airport by the Redwoods?
 

Hi,
I am thinking of taking a trip to San Francisco, Napa/Sonoma, and then visiting the Redwoods. We would fly into San Fran...but where should we fly out of if the last leg of our trip is at the Redwoods?
Thanks

San Francisco

There is an airport in Mckinleyville (called Arcata-Eureka) - but not much service and no cheap flights at all.

so, yes - San Francisco (or Sacramento or Oakland)

Yesm there is no major airport in the vicinity of the redwoods. Which means that you will need to retrace your steps. If you plan to go north as far as Eureka or beyond, I hope you will have time to drive one way on the coast and one way on Hwy 101.

There is an airport in McKinleyville that could work for you. It really depends on what you want to do and how much you want to spend.

The odd thing is that it is very expensive to fly from there to SFO but if you want to fly to Portland or LA, it's not too bad (about $160 or so per person). The United flight to LA stops at SFO but if you want to get off there it will cost you twice as much as going on to LA. Go figure. This is one of the idiotic things about airfare pricing.

I think both Alaska and United (through Skywest) have flights out of McKinleyville.

Anyway, if you want to fly and not drive, you can do it.

We have a son who lives in Arcata and on several occasions we have had family get-togethers up there with folks flying in from LA and Portland. For a weekend visit, it sure beats driving. Whether it will be worth it for you or not is something you will have to decide.

How much "visiting the redwoods" would suffice? Would a day trip from SF to Muir Woods or down to Big Basin be enough?

You know, I'm actually really unfamiliar with the area so I didn't realize I could take a day trip. I'll have to look into Muir Woods or to Big Basin area. I don't mind the drive since it's so pretty, but didn't know if there was another airport.

There are no shortage of redwoods within a day trip of SF. You wont find the really large groves of old growth trees, but there are smaller groves around.

Yes. There are some beautiful redwood groves in the Bay Area. So, you don't have to go north to see some trees. However, if you are in the Sonoma wine country, there are several really nice groves between Hwy 101 and the coast. Armstrong Redwoods is very nice and is just north of Guerneville which is on the Russian River west of Windsor.

If you include Mendocino in your tour of Northern California, there are some nice groves alongside Hwy 128. A little further north is an out of the way grove, Montgomery Woods State Reserve. This one is located on a back road between Ukiah and Little River on the coast. It may be my favorite grove in all of California. Because of its isolation and because there is a short hike to get into the grove, it is never very crowded. And, there are some of the tallest trees in the world here. Again, you would want to include this grove if you were driving over to/or back from the coast.

Further north still are the really big redwood groves. They start just north of Leggett at Standish Hickey State Park and continue up through Richardson Grove, Humboldt Redwoods and into Eureka and up to Redwood National Park where there are three more state parks devoted to redwood groves.

Hwy 101 is called "The Redwood Highway" and part of it south of Eureka is called "The Avenue of the Giants". If you just went this far, you would see many excellent groves and would get a taste of what this part of California was like before it was settled and logged.

Here's a mile by mile description of Hwy 101 north of Leggett.

http://www.milebymile.com/main/Unite...el_guides.html

Of course, the coast redwoods are not the only Sequoias in California. In the Sierra Nevada are the "big trees". These cousins of the coast redwoods are larger in diameter but slightly shorter in height. There are many groves preserved in National Parks and Monuments as well as in Calaveras Big Trees State Park.

So you see, you could spend you entire trip in California looking at trees. I'm not sure you wanted this much information but you have many options.

medford.

Thank you so much. This is some really good information. I'm excited!

Actually Otis, "The Redwood Highway"
continues on US 199 till its end in Grants Pass. GG bridge to the 199 junction with I 5.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Redwood_Highway

A nice day trip to see both redwoods and coast and stop at a winery or two...drive north on Highway 101 to Petaluma, take the East Washington Street exit and drive through town, staying on this street. It becomes the Bodega Highway and will take you to the coast at Bodega Bay, a small fishing village and vacation home spot where Alfred Hitchcock's "The Birds" was filmed. The 10 miles north of here has several state beaches. When you get to Goat Rock State Beach, take the road down and watch the Russian River enter the ocean.

Back upon the road continue, cross the river and turn right onto Hwy 116. You will soon be in Guerneville. Ask for directions to Armstrong Grove Redwoods State Park. This is much larger than Muir Woods which is near San Francisco and also less crowded. Muir tends to have loads of tour buses.

After your visit, continue on Hwy 116 to Hwy 101, go south and watch for the exit for Hwy 12. This will take you through the Sonoma Valley to the town of Sonoma through beautiful country, vineyards and wineries. Stop in Sonoma and walk around the Plaza, which is surrounded by adobe buildings from the Mexican occupation days of the early 1800's. They now house hotels, restaurants and boutiques.

This is 45 minutes from the Golden Gate Bridge

"Actually Otis, "The Redwood Highway" continues on US 199 till its end in Grants Pass. GG bridge to the 199 junction with I 5."

That I did not know. Learn something everyday. Thanks.

And some of my favorite redwood groves are off US 199 in Jedediah Smith State Park.