Best Hikes in Redwood National and State Parks: 12 Trails From Tall Trees to Fern Canyon

Best Hikes in Redwood National and State Parks: 12 Trails From Tall Trees to Fern Canyon

Redwood National and State Parks is one park run by two agencies. The National Park Service manages Redwood National Park, and California State Parks manages Jedediah Smith, Del Norte Coast and Prairie Creek Redwoods state parks. The trails cross between them without much notice, which matters mainly for fees and permits. Driving from the Bay Area? Our San Francisco to Redwood National Park guide covers the drive.

The Trails at a Glance

Distances come from the park's official trail lists. Gain is blank where the NPS gives no figure.

Tall Trees Grove

This is the hike people mean when they ask where the biggest redwoods are. The trail drops 800 feet in the first 1.5 miles to the grove along Redwood Creek, then you climb all of it back to the car. It's 4.5 miles round trip, and the park suggests planning about four hours including the drive.

You need a free permit year round, because the parking at the end of the access road is tiny. Permits are booked online only through Redwood Parks Conservancy, the park's nonprofit partner, and visitor centers don't issue them. The daily cap is 65 vehicles. Of those, 45 are all-day permits you can book up to 180 days ahead (and no later than 24 hours before). The other 20 are half-day permits released the day before, with morning slots opening at 8 am Pacific and afternoon slots at 1 pm. The gate code arrives by email, so check your spam folder.

The access road is about 6 miles of narrow dirt road off Bald Hills Road, about an hour from the nearest visitor center. No trailers, and vehicles must be 21 feet or shorter.

Lady Bird Johnson Grove

The easiest way to stand in old growth on the south end. The NPS trailhead page lists it as a 1.5-mile loop, while the park's trail list rounds it to 1 mile. Old growth starts after the hikers' bridge. About half a mile in is the plaque from the 1969 dedication to Lady Bird Johnson.

Bald Hills Road is narrow and winding, and RVs, buses and trailers won't fit the lot. In summer the lot usually fills from about 11 am to 4 pm, and parking on the road is prohibited, so go early or late.

Fern Canyon

Fern Canyon is a narrow creek canyon with walls covered in ferns, inside Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park. The loop from the Gold Bluffs Beach lot is about a mile with roughly 150 feet of gain. You walk in the creek bed, so expect wet feet any time of year, and climbing over or under logs. Wooden footbridges usually go in from June to September, but installation isn't guaranteed.

From May 15 to September 15 you need a free online reservation to drive to the Gold Bluffs Beach day-use area and Fern Canyon trailhead. Book through Redwood Parks Conservancy up to 11:59 pm Pacific the day before, one reservation per vehicle. There's also a $12 day-use fee at the kiosk, cash or check only. The America the Beautiful pass and California State Parks passes are accepted. Gold Bluffs Beach and Elk Prairie campers don't need it.

Davison Road is 7.5 miles of dirt. California State Parks limits vehicles to 8 feet wide and 24 feet long, and trailers aren't allowed. There are two stream crossings, and the NPS recommends high clearance, especially after rain and in early summer.

No reservation? You can walk in from the Prairie Creek Visitor Center on the James Irvine Trail, which needs no permit. That's a long day, about 10 to 11 miles round trip.

James Irvine Trail and Prairie Creek

The James Irvine Trail runs 4.2 miles one way from the Prairie Creek Visitor Center through old growth to the coast near Fern Canyon. The NPS also lists a 12-mile loop that combines James Irvine with Fern Canyon and the beach. As of late October 2026 the easternmost stairs near Fern Canyon were closed for construction and a tree was down about 1.25 miles before the canyon, so check current conditions first. The Newton B. Drury Scenic Parkway nearby runs about 10 miles through the redwoods. From October through May it closes to cars on the first Saturday of each month for a hike and bike day.

Trillium Falls

A 2.5-mile loop with some steep grades from Elk Meadow Day Use Area, 3 miles north of Orick and half a mile up Davison Road. It's the one trailhead on this list with plenty of RV and trailer parking.

Howland Hill Road: Stout Grove, Boy Scout Tree and Grove of Titans

Howland Hill Road is about 10 miles of mostly unpaved, narrow road through Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park, east of Crescent City. The trees grow right up to the edge of the road. RVs and trailers aren't advised, and the NPS says it isn't suitable for large vehicles.

Stout Memorial Grove is a flat half-mile loop at the east end of the road, after a short descent from the lot. In summer a seasonal footbridge links it to the Jedediah Smith campground across the Smith River. The lot fills in summer.

The Boy Scout Tree Trail is the best longer hike in the north, 2.8 miles one way to Fern Falls, with steep grades and switchbacks. The NPS reports frequent car break-ins at this trailhead, so leave nothing in the car. In October 2026 a fallen tree sat across the trail 1.75 miles in, passable with some climbing.

Grove of Titans is a 1.5-mile loop with an elevated metal boardwalk and stairs that protect the roots. Parking is very limited.

Hiouchi and Simpson-Reed

Along Highway 199, the Simpson-Reed loop is a level, barrier-free mile on Walker Road. The Hiouchi Trail runs 2 miles along the river from near the west end of Hiouchi Bridge, and in summer a footbridge connects it to the campground and Stout Grove.

Tide-Dependent and Coastal Hikes

The parks include about 70 miles of the California Coastal Trail. Enderts Beach, 0.6 miles each way from the end of Enderts Beach Road south of Crescent City, is the short one, and the NPS says to check tide times before you go. Damnation Creek drops 1,000 feet in 2.2 miles to a cove, on grades as steep as 16 percent, so save energy for the climb out. Gold Bluffs Beach, at the end of Davison Road, is another beach where it pays to know the tide before walking far.

Coast Redwoods vs. Giant Sequoias

They're related but different trees. The NPS calls coast redwoods the tallest trees in the world, and they grow only along the central and northern California coast and into southwest Oregon. Giant sequoias are the largest trees by overall volume and grow on the western slope of the Sierra Nevada. If you want the giant sequoias, see our Sequoia National Park day trip and the 2 or 3 day Sequoia itinerary.

Where to Stay

There's no lodge inside the park. Crescent City is the base for Howland Hill Road, Stout Grove and Hiouchi. Orick is closest to Tall Trees, Lady Bird Johnson Grove, Fern Canyon and the Thomas H. Kuchel Visitor Center. Klamath sits between the two ends, and Trinidad is just south of Orick. The park's four developed campgrounds cost $35 a night and need a reservation at least 48 hours ahead. Our glamping in the redwoods guide lists cabins and yurts near the park.

When to Go

Coast temperatures stay in the mid-40s to low 60s all year. Most of the 60 to 80 inches of yearly rain falls from October through April. Summer is drier, but fog rolls in off the cold ocean and up the river canyons, so a gray morning in July is normal. Summer brings the most people, the Fern Canyon reservation season, the fastest-filling Tall Trees permits, and the seasonal footbridges at Fern Canyon, Stout Grove, Hiouchi and Redwood Creek. Outside summer those bridges are removed, so some river crossings aren't possible. Bring rain gear and grippy shoes in any month.

Fees

Redwood National Park has no entrance stations and charges no entrance fee, and you can drive the scenic roads through all four parks for free. California State Parks charges day-use fees at its developed areas, listed as $8 per vehicle at Jedediah Smith and Prairie Creek, with higher rates possible at peak times. The Gold Bluffs Beach kiosk charges $12. Federal America the Beautiful pass holders get a discount or waiver depending on the area.

A One-Day Plan

Stay on the south end. Start at Lady Bird Johnson Grove before the lot fills, then do Tall Trees if you have a permit. Without one, do Trillium Falls instead. In the afternoon, drive Davison Road to Fern Canyon (with a reservation in summer), then finish on the Newton B. Drury Scenic Parkway.

A Two-Day Plan

Day one is the south end plan above, sleeping in Orick, Klamath or Trinidad. On day two, head north to Crescent City and drive Howland Hill Road. Walk Stout Grove early, hike the Boy Scout Tree Trail, and stop at Simpson-Reed on Highway 199 on the way out. If you'd rather fit the redwoods into a longer drive, the West Coast road trip itinerary covers them, and the Oregon Coast Trail itinerary starts just up the road.

Plan It With a Local

ExplorOFF can match you with a local guide who knows these trails and the permit timing. Send us your dates and we'll build the plan. For more trails in the state, see the best hikes in California.