The mighty Californian redwoods are one of the must-see wonders of the Golden State. There are some seriously enchanting places to come face-to-face with the imperious trees, too, from the so-called ‘Mini Yosemite’ of the Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park all the way to the otherworldly Redwood National Park, the bona fide home of the world’s tallest trees. The good news is that you don’t have to lump it on difficult trails for hours on end to encounter some of the most impressive redwoods out there — just take the Rockefeller Loop.
The Loop is only 0.7 miles in all, but what it lacks in length it more than makes up for in scenery. The trail weaves its way through the forests of Northern California, circling a small corner of the highly rated Humboldt Redwoods State Park. Glimpses of the famously colossal trees abound right at the trailhead, before the path delves into the 10,000-acre Rockefeller Forest, eventually skirting the confluence of Bull Creek and the Eel River through soaring redwood stands.
Access to the trailhead is easy — this isn’t only one of the shortest and most accessible hikes in the Humboldt Redwoods but also one of the closest to the 101. Branch off onto Lower Bull Creek Flats Road beside the South Fork Eel River Bridge, and you’ll find yourself at the parking lot in around six minutes. The access point is roughly a 50-minute drive from Eureka.
Through the forest to a gleaming blue river
Whoever said good things can’t come in small packages didn’t know about the Rockefeller Loop. Under a mile in length yet crammed with prime specimens of lowland redwoods, it’s been ranked among the top 10 redwood hikes in California. What’s more, the path garners a lot of love on AllTrails, where, at the time of writing, it’s ranked 4.8 out of 5 overall.
One of the reasons for the high praise is the way the Rockefeller Loop manages to combine quintessential California redwood forestry with ferns and sorrel blooms alongside glimpses of storybook-pretty waterways. One AllTrails user summed it up thusly, stating, “Absolutely beautiful trail. We detoured off a bit to go down to the river which was beautiful.”
There are multiple points where both Bull Creek and the Eel River bend close in towards the trail. The latter of those is known to change color throughout the year but can become a gleaming sheen of teal blue during the winter months when sediment is flushed out by stronger rains. When it does that, the milky turquoise color of the water creates a wonderful contrast against the towering redwoods that line its banks.
