★★★

Emerald Ridge and Tall Trees

Length 5.5 mi · Climbing 700 ft

California > Redwood National and State Parks > Redwood National Park

Redwood Creek

Background

This hike is similar to the Tall Trees Grove hike, but adds a pleasant detour along sunny Redwood Creek. Since you have to wade through the creek this route should only be attempted in summer or early fall, when the creek is about 6–12 inches deep and easily forded. The stroll along the wide rocky banks makes a nice change from hiking through the woods and offers a fresh perspective on the redwoods. Overall this is a much more enjoyable and memorable hike than the usual out-and-back to the Tall Trees Grove.

The amount of wading required can vary a lot from year to year. Usually the creek is shallow and just a few steps across. Sometimes, though, the creek turns into a series of large pools, some of which completely fill the channel even in late summer. The banks are heavily overgrown, so hikers have to wade through water up to waist deep (but more often 5–12 inches deep) for stretches of a quarter-mile. I thought the pools made the hike extra fun, but I’ve seen people crashing through the dense woods to avoid getting wet.

Sometimes, pools have completely fill the channel even in late summer, requiring extensive wading

The loop is little-used. After the initial descent to the the Tall Trees Grove, you might see a total of two or three groups on the busiest days; in the off-season you probably won't see anyone.

The wide, shallow gravel creekbed of Redwood Creek is very typical of rivers in Humboldt County and is the result of logging. Erosion and floods have reshaped the stream, which probably used to run in a little channel shaded by maple trees, much like Prairie Creek.

To get to the trailhead, you first have to get a free Tall Trees Grove permit online at least one day before your visit. Only 65 permits are available each day, and in summer they tend to run out about a week in advance. It’s about a 45 minute to one-hour drive from Kuchel Visitor Center to the parking lot.

The understory is especially dense near the bottom of the Emerald Ridge Trail

From the parking lot, take the Tall Trees access trail downhill. After only a few yards there’s an intersection; turn left onto the Emerald Ridge Trail. The trail starts out among logged redwoods, but almost immediately enters an old-growth redwood forest. The redwoods aren't that big and are partially obscured by a dense tunnel of rhododendron, huckleberry, and tanoak, but the surprisingly tall, straight, light-colored trunks rising straight as an arrow through the foliage are are an attractive sight.

The Dolason Prairie Trail branches off to the left. If you have the time for an interesting side trip, take the trail a quarter-mile downhill to where it crosses a steep-sided gulch on a high wooden bridge; the steep-sided valley lined with mid-sized old growth redwoods is very typical of Redwood National Park’s stream valleys.

Below the Dolason Prairie Trail the woods become darker, with smaller trees and an even denser understory. A half-mile further downhill the Emerald Ridge Trail breaks out of the woods at Redwood Creek. If you do this hike in reverse, the trail is almost impossible to see from the creek; the triangular orange sign that marks the start of the trail has become pretty well hidden over the years.

Redwood Creek

Turn right and follow the wide, sunny creek downstream (if you have some extra time you can turn left and explore upstream a ways before heading downstream). It’s slow going over the gravelly streambed, which is mostly made of smooth rocks about 4–6 inches in diameter. In places, tufts of invasive broom or other plants grow from the gravel. Old-growth redwoods rise dramatically along the banks of the stream, becoming larger as you approach the Tall Trees Grove.

The Tall Trees Grove

The Tall Trees Grove is an especially tall group of trees on the right side of the creek. Look for a short trail over the gravel bank that leads to the Tall Trees Grove loop trail. On a busy weekend, the grove is easy to spot since there are usually people hanging around the creek at the entrance. In summer it will be obvious if you miss the trail, since three-quarters of a mile further downstream you'll encounter the seasonal bridge across Redwood Creek.

Hike the loop trail around the quiet grove; if you go counter-clockwise you’ll pass a nice collection of big redwoods, then break out of the redwoods and into a grove of streamside maples.

The long climb up the access trail back to the parking lot is pretty mundane.

The Tall Trees access trail

More photos

Here are a few more photos from this hike.

Related websites

Real-time height and water flow charts for Redwood Creek. The highest flow rate at which I’ve done this hike is 100 cubic feet per second. A ranger at Kuchel Visitor Center told me that fording the creek is not recommended when the discharge rate is above 400 cubic feet per second. At this rate the creek is about 18 inches deep at the Tall Trees Grove and fast enough to make it difficult to keep your footing.