This week, we’re looking at the 10-year closure of the North Coast’s recreational abalone fishery and how we got here. We’ll also introduce you to one of the army of volunteers that make visiting the redwoods possible. Finally, you should throw a potato party and we’ll tell you why. Hit subscribe for weekly updates on […]
redwoods
Posted inLife + Outdoors
David’s Chair Blazes Accessible Trails in Prairie Creek Redwoods
Wheelchair access is hard enough to find in our paved world. A park trail threading its way through 1,000-year-old evergreen conifers presents countless obstacles that can keep those with mobility issues from fully enjoying Humboldt’s old growth forests. Fortunately, as time passes, more barriers fall by the wayside. And what better time than a centennial […]
Posted inArts + Scene
The Ghost Forest’s Haunting Histories
Likely to become a classic, Greg King’s first solo book The Ghost Forest is aptly titled — a must-read that deftly chronicles how 96 percent of California’s old growth redwood forests fell to the saw. The award-winning journalist begins his complex, multi-generational narrative with his own entry into environmental activism. In 1986, while researching logging […]
Posted inArts + Scene
Forest Moon Festival to Celebrate Return of the Jedi’s 40th
We sense something … a presence we have not felt since the premiere of Return of the Jedi in 1983. To celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Star Wars sequel featuring the moon of Endor, filmed locally in Del Norte and Humboldt counties, the Humboldt-Del Norte Film Commission is putting on its inaugural Forest Moon […]
Posted inLife + Outdoors
Heroes of the Redwoods, Part 2
Last week, I discussed how the Save the Redwoods League (SRL), founded in 1918, was instrumental in the creation of Humboldt Redwoods State Park, in effect protecting the trees forever. The outcome was never certain until the league persuaded “Junior,” John D. Rockefeller’s only son, to write them checks totaling $2 million (about $40 million […]
Posted inNews
Protecting the Titans: New Trail Provides Safe Access to Ancient Grove
A once hidden trail blazed off the beaten path is now a formal North Coast attraction. Today, if you walk along the Mill Creek Trail in Del Norte County’s Grove of the Titans, you’ll tread on raised metal walkways that allow water to flow and ferns to grow beneath your feet. You’ll cross a wooden […]
Posted inNews
Redwood Burl Poacher Sentenced to Community Service, Probation, Banned from Park
An Orick man is now banned from stepping foot into Redwood National and State Parks as part of his sentencing today after pleading guilty last month to poaching burl from old growth redwoods at the protected site. He also received two years probation, a $1,200 fine and 400 hours of community service. Derek Alwin Hughes’ […]
Posted inNews
NCJ Preview: Parks Gone Wild, a Eugenicist Kicks Rocks and Safe and Sane Fireworks
This week we’re looking at Mark Larson’s photos and tips for enjoying Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park, as well as how the parks removed the plaque honoring Nazi collaborator Madison Grant. And as we get ready for July Fourth weekend, we’re talking about how illegal fireworks (aside from being, you know, illegal) can harm your […]
Posted inNews
Still Wild
An unexpected “staycation” benefit of this pandemic era has been getting to know local locations I hadn’t spent much time visiting. Next time you’re driving in northern Humboldt County, take one of the U.S. Highway 101 bypass exits onto Newton B. Drury Scenic Parkway into Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park. Fifty miles north of Eureka, […]
Posted inNews
Redwood Sky Walk Opening Delayed
The soft opening of the Redwood Sky Walk at the Sequoia Park Zoo, originally scheduled for tomorrow, is being delayed due windy conditions in recent days. “While the Redwood Sky Walk has been specially engineered to withstand many adverse weather events, the structure is attached to living trees. Because of the many natural and manmade […]
Posted inLife + Outdoors
Restoring Sumêg Village
A hike at Patrick’s Point State Park north of Trinidad always appeals to me, given park access to Agate Beach, Ceremonial Rock, Wedding Rock’s ocean viewpoint and the excellent Rim Trail. But if you go now, you can see work being done at Sumêg Village by a crew of Yurok Tribe members using traditional methods […]
Posted inNews
Countdown to the Redwood Sky Walk’s Opening (with Slideshow)
The two-week countdown is on until the much-anticipated opening of the Redwood Sky Walk at the Sequoia Park Zoo. Starting May 14, zoo visitors can access the 100-foot-high suspended pathways through the trees, which is the longest in the western United States, according to the zoo, at just under a fourth of a mile to […]