For those  curious about which park will reveal the largest redwoods during their visit, the best answer may be Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park, in Humboldt county.

Following the 2007 release of The Wild Trees, by R. Preston, Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park got a nudge in reputation for having the largest coast redwoods, for about 7 years … the 7 yr. itch of the  redwood coast.  But during those 7 years, Prairie Creek actually had the largest known coast redwood known at that time, the same coast redwood which National Geographic  highlighted in it’s October 2009 magazine.

But in a practical sense, the park which openly reveals the most big redwoods for visitors and hikers should be Prairie Creek.

I was looking at Michael Taylor’s (co-discovered Hyperion) archived list of largest coast redwoods, with about 40 named examples. No directions were given, but Prairie Creek accounted for 50% of the list, out of 4 parks. That jived with my visits to Prairie Creek.

Take a drive along Drury Scenic Parkway, and notice how many large redwoods there are to stop at. Try Brown Creek trail, Prairie Creek trail or trails near Big Tree. Or sample the picnic area redwoods, or the path south of the elk prairie.

If your  style is more casual, each of the north parks may seem to have as many giant redwoods: Humboldt Redwoods, Redwood National, Prairie Creek and Jedediah Smith.  Del Norte Redwoods may inch close, due to the fog, God-rays and Rhododendrons (May-June) even though it’s redwoods are a notch smaller. But if you want a shot in the arm with easy-to-see huge redwood trunks, then Prairie Creek is a top recommendation.

Beauty is different though. And when it comes to natural beauty, all the northern redwood parks may tie for first place.