Two redwood parks, one drive west from the valley.
Redding sits on the dry, sunny side of the Coast Range. Cross it on Highway 299 and the air turns cool and green, and you reach the only place on the planet where the coast redwoods grow — the tallest trees that have ever lived.
The anchor of the trip is the Avenue of the Giants, a 31-mile road that runs through Humboldt Redwoods State Park parallel to U.S. 101. It is free, slow, and lined the whole way with old growth. Pull-offs let you stop and walk into groves whenever a tree stops you, which it will. Inside the park is the Rockefeller Forest, the largest unbroken stand of old-growth coast redwood left anywhere in the world, preserved in 1931 by the Save the Redwoods League. The most-walked stop is Founders Grove, a flat loop that passes the 346-foot Founders Tree and the fallen Dyerville Giant, a roughly 1,600-year-old redwood that came down in 1991 and is staggering to stand beside on the ground.
If you have a second day, keep going north to Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park, part of the Redwood National and State Parks about an hour past the Avenue. That is where you find Fern Canyon, a narrow gorge with 50-foot walls draped in five kinds of fern, and the meadows at Elk Prairie where herds of Roosevelt elk graze morning and evening. It is a longer haul, but it is the postcard most people picture when they think of the redwoods.
The redwoods, shot on my own run out
Not stock photos — the Avenue, Founders Grove, Fern Canyon, and the elk at Prairie Creek from my own trip. Tap any photo to enlarge.
What's out there
- Avenue of the Giants — 31-mi scenic drive
- Founders Grove & the Dyerville Giant
- Rockefeller Forest — largest old-growth stand
- Fern Canyon — Prairie Creek (permit)
- Elk Prairie — Roosevelt elk meadows
A redwoods run, from a Redding driveway.
One long day gets you the Avenue of the Giants and home by night. A weekend adds Fern Canyon and the elk up north. Either way, the drive west is half the experience.
Cross the Coast Range
Leave early. Highway 299 climbs out of the valley and drops toward the coast over about three hours, trading oak hills for fog and fir. Coffee in Weaverville on the way is the local move.
Drive the Avenue of the Giants
Pick up the 31-mile route off U.S. 101 and slow down. Pull off whenever a grove stops you. The road is free and the old growth runs the whole way.
Founders Grove & Rockefeller Forest
Founders Grove is an easy loop past the Founders Tree and the fallen Dyerville Giant. Rockefeller Forest is the quieter, bigger old-growth stand a few minutes off the Avenue. Both are flat and family-friendly.
Prairie Creek: Fern Canyon & the elk
If you stayed over, head north to Prairie Creek. Fern Canyon needs a peak-season day-use permit, so book ahead. Watch the meadows at Elk Prairie morning or evening for the Roosevelt elk herds.
…back over the hill to Redding
That is the quiet sell of living up here: the tallest trees on earth are a day trip, the coast is on the same drive, and you sleep in your own bed. See what else is in weekend range →
How long
A long day, or a weekend
The Avenue of the Giants works as a single long day from Redding — roughly seven hours of round-trip driving plus grove time. Adding Prairie Creek and Fern Canyon up north is better as an overnight, since they sit about an hour past the Avenue.
The main event
The Avenue is free
The 31-mile Avenue of the Giants runs parallel to U.S. 101 and costs nothing to drive. Most of the best groves — Founders, Rockefeller — are short, flat walks right off it. You do not need a big plan, just time to stop.
Fern Canyon
Needs a permit in summer
Fern Canyon at Prairie Creek limits access in peak season (about May through September) and requires a day-use permit through California State Parks. Reserve ahead — it is the one stop on this trip you can't just show up for.
Pack a layer
The coast runs cooler
It can be 100 degrees in Redding and 60 with fog under the redwoods the same afternoon. Bring a jacket even in summer, and good shoes — the grove trails are soft, damp, and root-crossed.
Watch · under the canopy
What it feels like to drive in
A clip from the trip — the scale of the old growth doesn't really come through in a photo. (Final version will be a stitched reel hosted on YouTube; this is the raw clip.)
Drive times from Redding
Approximate, for planning. The route is Highway 299 west to U.S. 101 — a real mountain-and-coast drive, not a freeway sprint. Eastern Shasta County communities (Burney, Round Mountain) add roughly 45 minutes to an hour.
| Destination | Drive time | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Avenue of the Giants (Humboldt Redwoods) | ~3.5 hr | ~185 mi |
| Prairie Creek (Fern Canyon & elk) | ~4 hr | ~195 mi |
Redwoods from Redding — common questions
How far are the redwoods from Redding?+
The closest old-growth redwoods are at Humboldt Redwoods State Park, home of the Avenue of the Giants, about 3.5 hours and roughly 185 miles west of Redding via Highway 299 West to U.S. 101. Prairie Creek Redwoods, farther north near Orick, is about 4 hours from Redding.
Can you see the redwoods in a day from Redding?+
Yes for the Avenue of the Giants — it works as a long single day, roughly seven hours of round-trip driving plus time in the groves. Adding Prairie Creek and Fern Canyon to the north is better as an overnight, since they sit about an hour past the Avenue.
Which redwoods are closest to Redding?+
Humboldt Redwoods State Park and its Avenue of the Giants. The 31-mile scenic drive runs parallel to U.S. 101 and is free to drive, and the park holds the Rockefeller Forest, the largest contiguous old-growth coast redwood stand left in the world, plus Founders Grove and the fallen Dyerville Giant.
Do you need a permit for the redwoods or Fern Canyon?+
Driving the Avenue of the Giants and walking most groves at Humboldt Redwoods is free. Fern Canyon at Prairie Creek requires a day-use permit during the peak season (roughly May through September) because access is limited — reserve it ahead through the California State Parks reservation system.
When is the best time to go?+
The groves are good year-round. Summer and early fall are best for Fern Canyon, when the seasonal footbridges are installed and the canyon floor is easiest to walk. The coast runs cooler and foggier than Redding, so pack a layer even in July.
Redding puts the redwoods in weekend range
The trade people make when they move to Shasta County: the redwoods, the coast, the mountains, and the lakes are all a drive from the driveway, not a flight. If that's the life you're after, that's the part I can actually help with.