| Previous Next July |
Documentary Fridays return to the Redwood Hostel!
Enjoy a doc or two with us each Friday night in the common room. Programming changes weekly, with an environmental/travel focus to each flick.
Selections include Surfing 50 States, in which two young men manage to catch waves countrywide, even in Nevada; Luna: The Story of Julia Butterfly Hill, about a determined woman living in an ancient redwood tree for nearly two years to stop its destruction by a logging company; and A Map for Saturday, the story a 20-something who quits his lucrative job for HBO to travel the world.
The Land of the $15 Yoga Class is far, far away by the time you reach Del Norte County!
Enjoy an affordable yet challenging 90-minute yoga class in the Bikram style, at the Crescent City Healing Arts Center. Taught by Risa, this class is suitable for all levels. Though prepare yourself to sweat.This small, intimate, and inviting meditation group is open to new members and focuses on the Vipassana style of meditation or "insight meditation."
The meditation is led by Robin Sutherland, a student of Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche, who will also lead walking meditation and a brief dharma talk. Open to all levels, from beginner to experienced meditators.
O' the joys of the farmers' market!
Now, summertime brings many markets up and down the coast, inland and outland of the valleys, and even into the urban moshpits of civilization. Yet this particular market is just a bit... special.
It's difficult to put into words, but it's easy to recommend a special trip Saturday morning to this music-playing, kid-dancing, hula-hooping, carrot-buying weekly moment on the Arcata Plaza.
It's a drive from the hostel (an hour south), so go if this event really speaks to you -- all of you who pack up Saturday morning and leave the hostel on the "Gotta Get to San Francisco Tonight" route. Stop here. Stretch. Eat an apple. Talk to the man in the feathered hat selling cactus plants in a rainforest. Weave in and out of jogging strollers, hop over to the Tincan Mailman Bookstore or Moonrise Herbs, fill your reusable shopping bag with veggies, and get blanching tips from the bonnet-wearing farmer girl.
Watch a two-minute YouTube video of the market here.
The Crescent City Farmers' Market is the closest place to grab a basket full of produce picked that morning, homemade soap, and freshly cut flowers. It's a smaller market, but exceptionally friendly.
The market is directly on the route to Highway 199, wherein lies the Jedediah Smith area of Redwood National and State Parks (Howland Hill Road, the Smith River, and the famous Stout Grove of redwoods).
Now, shall I walk
Or shall I ride?
"Ride," Pleasure said.
"Walk," Joy replied.
--W.H. Davies
Up the fern-capped redwoods and down the valleys of cobalt waters, this place is something to hike about. Short loops, long stretches, trails fit for toddlers, ascents almost inaccessible, under the canopy and over the roots troop our hostellers, even into the downpouring, overcasting moments of the North Coast.
We've long wanted to send along a guide of sorts, for those solo travelers seeking a little company, or fact-questers needing the local backstory while ambling through the understory. And, at last, Cory came to our door.
Cory, your guide, is a lifelong resident of Crescent City with an optimistic gait, big grin, and a little free time on his hands. This season begins his first as a volunteer hiking guide for the hostel, and we cross our fingers aplenty that many of you will congregate each Saturday morning as Cory gathers a group for our weekly hike. He'll lead you to the off-beat trails which the crowds avoid, and get you moving and exploring the deepest secrets of Redwood National and State Parks, Tolowa Dunes, and perhaps a lagoon or two.
On most weeks, Cory will plan the route in advance and you can contemplate on the night before whether it works for you. Occasionally, though, the mood of the group can guide how difficult and accessible a trail to pick, especially if any little ones, elders, or differently abled want to join the trek.
RSVP in advance if possible, but all you last-minute decisionmakers can come, too.
When the tide ebbs, strap on your sandals and cross a 200-foot sandbar to visit the active Battery Point Lighthouse in Crescent City, open every Wednesday - Sunday, April through September.
Volunteer lighthouse hosts take small groups on guided tours into the living quarters, where you can read lighthouse logs from generations past. Squeeze up the narrow winding staircase to the top of the lighthouse for a bird's eye view of the craggy shored sea and distant forests.
The lighthouse is accessible only during low tides; for a tide chart check Free Tide Tables for Crescent City.
Summer is certainly the time for trekking through the forest with a knowledgeable interpreter leading the way.
Daily nature walks are offered at various locations around Redwood National and State Parks, such as Lady Bird Johnson Grove, Simpson-Reed Grove, Stout Grove, Nickerson Ranch trailhead, and the Lagoon Creek - Yurok Loop trailhead (1/4 mile south of the Redwood Hostel).
Nature walk topics vary, and include: "Life and Death in the Redwood Forest," "Do Fish Grow on Trees?" "Children and Giants: Life in the understory," and "Owls and Old Growth." All ages welcome!
Some walks are ADA-accessible. Pick up a park map at the hostel or at any visitor center, and ask what this week's schedule is.
Gather 'round the campfire for a Redwood National and State Parks ranger-led program. The public is welcome to attend!
If you can, arrive a bit early and spend time elk-watching or tree-gawking. Elk Prairie is surrounded by old growth trees, and near the secret location of the world's tallest tree. Look up, and see what you find...
Campfire program topics vary and include: "Wave of the Future" (tsunamis), "Bear Necessities: American black bears," "Discovering the Dark Side of the Redwood Forest," "When Plates Collide" (earthquakes), "California's Wildly Fascinating Fires," "The Farm That Wasn't," "Roosevelt Elk: More than just big deer!," "The Whale's Journey," and "Flower Power."
Daily and nightly programs are offered throughout the summertime. Contact the Prairie Creek State Park Visitor Center for this week's schedule.
Tolowa Dunes State Park and Lake Earl Wildlife areas are an ancient sand dune complex and coastal lagoon, located just north of Crescent City.
The Tolowa Indians have long considered this area to be the center of their universe, and sacred ceremonies continue to be held here, to ensure the Tolowa way of life survives. Explore the dunes and learn about this history with naturalist Jenny Hanson.
RSVP to (707) 954-5253, email jerabek@jeffnet.org, or simply arrive with your curiosity in tow.
Learn to identify local medicinal plants with herbalist Julie Caldwell.
Tolowa Dunes State Park and Lake Earl wildlife areas are an ancient sand dune complex and coastal lagoon, located just 2 miles north of Crescent City and 15 miles north of the hostel. The Tolowa Indians have long considered this area to be the center of their universe, and sacred ceremonies continue to be held here, to ensure the Tolowa way of life survives.
RSVP to (707) 954-5253, email jerabek@jeffnet.org, or simply arrive with your curiosity in tow!
Help volunteers from the Tolowa Dunes Stewards remove invasive species that crowd out, and therefore threaten, native plants.
Tolowa Dunes State Park and Lake Earl wildlife areas are an ancient sand dune complex and coastal lagoon, located just 2 miles north of Crescent City and 15 miles north of the hostel. The Tolowa Indians have long considered this area to be the center of their universe, and sacred ceremonies continue to be held here, to ensure the Tolowa way of life survives.
RSVP to (707) 954-5253, email jerabek@jeffnet.org, or simply arrive with your curiosity in tow!
Bike and hike your way around the awesome outer edges of Lake Earl and Tolowa Dunes State Park. Encircle the largest coastal lagoon this side of Alaska as you pedal past blooming flowers, natural sand dunes, and medicinal plants long beloved by the Tolowa Indians. We'll tread lightly on the earth as we appreciate a (hopefully) sunny day on wheels.
Tolowa Dunes State Park and Lake Earl wildlife areas are an ancient sand dune complex and coastal lagoon, located just 2 miles north of Crescent City and 15 miles north of the hostel. The Tolowa Indians have long considered this area to be the center of their universe, and sacred ceremonies continue to be held here, to ensure the Tolowa way of life survives.
RSVP to (707) 954-5253, email jerabek@jeffnet.org, or simply arrive with your curiosity in tow!
Join the community in Crescent City for the town's largest annual gathering: the 4th of July celebration!
A parade in downtown kicks off the morning at 10 a.m., and is followed by live music, a free theatrical event, food and drink, dancing, and fun in Beachfront Park.
Once the sun begins to set, folks migrate to the beach and harbor for an evening of bonfires and the largest fireworks display this side of San Francisco. Expect to see quite a few "unauthorized" fireworks displays peppering the beach before and after the official show at 9 p.m.
The event is family friendly and a ton of fun, even if the fog makes her usual appearance. Pack a picnic lunch at the hostel and enjoy it on the beach while you take in the show.