While we were in Oakland (in fact on our drive up the California coast) we thought being in that part of the state would be a great opportunity to add to our list of California travel adventures and visit Big Basin Redwoods State Park – which was mentioned in Road Trip USA: Cross-Country Adventures on America’s Two-Lane Highways (affiliate link).

So, yeah. Sign me up.

I friggin’ LOVE California.

Unfortunately, the Garmin Girl (GPS) that we borrowed is a little dumb. ‘She’ couldn’t find “Big Basin Redwood State Park” like I typed in (yes, I had to type all of that in) because the CORRECT name is “Big Basin Redwoods State Park.” That extra little ‘S’ threw her off.

Sigh.

So, we took a little bit of the long way around. …. but it was still totally worth it. Such a nice drive through the mountains, trees and tiny little towns …

Until finally we rounded the corner and saw ….

I don’t know when the last time I have been to a state park … but it certainly is a lot different than the national parks.

We hadn’t eaten yet that day (got there around 130p or so) and I figured, there would be a visitor’s center, maybe a cafe or cafeteria or something, a few campgrounds.

Nope. It’s pretty …. limited as far as infrastructure goes.

Which is actually better for the park/environment. And being the oldest California state park, I guess it’s not all that surprising.

But, when you drive into the park … there appears to be a parking lot, a couple picnic areas, a few trailheads and a small visitors center.

There’s not even a booth at the parking lot to pay. We had to park (a ways away), walk, pay at the visitor’s center, and walk back to the car to leave our little pass.

But it was a GORGEOUS day, and the walk was fantastic ….

We didn’t have a whole lot of time before sunset, so we just did a leisurely “hike” on the 1/2 mile Redwood Trail loop.

We ran into a few people on the trail – as it was Saturday of a holiday weekend – but for the most part it was pretty peaceful.

And gorgeous.

Did I mention the gorgeous?

There was a trail guide at the trailhead (25 cents there, apparently free on the website), so we learned as we walked.

And you all know how I love to learn …

Below: Redwood Burl

Below: one of the many trees covered in moss/growth of some kind …

This tree was hollowed out by fire but still alive!

There were actually 2 hollowed trees – one still alive (images above) and one dead.

Check out the gallery below for some closer images:

[Show as slideshow]

[View with PicLens]

The next 2 tree images below are of the “Father of the Forest” – the largest tree in this park:

Didn’t I say it was a beautiful day?

Just me and Andrew and the trees.

Sometimes I feel like Anne Shirley and her intense need for trees.

Even though we were only actually IN the park for a few hours, the drive out of our way was totally worth it.

What is your favorite state park?

want to read more?

• SoCal Vignettes : driving Big Basin Way