Every Trail Tells a Story
Grove of Titans
Marvel at the Grove of Titans on California’s most carefully engineered trail
Stand beneath some of the world’s largest coast redwoods, each with a story and a name
Extend the journey to the Smith River for solitude, color, and classic redwood serenity
At the far northern edge of California, brushing up against the Oregon border, lies Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park – an enchanted realm where ferns blanket the forest floor, fog drifts through cathedral groves, and the redwoods grow so large they defy our usual categories of “tree.”
Here stands the Grove of Titans, the crown jewel of Jedediah Smith, named by Humboldt State University researchers in the 1990s. They liked to say they “discovered” the grove, though in truth the Tolowa people had known and honored these trees for countless generations. The researchers tried to keep the grove secret, but the idea of “secret redwoods” is like telling a kid not to open the cookie jar. By 2011, GPS coordinates were online, Google Maps had pinned the grove, and the big-tree rush was on.
Pilgrims tromped in by the thousands, chasing whispers of the tallest tree, the biggest trunk, or simply the bragging rights of touching something called “Titan.” Social trails spiderwebbed through the understory, crushing ferns and compacting the fragile root systems of the very trees everyone had come to adore.
So, in true California fashion, we went to extraordinary lengths to protect the extraordinary trees. The park rerouted Mill Creek Trail and constructed a 1,300-foot elevated metal boardwalk – hand-carried into the forest piece by piece – to keep boots off roots. The result? Perhaps the most overbuilt, over-sturdy hiking trail in the state. Hikers may grumble about all those steps and railings, but let’s admit it: the Titans deserve nothing less than a titanium escort.
The grove itself is relatively small in acreage, but immense in presence. The Del Norte Titan towers 307 feet and may claim the title of world’s largest coast redwood by single-stem volume. Lost Monarch, El Viejo del Norte, Chesty Puller, and the Screaming Titans add their names (and their bulk) to the roll call. Standing beneath them, you can’t help but look up and wonder if maybe, just maybe, you’ve stumbled into a green cathedral designed by gods instead of architects.
And yet the park offers more than the famous grove. Continue beyond the boardwalk and you’ll find Mill Creek’s mossy woodlands, seasonal wildflowers, and – at trail’s end – the graceful Smith River, clear and blue as glass. In autumn, vine and big-leaf maples ignite the understory in crimson and gold, making this hike a four-season wonder.
From Highway 101 in Crescent City, turn east on Elk Valley Road and travel a mile. Turn right on Howland Hill Road and drive about 3.5 miles on the scenic (and partially dirt) road. Look for the signed Mill Creek Trail to the Grove of Titans on your left, opposite a restroom on your right. Park in one of the turnouts along the road.
From the trailhead, stroll into a ferny forest and ascend gentle switchbacks before descending near Mill Creek. Soon you’re on the gleaming new boardwalk – California’s most engineered forest path, built to keep the Titans safe and your boots dry.
First up is Chesty Puller, two fused redwoods named for the most decorated Marine in history. The trail dips and rises across metal stairs, crosses marshy ground, and enters the heart of the Grove of Titans. Take side spurs to Lost Monarch, the grove’s largest single-trunk redwood, and the twin Screaming Titans, before circling back to meet venerable El Viejo del Norte, estimated at 1,700 years old.
Past the grove, the boardwalk ends and the crowds thin. The path narrows to a classic redwood trail, winding along Mill Creek, across tributaries on wooden footbridges, and through airy groves. About 2.7 miles out, the trail delivers you to the Smith River, where an elegant flatland grove of redwoods spreads across the gravel bar. In summer, if the footbridge is up, you can cross to Stout Grove and the state park campground. Otherwise, linger here – look across the shining river, look up into the towering canopy, and know you’ve walked among giants.