THERE’S MORE TO COASTAL NORTHERN CALIFORNIA THAN TREES!

August, 2021

Tourism associated with the coastal cities in Northern California from Crescent City to Orick is focused on the Redwoods. Terrific campgrounds, a drive-through tree or 2 to find (which by the way can only be experienced for a fee and on private property!), and so many great hikes amongst these giants of nature bring over 31 million visitors annually to the area.

But there is really so much more to experience and explore and discover. There are 2 Crescent City lighthouses! Since 1933, 32 tsunamis have been observed in Crescent City! Sea stars and urchins abound in the town’s tidal pools! There are 38 in-town murals and mosaics maintained by the Redwoods Mural Society! A dozen or so sand dollars can be collected during an easy walk along the beach! Bored in Crescent City? It’s your own fault.

Crescent City was named for the crescent-shaped stretch of sandy beach south of the city. As of the 2020 census the total population was 6,673, down from 7,643 in the 2010 census. It is home to supermax Pelican Bay State Prison, Redwoods National Park Headquarters, and due to the richness of the local Pacific Ocean waters and the related catch, and ease of access, Crescent City Harbor serves as home port for numerous commercial fishing vessels.

Battery Point Lighthouse sits on an island 200 feet from the mainland. It is an active lighthouse and museum whose oil lamps were first lit on December 10, 1856. Tending the lighthouse was done by the U.S. Lighthouse Service until 1936 when the U.S. Coast Guard took over operation and maintenance. The light was automated in 1953, but due to the sophistication of the Fifth Order Drumm Lens the Coast Guard continued to be responsible for maintenance until 1965 when the service and operation became privately owned. To this day the light serves as a private aid to navigation, and lighthouse keepers continue to reside on the island.

Many great stories about the history of Battery Point Lighthouse and Native American legends about the island have been crafted over time. Tour the lighthouse and hear tales of its tenders and their families, and of course no story of such a place is complete without referring to the resident ghost.

Visits to the Battery Point Lighthouse and island are only possible at low tide.

After our tour of the lighthouse and museum, and since it was still low tide we did a little exploring of the tidal pools between the island and mainland…

Sitting atop Dragon Rocks 6 miles offshore the St George’s Reef Lighthouse, built in 1891, provided a beacon for passing ships to avoid the shallow rocky waters closer to shore. Decommissioned in 1995 it sits abandoned as a remnant of a different seafaring time. We had a chance to catch a glimpse of the lighthouse on a very, very, very windy day with the Pacific Ocean fog shrouding the waters.

We went to Endert’s Beach to explore the tidal pools. What we found hiking down to the tidal pools was an incredible view of the ocean, horizon and shore.

South Beach was perfect for finding sand dollars…

Of the 32 Crescent City tsunami occurrences only 5 caused damage, and one of them is called the “largest and most destructive recorded tsunami to ever strike the United States Pacific Coast,” according to the University of Southern California’s Tsunami Research Center.

News records show that “On March 27, 1964, the largest earthquake ever recorded in North America, at 9.2-magnitude on the Richter scale, shook south-central Alaska, sending buildings toppling in Anchorage. The massive quake unleashed a tsunami that reached heights of 150 feet in the open ocean and spread across the Pacific, striking the coasts of southeast Alaska, British Columbia and United States. Crescent City was the hardest hit – four tidal waves, the largest of which crested at an estimated 21 feet, arrived just before midnight. A monster swell followed, flooded the town, killing 12 people and causing millions of dollars in damage.

On April 7, 2013, a little over two years after a magnitude 9.0 earthquake triggered a massive tsunami off the coast of northeastern Japan, a lone boat, Kamome, washed up on the shores of Crescent City, California.  The boat belonged to Takata High School located in Rikuzentakata, Japan – a Japanese City hit particularly hard by the tsunami.  Del Norte High School students and school administrators contacted their peers at Takata High and expressed a desire to help return the boat to its rightful home. Working together with respective City officials as well as with U.S. and Japanese embassies the return of Kamome was arranged. In September of 2013, Kamome boarded a ship for Japan and in just under a week, found its way back to Takata High School.

Rikuzentakata and Crescent City became Sister Cities and in 2014 Takata and Del Norte County High Schools became Sister Schools. The connections continue. 

Barbara and I love street art and finding a small town with a wonderful variety of murals, mosaics, and a sculpture or 2 is nothing but a joy. Thanks to the Redwoods Mural Society for the map to find the street art and their titles…

A bit of personal indulgence from sights in and around Crescent City…

Hiking amongst the Redwoods and visiting all that is offered within hands reach was a non-stop adventure during our stay in Crescent City. Seems like we were there for only the blink of an eye but felt so very satisfied with our time along this section of coastal Northern California.

Our 8,000-mile summer of 2021 adventure which included grandkids, 5 National Parks, 20 or so campgrounds, visiting with the organized crime family known as the Roesners, the McGibbon Tour Guide Company, and John and Cheryl Williams, waterfalls and state parks and atlas obscura as well as other recommended activities (Ride of the Hiawatha), poor air quality from wildfires and excessive heat, chasing after cheese, watching orca hunt, etc., etc., etc. is mostly over.

It’s time to head back to Mesa…

Barbara and Brian

“It’s not what you look at that matters, it’s what you see.“ – Henry David Thoreau