Lady Bird Johnson Grove Trail

How to Get There

Overview

Situated around the dedication site of Redwood National Park, this moderate walk winds through stands of old-growth redwood, Douglas-fir, and tanoak. A brochure at the trailhead corresponds to marked posts along the trail and guides you along this historically significant route. In spring, rhododendrons and azaleas abound, and during the autumn months, vine and big-leaf maple reveal their bold colors.

Located not far from Highway 101, this easy walk through old-growth redwoods has been a popular destination for decades. This family friendly trail is a 1.5 mile (2.5 km) loop that winds through a mixed forest of redwoods and other tall conifers. However, there is a hikers' bridge with a slope that makes it not officially accessible for those with a wheelchair.

To get to this grove, you will need to drive three miles (5km) of the Bald Hills Road - this road is not recommended for RVs or trailers. It is narrow and windy with very few pull outs or turn-around spots. Parking on the Bald Hills Road is not allowed because of the danger of collisions with on-coming traffic.

There is a lot of interesting human history, passion, and conflict surrounding the establishment of Redwood National Park. On this trail, you will walking in the footsteps of so many who helped protect the last of the redwoods.

In the mid-1960s, clear cut logging of old-growth redwood trees was occurring all over these hills. On October 2nd 1968, Redwood National Park was officially established. At that time, logging of redwoods came right up to the park boundary - which originally was just outside of this grove. The first park visitors saw miles of scarred and logged landscapes that dramatically ended at the edge of the remaining redwood groves.

The following year in 1969 President Nixon dedicated this grove to former First Lady, Lady Bird Johnson, for all of her conservation and environmental work. The dedication plaque for Lady Bird Johnson Grove can be seen about half a mile down the trail.

This trail is one of the few areas where you can walk in just a few steps through a second growth forest into an old-growth redwood forest. Most of the trees next to the parking lot are second-growth Douglas-fir trees. That means they were planted after the ancient redwoods were logged. Visitors today will see thousands of acres of second-growth forests before they experience the pockets of old growth-redwoods. Only 5% of the world's old-growth redwood forest remain - and nearly half of that (40,000 acres) is in Redwood National and State Parks.

Once you cross the hikers' bridge you will be immersed in old-growth redwoods that have never been logged. You can see, feel, and even hear the differences between these two kinds of forest.

This article uses material from nps.gov "Redwood National and State Parks"