Gary-Summer: March 21, 2026

Saturday, March 21, 2026

March 21, 2026 - Go to Bandon

Title: March 21, 2026 - Go to Bandon
Hike Info : Description : Background : Extra Photo's : Flowers and Plants

Hike Info:

Type: Hiking : Car

Trail head: Howland Hill Road

Trail: Grove of the Titans

Destination: Grove of the Titans

Distance: 3.17 miles

Start Time: 12:16

End Time: 2:11

Travel Time: 1:55 (1.66 mph)

Moving Time: 1:40 (1.90 mph)

Elevation Rise: 381'

Descent: 405‘

Maximum Elevation: 431'

Minimum Elevation: 235'

GPS Tracks

Description:

Trail of the Titans

I woke up at 7:00 and had my breakfast. We are leaving David’s today to go up and meet Andrea and Lawrence in Bandon. Once Sherri got up, I got packed. Sherri did the same. This has been a short visit with my brother, but I enjoy being with him whether it is a short or longer visit.

About 9:40 we left David’s with me driving-that will be true all of today. We went straight up 101 without incident. After crossing the Klamath, we get about $30 of gas at Pem-Mey a Yurok tribe gas station. The thought is that we have not gotten gas since Elk Grove and I do not want to run out when we go to our next stop. As it turned out, that would not have happened. Still I would rather have that extra insurance.

Both David and Andrea had told us about a place called the Grove of the Titans. It is part of Jedediah Smith State Park. To get to it, we cut off before Crescent City and eventually end up on a dirt road called Howland Hill Road. This is mostly a dirt road. After the initial half of a mile of climbing, we start being gobsmacked with redwoods surrounding us. There is some sort of run going on today as there is a sign saying watch for runners on the road.

Forest and Ferns

I had seen that there was another trail called the Boy Scout Tree Trail. It looks like it is a 5+ mile trail. I also saw that until the end of May only a mile of it is open. There are a few cars parked there. Andrea noted that she and Lawrence did hike it several years ago and it was an OK walk.

We went on. About a half of a mile later we find lots of cars parked. This must be it. We found a slot to park the Highlander in and get out and start walking. The trail is only about a mile or so with lots of boardwalk.^* We decided not to put on our boots and just hike in our tennis shoes. This was not a mistake.

A docent is at the entrance and she gives us an overview. Apparently not only is this the trail for the Titans, but also goes along Mill Creek. As popular as it is, I was expecting a nice little gentle trail. While not steep, it did rise up pretty good. But the trail was kind; it was not challenging, just more than we were expecting. There was a bit of lushness to the walk. Not only redwoods provide overhead, but there are also lots of ferns and greenery. About mid-trail, the trail starts to descend. We come to the bottom and there is a downed redwood which you walk single file by. Beautiful. All along, we go over a wire grate boardwalk when it passes over sensitive areas. Now that we are on the bottom, the trail is completely boardwalked.

Mill Creek

We then reach the Grove of the Titans to find a crowd of people. The Titans are awesome even with the lack of solitude.. The docent said that the tallest is over 300’ tall and 1500-2000 years old. While the height is impressive, the age is a youngster next to some of the Gigantia we are used to. We hang around there for a while and the groups disappear. The true magnificence of the Grove appears when we are alone. There is a peace which seems to descend on the Grove when us humans disappear from the area. We just stand there, enjoying the light and silence. After about ten minutes others come along and we leave.

When we leave, we go a short way along the Mill Creek Trail until we come to the actual creek. We decided we did not want to turn this two mile round trip into a six mile journey. So we head back. Along the way, we pass several school age groups led by Titaneers-trail docents. As we pass one group, Ferne-a docent-asks what did we like about the time. Of course the trees and plant life were favorites. I say the trail is what I really appreciated, along with the redwoods. She was really struck that someone noticed the trail. She said that it was created four years ago, mostly with volunteer help. People would walk in the grates and equipment. I am very much impressed by the amount of work this entailed.

Sherri at the end of the Trail

We made it back to the car around 2:10 and continued down Howland Hill Road until we hit Highway 199.There we turned west and shortly hit Highway 197. This leads us back to 101 shortly before the Oregon border. Sherri is able to get some sleep while I drive. It really seems longer than the 90 miles from the border to Bandon. But there are a lot of curves and turns to navigate. It is a pleasurable drive. Since we did not have lunch, Sherri and I munch on almonds and Catalina Crunch like we did yesterday.

We get to Bandon and our, or should I say Lawrence and Andrea’s, BnB about 5:00pm. Once we figured out which building, we quickly got in and got most of our stuff unloaded. Lawrence and Andrea come up about 5:30 and we unload them as well as it was starting to rain. I for one am pretty tired and I vegetate for a good hour. We have my homemade lasagna for dinner. Then talk until 9:00 when we go to bed.