Avenue of the Giants

For many years, my husband Garth and I have traveled the western states in our little 24-foot motorhome, along with our golden retriever Chase (and occasionally our cat!). In this and subsequent RVCYOB articles, I’ll share with you our experiences, our opinions on the best campsites to reserve, clever camping gear and gizmos, tried-and-true hacks, secret hikes, camp recipes, camping with pets and kids, things to avoid, and things you won’t want to miss. I hope you’ll enjoy traveling with us. Be sure to check out my posts on many other campgrounds you’ll want to add to your favorites list! Just click on the tab: “RV Camping in Your Own Backyard.”

Are you in need of a redwood fix? Have I got the spot for you. It’s time to soothe your soul and quiet your mind. Time to sleep among giant old-growth coast redwoods. To breathe in the earthy humidity created by the very trees themselves. To pad along the cool forest floor among a verdant groundcover of ferns and sorrel. To stop and slowly look up, up, up at a tree so tall and so massive that you feel like a tiny forest creature. To place your hands on the furry red bark of these old trees that have stood steadfast in the ancient forest—some for over two thousand years—witnessing all the shenanigans of countless generations of humans. If you’ve never experienced The Avenue of the Giants, this is the year, of all years, to reconnect with Mother Nature in this sublime way.

Ours was a trip I’d been needing for a while. Having grown up in a redwood grove in San Rafael, I get twitchy being away from the big trees for too long. So, Garth and I packed our little motor home and headed to the Avenue of the Giants—32 miles of scenic highway off US101 north of Garberville, named for the Coast Redwoods that tower over it. We chose Burlington Campground in the vast 52,000-acre Humboldt Redwoods State Park as our home base. The location and setting were perfect—right on Avenue of the Giants, by the Visitors Center, and across the road from the Eel River. We drove in, stopped at the Ranger Kiosk, rolled down the windows and got our first glorious whiff of redwood forest. Chase jumped on my lap to stick her head out the window, her splashy golden retriever tail whipping my face. The three of us were home—for the next five days—in one of the prettiest settings we’ve ever camped.

This wooded campground is in a grove of second- and old-growth redwoods with 57 generous campsites. There’s not a bad site in the entire campground. Most of the gravel pads need leveling except for the sites I mention at the end. Ours was huge (#32) at 50’x60’ with some sun for our solar panel, which was good because there are no hookups. And no dump station. But there’s a water fill-up station for RVs. Burlington has nice, clean bathrooms with flush toilets and showers (tokens). Maximum trailer and motor home length is 24’. Cell service is poor but better over on US101 or drive to the town of Miranda (10 miles south) for cell service, gas, groceries and a café. For hookups or bigger rigs, see Ancient Redwoods RV Park, 8 miles north.

At both the south and north entrances to the Avenue (Hwy101, exits 645 or 674 respectively, there’s a little brochure stand where you can pick up a free copy of Avenue of the Giants Auto Tour. The Visitors Center also has them. This is a must-do. Enjoy each scenic stop but do not miss #8—the Drury-Chandler Grove trail—beyond beautiful, beyond words! Also remarkable are the Founders Grove where you can see an albino redwood and the famous fallen behemoth, the Dyerville Giant.

There are several lovely forest walks from camp including the Gould Grove Nature Trail with 300’ tall redwoods. A summer bridge connects to more hiking across the river. There are swimming holes and fishing along the Eel depending on flow. Do not take your dog in the river late summer/fall due to toxic blue-green ‘algae’ –cyanobacteria. Other times, it’s a wonderful dog-romping spot. Call Humboldt County Health (707-445-6200) for river algae conditions.

Dogs—the rule about dogs in the park is: A dog can go wherever you can drive your car. So that means no forest trails, but any campground roads or gravel roads are okay. If you and your dog carefully walk north from the campground entrance along Hwy 101, you’ll see a gravel road with a bar gate to your left that takes you down to the river (see algae note above).

Here is a list of the level sites: 6, 15, 17, 18*, 20, 23, 21, 24, 23, 25, 26 (nice but next to a trail head), 27, 28*, 29**, 30*, 31, 32***, 38, 42, 55, 57. The asterisks are the ratings of our favorites. Be aware that there are a bunch of tent-only sites. Campsites are only $35 and can be reserved through www.reservecalifornia.com .

Random Info: if you need any RV repair and you’re headed north after the Avenue of the Giants, call ahead (707-725-3426) and stop at Reynolds RV at 646 Hwy 36 off Hwy101 just south of Fortuna. We had an awning issue and they were over-the-top friendly and got us taken care of right away. Very reasonable too.

IN PRAISE OF REDWOODS:

Did you know…

  • Coast Redwoods have been on earth for over 240 million years?

  • California once had 2 million acres of ancient, old-growth redwoods. Now only 5% remains.

  • The oldest Coast Redwood is over 2500 years old and was around during the Roman Empire.

  • They can grow up to 10’ per year and reach 380’ tall with a 30’ diameter trunk.

  • They knit their shallow roots together to help each other stand up and to share nutrients.

  • Redwoods breathe in carbon dioxide (CO2), release the oxygen back into the air and store the carbon in their trunks. A 100-year-old redwood captures 26,000 pounds of carbon! That’s 260 TONS over the lifetime of a 2,000-year-old tree. A redwood forest can sequester more above-ground carbon than any other forest in the world.

  • The bark of a redwood can be 1’ thick and protects the tree from fire, bugs and disease.

  • There are three kinds of redwood trees: Sequoia sempervirens (Coast Redwood along the Pacific Coast), Sequoia giganteum (Giant Sequoia in the Sierra Nevada), and Metasequoia glyptostroboides (Dawn Redwood, only remaining ones are in China).

  • Redwoods are called the “Mothers of the Forest” because of the diversity of life they support. Some species live their entire lives in the canopy.

  • Redwood can create rain by condensing water on their needles and letting it rain on the plants below. They cool the forest and raise the humidity.

Now don’t you love redwoods as much as I do? Check out and support Save the Redwoods League, which has been saving redwoods for over 100 years, or the Sempervirens Fund.