Fern Canyon Hike

Yesterday we hung out in Trinidad, taking in some sights we’ve not seen before. A client of K’s found out where we were when he spoke to him on the phone, and he said “That’s where I grew up. You need to go to Fern Canyon . . . I’ve been all over the world and Fern Canyon is one of the prettiest places on earth!” Well, we didn’t need much convincing that Fern Canyon was the place to go for our field trip today. The weather was unusually clear and sunny and gorgeous. (When we left for Florence today it was totally fogged in!)

We drove up 101 (north of Trinidad and just south of Orick) turning onto what I thought was going to be another one of those “white-knuckle-roads” like we did with the Thompsons last week. Well, it was rutty in spots, but I think I’ll just call this one a “hold-tight-you’ll-be-okay” kinda road, because we made it using 4-wheel drive with just a few hard bounces . . . no big deal! Either that, or I’m just getting really brave! The trip in —eight miles on the semi-rutty dirt road—was so worth it. Fern Canyon is a highly recommended "must see" experience for anybody heading north on the 101.


We had a great time and were totally blown away with the canyon. Absolutely amazing.




The canyon was formed millions of years ago by the ocean retreating from the land leaving sculpted rock forming sheer canyon walls. Some of the beautiful ferns now clinging to the steep, shadowy cliffs are ancient species whose ancestry can be traced back 325 million years.

A fellow hiker I shot to show how steep the canyon is.

Winter floods periodically rush through the canyon, sweeping debris from its floor. Spruce and red alder saplings often survive for a few years on small terrace ledges, but they rarely reach maturity before falling off or being swept away.

Some of them land upside-down as you can see in this picture.

It was a sunny day as we started out on the hike, however, as we entered the canyon we could feel the moisture from the perennial waterfalls that cascade from the canyon rim, adding to the cool, moist canyon microclimate.

After our hike we drove down to Trinidad where we enjoyed some good clam chowder and blackberry cobbler for “linner.” Yummo!

A duplicate of the original lighthouse where those
lost at sea are memorialized.

Life is good . . . what a great day we had!