Clam Beach Vista Point (2017 Staff Pick) 

click to enlarge

• Photo by Greg Nyquist
• Clam Beach Vista Point

Well, this is a bit awkward, seeing as the Clam Beach Vista Point isn't really a parking lot — hence the "vista point" in its name. Maybe I'm a being a bit of a stick in the sandy mud here, but I'm of the opinion that to qualify as a parking lot it must be a location where you actually park your car and leave it there: sitting and enjoying a view isn't enough. But seeing as there are really no standout parking lots in Humboldt County — I'm going to offer up a toast to what is hands down the region's worst, the small lot outside the WIC office in Old Town Eureka. The lot sits shaded by a huge tree, which might appeal at first glance. But don't be fooled. About six months of the year, the trees are populated by a virtual army of small birds. Now I don't know exactly what these birds eat but I do know they leave no car spared a thorough fecal dousing, the likes of which may land you at a carwash at 8 p.m. So here's to you, WIC lot, and your tree full of very angry birds.