Grizzly Creek Redwoods State Park

Grizzly Creek Redwoods Table of Contents

• Photographs
• Owen R Cheatham Grove
• Trails in the Cheatham Grove
• Central section of the park
• Nearby places
• Similar places

Photographs

12 views of the Grizzly Creek Redwoods.

Owen R Cheatham Grove

Approaching Cheatham Grove from the west, Hwy 36 from Fortuna crosses farmland for the first few miles, past the little settlements of Hydesville and Carlotta, then enters the coniferous forest. The regular sized pines are mixed with a scattering of large, moss-covered stumps from long-ago-felled redwoods, and after a couple more miles, living redwoods appear. The trees grow close together and have dark-colored bark so the surroundings are often rather gloomy. Three groves are contained within Van Duzen County Park, though most of the best trees here are right beside two campgrounds. In contrast, the Cheatham Grove of Grizzly Creek Redwoods State Park, which adjoins Van Duzen on the east side, is completely undeveloped. A sign indicates a very short track that descends slightly to a parking area, on the north side of the road right next to the highway bridge over the river. A little path leads west to the water, which usually flows only along a narrow corridor within the 400 foot wide valley, while the main trail heads north into the redwood forest.

Trails in the Cheatham Grove

A few sectioned logs are displayed at the start of the Cheatham Grove Trail, which soon splits. The left branch crosses the flat forest floor, fairly near the north edge of the grove, passing many tall trees with big ferns and smooth patches of redwood sorrel growing abundantly in between. The majority of the redwoods are similar in size and girth, and only very few have fallen - the grove lacks the great mass of downed trees in various states of decomposition that characterize other areas such as Prairie Creek, so the place presents a very pristine, regular appearance, the calmness only slightly spoilt by traffic noise, faintly audible along most of the loop. A few spur trails reach specific trees, a short distance off the main path. The forest at the far end the loop, closer to the river, is more overgrown, the redwoods mixed with bushes and other species of tree. A junction beside one of the few really large fallen trees leads to another very short loop. The path then returns to the trailhead, closer to the road and so somewhat noisier. The main point of interest on this stretch is a tree bridge, formed by a thick fallen trunk lying on top of an equally large stump. The bridge features very briefly, along with other locations in the grove, in the 1983 film Return of the Jedi.

Central Section of the State Park

The main section of Grizzly Creek Redwoods State Park is 4 miles east of the Cheatham Grove, and is similar in size, extending just one mile along Hwy 36. There are eight named redwood groves, four on each side of the Van Duzen River. $8 is charged for parking in the lot beside the campground/ranger station though there is no fee for parking on nearby verges. The river at this point runs south of the road, on the far side of the lightly-used, 28-site campground, and the valley floor is relatively narrow, hence the best redwoods are found only in a thin band close to the river. There are five trails, all short and easy. The Grizzly Creek Trail climbs above the old growth redwoods beside the road, comes close to and somewhat above the eponymous creek, ascending quite steeply for a short time via old stairs, then turns away from the stream and connects with the upper section of the Hikers Trail, which proceeds eastwards through more mixed forest with only small redwoods to the Nature Trail, where aged notices identify some of the plant species on route. This path soon descends to the road, back amongst the bigger trees and reaches another junction, with the lower section of the Hikers Trail; this continues west, returning to the start of the Grizzly Creek Trail. Two other routes are the 1.4 mile (loop) Memorial Trail on the south side of the river, accessed by a seasonal footbridge, and passing a few large trees but not nothing very spectacular, while the 0.4 mile (one way) Fisher Wouk Trail runs between the road and the river on the west side of the park and encounters perhaps the best trees in this area, though all are close to the highway and so affected by traffic noise.

Grizzly Creek Redwoods - Nearby Places

• Lost Coast (46 miles) - wildest section of the California coastline
• Trinidad State Beach (60 miles) - sandy beaches, sea caves, tidepools and offshore rocks

Grizzly Creek Redwoods - Similar Places

• Big Basin Redwoods State Park - coastal redwoods in the Santa Cruz Mountains south of San Jose
• Humboldt Redwoods State Park - similar giant trees along the South Fork of the Eel River