Humboldt: Coastal Redwoods, Trails and Culture

Old-growth coastal redwoods, trails through forests and wetlands, and the landscape around Humboldt Bay give Humboldt County in California its distinctive character. Depending on whether you want to explore through hiking, birdwatching or cultural activities, your trip will have different focal points. This can also influence your choice of vacation rental: Consider which experiences you want to shape your days and which places you would like to explore for them.

Redwood Forests and Open Trails

Humboldt Redwoods State Park protects about 53,000 acres, including one of the world's largest remaining contiguous stands of old-growth coastal redwoods. The park has 50 miles of roads and 60 miles of trails open to the public. Its scale offers different ways to spend time outdoors: You can make a hike the focus of your visit or get to know the landscape along the roads and at the trailheads there.

Another distinctive route is the Avenue of the Giants, a scenic drive in Humboldt County. It provides access to numerous trailheads, picnic areas, rivers and redwood groves. When planning your trip, it's worth choosing outings based on the experiences you want rather than assuming all destinations are close together. The Lady Bird Johnson Grove Trail is a family-friendly, 1.5-mile loop through a mixed forest of redwoods and other tall conifers.

Trails for Recreation and Nature Watching

The more than five-mile-long Hammond Trail is part of the California Coastal Trail. It runs from the Arcata Bottoms north to Clam Beach County Park in McKinleyville and can be used for hiking, biking and horseback riding. Humboldt Bay also has the paved Eureka Waterfront Trail, also known as the Hikshari’ Trail. It is 6.5 miles long and welcomes cyclists, walkers, inline skaters and paddlers. These routes offer different distances and activities to consider when choosing your outings.

Those interested in birds and wetlands will find several specific options. The Shorebird Loop Trail in the Humboldt Bay National Wildlife Refuge is a flat, 1.7-mile gravel loop. Its amenities include an observation pavilion, a wetland deck, a raised platform, benches and information panels. Herons, egrets, various birds of prey and several species of shorebirds can be observed in the Mad River Slough Wildlife Area; wildlife viewing and nature photography are also possible there.

The Mad River Slough Wildlife Area covers 587 acres. It was once part of the extensive tidal salt marshes and mudflats of Arcata Bay. The Arcata Community Forest offers a different woodland landscape, with 2,350 acres of second-growth redwood forest. The Arcata section of the Humboldt Bay Trail runs through the Arcata Marsh & Wildlife Sanctuary.

Culture and Insights into the Region

The history and culture of the coastal Yurok are also defining themes of the region. Humboldt Lagoons State Park is located on the land of the Ner'-er-herh, the coastal Yurok. The Chah-pekw O' Ket'-toh Visitor Center is the first tribally operated visitor center in California's state park system.

The Clarke Museum is located in Eureka's historic Old Town district. Its collections include historical and cultural artifacts from Humboldt County, including one of the largest collections of Indigenous cultures in Northern California, Victorian-style rooms with authentic furnishings, and Gold Rush memorabilia. At Blue Ox Millworks, visitors can watch antique woodworking machinery in operation, tour a logging camp and learn about traditional boatbuilding methods. These offerings provide a different focus from hiking and nature watching and can add cultural discoveries to your trip plans.

Humboldt Bay and Getting Around the Region

You can also experience Humboldt Bay from the water: The passenger ferry Madaket offers a guided, one-hour cruise along 8.5 miles of the Eureka waterfront. On the Humboldt Bay Oyster Tour, participants learn about oyster aquaculture and its methods around the bay. Depending on your preferred starting point, you can book the tour as a motorboat trip from Woodley Island or as a kayak trip from Arcata Marsh. At the end, participants receive 12 prepared oysters to sample at Humboldt Bay Provisions.

There are also several transportation options for getting around the county. The Humboldt Transit Authority offers fixed-route and demand-response services throughout Humboldt County. Routes extend from Trinidad south along Highway 101 to Benbow and Ukiah, and east on Highway 299 from Arcata to Blue Lake and Willow Creek; they also serve the Arcata–Eureka Airport, McKinleyville, Eureka and Fortuna. At the Eureka stop, an Amtrak Thruway bus connects Humboldt County to rail service at the nearest station on the route. When choosing a vacation rental, you can consider these regional connections alongside the experiences that are most important to your trip.

Explore More Places

For regional orientation, you can also visit the pages for Eureka, Arcata, Garberville, Fortuna, Mckinleyville, Ferndale, Carlotta, Whitethorn, Redcrest, Loleta, Redway, Orick, Fields Landing, Samoa, Trinidad, Myrtletown and Blue Lake.

For the broader travel overview: California.