah State Park. It was absolutely incredible. Even the small redwoods were still the biggest trees we had ever seen. People always talk about the enormity of a Redwood Forest, but few will talk about its beauty; it was so beautiful and peaceful. Ronald Reagan said once “If you’ve seen one redwood tree, you’ve seen them all.” I could not disagree more. Each was its own unique and beautiful creature.

Eventually after tromping through the trail, we arrived at a rocky beach area. It had such a great view of the river and the trees. We discovered we had to ford a stream to get to Stout Grove. We removed our shoes and socks and trudged through the knee deep freezing cold water. Once we crossed our feet were so dirty, we didn’t put our shoes back on. We walked around Stout Grove barefoot and amazed. These were the most fascinating and grandest Redwoods in our day’s walk. Once we traversed back across the icy stream, we relaxed by the rocky beach and skipped rocks in the river and watched the delightful surroundings. We got a bit lost on the way back, but it was so beautiful that neither of us minded. I feel like I can learn so much from these mountains and trees and as John Muir said “in every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks.”