Well, it was just right past Roseburg when our rear tire blew out. I guess that's what that whole car full of people were trying to tell us as they frantically pointed to the back of our car as they passed us. Oops. So we pulled over, were rescued by a good samaritan man who helped change our tire since we had the wrong tools. Oops. Then we drove back to Roseburg, found a Sears where they only had one more tire left! So after a 4 hour delay, we were on the road again.
We made it to Shasta Lake where we found a pretty cool swimming hole right by the dam. It was a long hot drive and the cool water felt great!
The next day we went for a really good hike around the lake. It was really hot and we were really hungry so we were ready for lunch!
After lunch we headed west to the Redwoods. I hadn't been there since I was little and it was Jace's first time. We got our campsite (the last one!) and decided to go for a hike. It really cool - waterfalls, deep in the woods, and foggy. When we decided to head back to the campsite, we walked out of the trail and there was an eerie silence and stillness. There were no birds or any other wildlife, whereas when we entered the trail, there had been a lot of birds and squirrels and other little critters. We thought it was kinda strange so we hurried to the car. Soon as we were in the car, right out of the bushes next to the trail came a black bear! Oops. We think all the other wildlife had known there was a bear and had taken off. Luckily we were in our car so we got to watch it for awhile.
The Redwoods are an incredible part of creation. They are HUGE!!!!!!!!! If you have never been there, think of the biggest tree you've ever seen, then magnify it by 50. Many of the trees reach hundreds of feet in the air and some of the old growths are said to be more than 2,000 years old. They are so incredible to see in person. We went on some great hikes and found what was once the biggest tree in the forest. Unfortunately, it had been chopped down in the first part of the 1900's so the flat stump could be used for a dance floor for a really rich local guy's parties!
Do you see me?
Later, we drove off the main highway about 15 miles (so thankful our tire didn't pop on this gravel road) to a remote spot where we walked into Fern Canyon. It is exactly as the name says - it's a canyon full of ferns. That might sound a little boring, but it was actually really cool and there were a lot of little water falls and creeks. Apparently, there was a scene in Jurassic Park that was filmed in this canyon but I didn't see any T-Rex's so I'm not sure about that. It was a really neat hike but we were on the only trail behind a family that kept fighting and bratty kids so that kind of ruined the mood, but we still enjoyed ourselves.
It was a short trip - camped for three days and two nights. If I were to do it again, I'd add another day because it was a lot of driving, but definitly well worth it. And a must see for any Pacific Northwester!
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