Avenue of the Giants
 State Route 254 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avenue of the Giants | ||||
 | ||||
| Route information | ||||
| Maintained by Caltrans | ||||
| Length | 31.595 mi[1] (50.847 km) | |||
| Major junctions | ||||
| South end |  US 101 near Phillipsville | |||
| North end | US 101 near Stafford | |||
| Location | ||||
| Country | United States | |||
| State | California | |||
| Highway system | ||||
| ||||
The Avenue of the Giants is a scenic highway in Northern California, U.S.A., running through Humboldt Redwoods State Park. It is an old alignment of U.S. Route 101, and continues to be maintained by the state as State Route 254.
Route description
The southern entrance to the Avenue is just north of Garberville, and the northern entrance is 15 miles south of Fortuna. The highway is notable for the Coast Redwoods that overshadow the road and surround the area. It is from these towering trees that the Avenue of the Giants takes its name. The road winds alongside the scenic Eel River, and connects several small towns such as Phillipsville, Miranda, Myers Flat, Burlington, Weott, Englewood, Redcrest and Pepperwood. The two-lane road has a number of parking areas, picnic sites, and attractions for visitors. The nearby river provides many excellent swimming locations, such as those at the Rockefeller Forest redwood grove.
Being situated just off a major highway, and having attained some degree of international fame, the Avenue has many attractions for visitors, both natural and human-made.
The route contains the site of the annual "Avenue of the Giants Marathon".[2]
Immortal Tree
Though not the oldest redwood in the forest, this large tree is over 950 years old, and is currently around 250 ft (76 m) tall, though originally it was much taller. It has survived not only the ravages of time but also the 1964 flood of the area, a 1908 attempt at logging, and a direct lightning strike which removed the top 45 feet (14 m) of the tree (making its original height close to 300ft). It is from its age and the perceived hardiness to the fates that the tree derives its name. Markers are visible on the tree, denoting the heights of where the loggers' axes and the floodwaters struck the tree.
Situated in the northern half of the Avenue, The Immortal Tree is easy to find, and has a large gift shop and parking area in front of it.
Founder's Grove
Near Weott, this grove has an easy 1/2 mile self-guided walk with informational booklets available at the beginning of the trail. This well-travelled trail is a good example of old-growth redwood forest and contains a few very big trees, including the Founder's Tree (346 ft. tall) and the Dyerville Giant (~370 ft. tall) which fell down in 1991.
Drive-Through Tree
Avenue of the Giants features three trees in Northern California that visitors can drive through. The southernmost of these trees, Chandelier Tree, is located in Drive-Thru Tree Park in the town of Leggett. Shrine Drive-Thru Tree is near the town of Myers Flat and Klamath Tour Thru Tree, the northernmost of the three trees, is located in the town of Klamath, California. Each tree is privately owned and charges $5 or more to drive through.
Tree House
Not a traditional tree house, this is actually a house that is, albeit partially, built within a giant redwood.
Visible from the road, and with tours available, the front of this house is entered through the hollow trunk of a still-living tree. The front door and windows are clearly visible to passers-by, and the rest of the house adjoins the rear of the tree in a more traditional style.
Eel River and South Fork
The Eel River is the third largest river in California. It carves deep canyons down great mountains, through flat valleys, and past majestic and ancient redwood forests. The Avenue of the Giants follows the South Fork of the river, but also features the branching of the South and Main forks to its north.
History
The Avenue of the Giants was part of U.S. Route 101 until a freeway bypass was completed on August 27, 1960, assuming the 101 designation.[3] The Avenue was then designated as CA Route 254 by Assembly Concurrent Resolution 10.
Major intersections
Except where prefixed with a letter, postmiles were measured on the road as it was in 1964, based on the alignment that existed at the time, and do not necessarily reflect current mileage. R reflects a realignment in the route since then, M indicates a second realignment, L refers to an overlap due to a correction or change, and T indicates postmiles classified as temporary ().[1] Segments that remain unconstructed or have been relinquished to local control may be omitted. The entire route is in Humboldt County.
| Location | Postmile [1][4][5] | Destinations | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | 0.00 | US 101 – Ukiah, Eureka | Interchange; south end of SR 254 | ||
| | 4.84 |  Maple Hills Road to US 101 | |||
| Myers Flat | 12.33 | US 101 – Ukiah, Eureka | Interchange | ||
| Weott | 18.29 | Newton Road to US 101 | |||
| | Dyerville Loop Road to US 101 – South Fork | ||||
| | Bull Creek Road – Honeydew | ||||
| |  US 101 north – Eureka | Interchange | |||
| | Sorenson Road to US 101 | ||||
| | Barkdull Road to US 101 | ||||
| | 46.53 | US 101 – Ukiah, Eureka | Interchange; north end of SR 254 | ||
| 1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi | |||||
See also
References
- ^ a b c California Department of Transportation. "State Truck Route List". Sacramento: California Department of Transportation. Archived from the original (XLS file) on September 5, 2015. Retrieved June 30, 2015.
- ^ http://www.arrs.net/HP_AvGMa.htm Avenue of the Giants Marathon
- ^ Hawk, Diane (2004). Touring the old redwood highway : Humboldt County. Arcata, Calif.: Hawk Mountaintop Pub. p. 48. ISBN 0-9672162-4-9.
- ^ California Department of Transportation, Log of Bridges on State Highways, July 2007
- ^ California Department of Transportation, All Traffic Volumes on CSHS, 2005 and 2006
External links
