Ferns, Creek, And Forest. © Copyright 2018 G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Ferns growing along the banks of a redwood forest creek.

One of my goals on this trip to the Redwood National And State Parks region was scouting. I often arrive at a new location — and this are was new to me — without doing a whole lot of advance research. This means that I’ll engage in a bit of semi-blind wandering at first, but it also means that I get the thrill of discovery instead of going just to well-known spots. I knew that Jedediah Smith Redwoods Park was supposed to have rhododendron blooms and, of course, redwoods, but I wasn’t quite sure where to look. So I poked around a bit.

The first “poking” was unsuccessful, and I ended up at a locked gate on a gravel road. I could have walked further, but on this first visit I wanted to cover more ground than walking would allow, so I back down the road and wound around to the other side of this park. Before long I did find redwood groves with blooming rhododendrons, and I spent a bit of time photographing there in morning light. As the sun rose higher the light was less agreeable, so I began exploring again, eventually ending up at another dead-end road. This time I loaded up my pack and started walking, eventually arriving at a beautiful old-growth redwood grove. I passed this little vignette of creek, ferns, and light along the way.

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G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” is available from Heyday Books and Amazon.
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