Visiting the California Redwoods and Oregon Beach

One reason we picked Southern Oregon to establish our home base is because it is a reasonable distance from some of the best excursions the US has to offer. Face it—if you’ve ever been to the Northwest—you’ve probably fallen in love with it. At least we have!

In January we decided to make a day trip over to the coast to experience our first exploration of the redwoods near Crescent City, California. What is the weather like in Northern California and Southern Oregon in the winter? Mild and beautiful!! Warm enough to not wear winter coats, but cool enough to want a light jacket when walking in the shade of these giants.

Ella (8 yrs old) threw a bit of a fit on the several-hour drive, exclaiming that hiking is “boring” and there’d be “nothing fun” to do. That’s our little killjoy.

We drove in, pulled over to eat some packed snacks and did a little exploring.

An uprooted trunk makes a great playground.

We then went to the Stout Grove trails, which are nicely kept paths for walking and hiking. The kids ran off ahead of us, making my heart sing!

However, our kids are never great at staying on paths…

And I don’t mind! THIS is a playground!!

The love of my life—11 years and counting!

We didn’t add our initials to this downed tree…but maybe we will next time!

Meanwhile, Ella lightened up, and agreed that this place is pretty cool!

Next, we decided to head up the coast 30 minutes to Brookings, Oregon and check out the beach. It was a bit chilly and very windy…but the kids still managed to have fun!