I like my trees tall.  Really really tall.  During the year we spent among the Redwoods in Humboldt County, California I was in tree heaven.

Of course, the beaches of the Northern California coast are a sight to behold– wild, desolate– they don’t call it The Lost Coast for nothing.  But when we wanted a local hike, we liked to head into the deep Redwood forests.

It was there that we found trees so wide you could live inside and so tall you could not capture their entirety on camera.

But my favorite thing about the Humboldt Redwoods was the way the light filtered through their elevated limbs, drifting slowly down until it barely graced the forest floor.

A magical world filled with mystery and wonder.  The trees seemed to speak to each other, I wish I had known what they were saying.

Although that year in Humboldt had its troubles ( we got my mom’s cancer diagnosis and I spent two months out of that time in Florida with her ), we look back on it very fondly.  The trees welcomed us and we would be happy to be among them again sometime.

favorite hike | fern canyon
Deep in the Prairie Creek Redwoods but just a few steps from the ocean lies this completely magical place. You feel the temperature drop as you descend from the trail above, ferns and mosses completely cover the soaring canyon walls. I couldn’t stop smiling while we explored this incredible place!

don’t forget |  to set your alarm
If you want to catch a peek at the Elk herd in Prairie Creek. You’re more likely to see them in the large meadow outside the park’s visitor center in the early hours before the warmth of the day drives them back into the forest.

what i love most | the light
While Redwoods can be found in other parts of California, there was something about the combination of those giant trunks and the foggy coastal skies filtered the sunlight. No others are quite the same.

See my Redwoods inspired LATITUDE painting, The Birds Are Singing In Your Eyes Today here.

Images by me.