Jurassic Redwoods

Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park and Gold Bluffs Beach hiking and camping in Redwoods National and State Parks

Times change, but the tallest living trees in the world still tower over the grasslands of Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park (one of three state parks located within the jurisdiction of Redwoods National and State Parks). Transport to the Jurassic Era on a 6-mile loop hike past peculiar giant coast redwoods hollowed into cathedrals and twisted into gargantuan octopus shapes (relatives of the redwoods did actually thrive during the Jurassic Era!). From the Prairie Creek Visitor Center, follow signs for Prairie Creek Trail and continue along a flat creek bed sheltered by stately behemoths standing in primordial gravitas.

Fallen ferns and lush green foliage line a path that crosses a wooden bridge to the Big Tree junction at about 1 mile. Turn right and cross Newton B. Drury Scenic Parkway for a 0.2-mile round-trip detour to Big Tree, a particularly wide 1,500-year-old stunner. Back at the junction, continue along Prairie Creek Trail for 0.5 mile, where another short spur on the right leads past Corkscrew Tree, an eye-catching anomaly that coils skyward on four braided trunks. Back on Prairie Creek Trail, snake further along the forest floor through fallen moss-covered Tunnel Log. At the junction, turn left onto Zigzag Trail #1 and ascend via sharp switchbacks to ridgeline redwood uplands before another left onto West Ridge Trail, which undulates back to the visitor center.

CAMP: Fall asleep to roaring surf at one of 24 campsites nestled in coastal grassland at Gold Bluffs Beach Campground. A 1.5-mile stroll down the road leads to Fern Canyon, a 50-foot-tall gorge coated in seven kinds of ferns, which was used as a backdrop for Jurassic Park II: The Lost World. Restrooms and solar showers are available, as well as a picnic table, firepit, and food locker at each site.

EAT: Dig in at Orick’s Palm Café & Motel, an overlooked highway diner with phenomenal pie. The coconut cream is heavenly! Take your slice to go and enjoy it at Elk Meadow or on the benches in front of the visitor center, prime viewing grounds to glimpse dense herds of Roosevelt elk—Prairie Creek’s largest mammals, exceeding one thousand pounds!

Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park map and info. Camping $35/night; day-use fee $8/vehicle. Reserve a site. National Parks pass waives day-use fees. Dogs allowed on campgrounds and Gold Bluffs Beach, but not on trails. Palm Café & Motel is on Hwy. 101 in Orick, 5 miles south of the park.

Trending Stories NorCal

View all Stories
  1. Camp at Goose Lake in the Lakes Basin

    Duck, Duck, Goose!

    Try to get a first-come, first-served campsite at one of the Lakes Basin’s lakeside campgrounds. We love Goose Lake Campground, where there are just 13 sites and no motorized boats.

    View
  2. This Is Paradise

    Granite mountain-scape, superb sunset views, crystal lakes, and shoreline campsites … the trip to Paradise Lake in Tahoe National Forest lives up to its idyllic name.

    View
  3. Aloha from California

    Say Aloha without leaving California with a 7-mile out-and-back hiking adventure to Lake Aloha in El Dorado National Forest. You can also camp here, a premier place for stargazing.

    View
  4. Sequoia Re-opens Crystal Cave

    Step inside Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Park's hidden world by visiting the newly re-opened Crystal Cave—the only cave in the parks open to the public. Closed for four years, this rare marble karst cavern is welcoming visitors once again, but only through the summer season!

    View

Trending Stories SoCal

View all Stories
  1. Can't Top This

    San Francisco’s Presidio was already a fantastic place to hang out for the afternoon, a beautiful site within the largest urban national park in the United States (the Golden Gate National Recreation Area). And Presidio Tunnel Tops is like a cherry on top. Make that two cherries on top, with the newly opened (July 2025) Outpost Meadow, a 1.5-acre green space located at Old Mason Street across from the Crissy Field Marsh in the Presidio.

    View
  2. Underground Garden

    Looking to escape the summer heat? Head to Fresno and discover its cool secret: the Forestiere Underground Gardens–an enchanting garden and architecture oasis like no other.

    View
  3. Oh Ryan

    Sure, it’s those whimsical trees that give Joshua Tree National Park its marquee billing; but this beautiful landscape also has surrounding mountains and its night sky—one of the darkest in Southern California and designated an International Dark Sky Park. Joshua Tree has four allowable stargazing parking lots, and a newly opened haven for spending the night nearby...

    View
  4. Easiest Best Hike in the World

    Choose the easiest and most view-rewarding hike in Yosemite. Okay, we’ll go first: the combination of hiking to Sentinel Dome and Taft Point. Both of these lookouts are within a couple miles of each other on Glacier Point Road

    View