Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park

We arrived early afternoon at the beautiful Santa Cruz Redwoods RV Park which backed on to the San Lorenzo River and the Henry Cowell Redwood State Park in Felton, California, about 7 miles uphill from Santa Cruz. Nestled amongst the impossibly tall and straight Redwoods, we set up camp.

Waking up every morning to the towering Redwoods was both comforting and awe inspiring. I felt peaceful and protected. The smell of the trees was truly intoxicating. Bliss! 

We took our time to explore the Redwoods on our doorstep including a beautiful hike amongst an ancient grove of Redwoods at the Henry Cowell State Park, a morning trip on the Roaring Railroad, a narrow gauge steam engine through the trees, and on the edge of the state park we found the tallest covered bridge in America surrounded by the Redwoods, crossing the San Lorenzo River in Felton. ​

​The coastal redwoods are the tallest species of tree on the planet. They are immense. Their bark and heartwood is a reddish brown, almost husk like. Their trunks seem to grow up tall and straight for miles. They self prune lower branches so they look lean and leggy. The Giant Sequoias are like Shaquille O’Neal, tall, heavy, broad and with huge feet, whereas the Redwoods are more like Kobe Bryant tall, gloriously fit and healthy, rangy and true team players as they live in rooted communities where they live symbiotically sharing water and other resources to keep the entire grove healthy. They adore the coastal mists coming in off the Pacific and they take in as much water through their leaves as they do through their roots. Meeting a Redwood is like meeting Methuselah. The Redwoods can live for up to 2000 years, but more commonly live between 500 to 700 years. They are LIVING, first hand witnesses to the incredible human story that has unfolded since Jesus was alive. Mind blowing!!!

Amongst the giant Redwoods, Henry loved finding banana slugs, the largest land slug in America and the second largest in the world. On our hikes, we spotted a good few of the bright yellow slugs, native to the cool, damp coastal forest floor, at the feet of the Redwood giants. 

One morning we got up early to walk the river from the camp site and had a little game of skimming stones. I was rubbish but Henry could make those stones jump! 

Being in the Redwoods was transcendent. It was a total sensory experience that I will never forget.