Today was supposed to be just a transit day to get us to Northern California & the Giant Redwoods, we chose a destination of Fortuna & let Garmin do the rest, the first place the route passed was another covered bridge, this one was however not open to traffic.
The route was along Highway 238 past Applegate lake, this was a lovely road & one of our last in Oregon, by the way did you know that in Oregon you can't have self service petrol pumps, an attendant has to take your card & dispense the fuel, motorcyclist can however be handed the pump & self fill!
We have a route set to avoid 'Interstates' so instead we are taken on to a 'Forest Route', 25 miles of gravel road through beautiful forests, the 90+ temperature made us sweat!
The road rose from 400m to 1400m with great views of the Californian Forests around, we were also lucky that a recent landslide had been cleared & that a large fallen tree was being cut up as we passed.
Eventually we reached Highway 96 which again turned out to be a great road & we stopped for lunch at Happy Camp, the world cup final was on so we stayed to watch the second half.
At Blue Lake the road took another detour to avoid I101 it passed along a series of tiny roads, some tarmac & some gravel, it was getting late but it was a great ride.
As we approached the coastal side of the Six Rivers National Forest we could see the clouds rolling in, as we dropped down the temperature dropped & we reached our destination around 8.30pm, no need for Air Conditioning here.
The Humbolt Redwoods State Park was now only a few miles away & we delayed our start as the weather was cloudy, by the time we reached the 'Avenue of the Giants' however the sun was out.
These trees are huge & some of the oldest living things on the planet!
The Eel River passes through the park & looks a little dry, the railway bridge in the distance was however completely submerged by massive floods in 1964, since then no trains run this way.
The floods wiped out several towns & it's difficult to imaging the high water
level, here it is at the top of this pole!!
The Forest is home to the Stellar's Jay, it's blue plumage is very striking.
Many places mark the age of trees but this one was of particular interest at it included the founding of Oxford University in 1096.
We visit the 'Giant Tree' with a circumference of 53 feet, even John looks small against the huge trunk.
Close by is the 'Tall Tree' at 359 feet, I'm not convinced that these are the biggest but I'm not going to measure them all.
Further along the Avenue we visit the 'Shrine Drive Through Tree' & pay $4 each for the privilege, it's a novelty & there is another further down the road but this one will do.
We did intent to continue a further 100 miles or so but due to the now 100 degree heat we find a motel in Garberville.
The route was along Highway 238 past Applegate lake, this was a lovely road & one of our last in Oregon, by the way did you know that in Oregon you can't have self service petrol pumps, an attendant has to take your card & dispense the fuel, motorcyclist can however be handed the pump & self fill!
We have a route set to avoid 'Interstates' so instead we are taken on to a 'Forest Route', 25 miles of gravel road through beautiful forests, the 90+ temperature made us sweat!
The road rose from 400m to 1400m with great views of the Californian Forests around, we were also lucky that a recent landslide had been cleared & that a large fallen tree was being cut up as we passed.
Eventually we reached Highway 96 which again turned out to be a great road & we stopped for lunch at Happy Camp, the world cup final was on so we stayed to watch the second half.
At Blue Lake the road took another detour to avoid I101 it passed along a series of tiny roads, some tarmac & some gravel, it was getting late but it was a great ride.
As we approached the coastal side of the Six Rivers National Forest we could see the clouds rolling in, as we dropped down the temperature dropped & we reached our destination around 8.30pm, no need for Air Conditioning here.
The Humbolt Redwoods State Park was now only a few miles away & we delayed our start as the weather was cloudy, by the time we reached the 'Avenue of the Giants' however the sun was out.
These trees are huge & some of the oldest living things on the planet!
The Eel River passes through the park & looks a little dry, the railway bridge in the distance was however completely submerged by massive floods in 1964, since then no trains run this way.
The floods wiped out several towns & it's difficult to imaging the high water
level, here it is at the top of this pole!!
The Forest is home to the Stellar's Jay, it's blue plumage is very striking.
Many places mark the age of trees but this one was of particular interest at it included the founding of Oxford University in 1096.
We visit the 'Giant Tree' with a circumference of 53 feet, even John looks small against the huge trunk.
Close by is the 'Tall Tree' at 359 feet, I'm not convinced that these are the biggest but I'm not going to measure them all.
Further along the Avenue we visit the 'Shrine Drive Through Tree' & pay $4 each for the privilege, it's a novelty & there is another further down the road but this one will do.
We did intent to continue a further 100 miles or so but due to the now 100 degree heat we find a motel in Garberville.
Looks amazing , so on da bucket list the trip must go
ReplyDeleteGreat pics keep them coming ALL TIME
It looks amazing! I can't believe how high that flood water was. Have a great day tomorrow x
ReplyDeleteTreemendous
ReplyDelete