Enjoy the evening spectacle of huge trucks adorned in holiday lights. A Eureka tradition for over 30 years, the Christmas convoys range in size from 50 to 100 rigs.

The 18-wheelers stretching as long as 60 feet, including some with special parade additions that might be tacked on: bandstand platforms, dancing reindeer, flying fish, you name it. Some trucks have been covered in more than 40,000 lights, requiring three generators to run them.

Starts at Redwood Acres Fairgrounds – turns right on Harris, right on I Street, right on 7th, right on Myrtle, right on Hubbard, ends at Redwood Acres.

Hosted by Rex Bohn and Friends, the proceeds from the event will benefit the Boys and Girls Club of the Redwoods.

The Redwood Coast Music Festival returns this year from October 3-6. Renowned musicians from far and wide gather for four days to participate in one of the biggest music festivals in Northern California. This highly anticipated event will showcase more than 100 sets across seven historic stages throughout Eureka. Genres include jazz, zydeco, swing, rockabilly, Americana and more. Be sure to bring your dancing shoes.

Visit https://www.rcmfest.org/ for tickets and event details.

Photo by Matt James.

A celebration of local produce and goods, the Arcata Plaza comes alive on Saturday mornings. Live music, hot food to go, dozens of local producers selling seasonal veggies, meat and more pop up along the streets of the Plaza. Free entry.

​Open every Saturday, year round, rain or shine!

• April – November: 9am – 2pm
• December – March: 10am – 2pm

Hosted by the North Coast Growers Association.

Local farmers and ranchers parade fancifully decorated tractors and tractor-drawn wagons depicting holiday scenes down the Victorian Village’s historic Main Street for a sparkling country Christmas celebration! Tractors line up at 4:30 p.m. for judging at 5, and start parading at 6.

For excellent viewing of the parade from your car, please show up early (starts at 6pm), and we mean EARLY. There is one main way in and out of Ferndale and traffic gets backed up as people start to find last-minute parking. The parade starts at the top of Main Street, continues down the street towards Ferndale High School, turns left on Arlington Ave & left again on 5th Street! 5th Street will be ONE-WAY traffic towards Ocean Ave in preparation for the parade.

First Saturday of the Month, 6-9pm

On the first Saturday of every month, Old Town Eureka transforms into myriad venues for music and art. Galleries, restaurants, bars and businesses welcome patrons and spectators with exhibits, demonstrations, live performances and more. Celebrating the work of local artists, Arts Alive is just one of the many ways that Humboldt County lives up to claim “most artists per capita.”

Full Event Details Here

Marvel at Humboldt’s iconic giants and experience the magic of forest in the flickering candlelight at the 34th Annual Candlelight Walk through the Ancient Redwoods. Refreshments provided. Silent auction and ticket sales benefits the Redwood Parks Conservancy. Walk begins at 6pm.

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Watch artists in action as they bring the sidewalks of the Arcata Plaza to life in support of North Coast Children’s Services. Local businesses and sponsors “buy” sidewalk squares around the center of the plaza where skilled artists craft pastel masterpieces. Enjoy live music and shop at the Arcata Farmers Market as you peruse the county’s largest plein air art show.

Find more information at https://ncsheadstart.org/pastels-on-the-plaza/

Race Day Exits & Road Closures
On Sunday, all north / south race traffic must use Hwy 101 exits 5 miles north of the START / FINISH. HWY 101 Exit Closures: The Honeydew, South Fork Eel and the Rockefeller Forest exits will not be used for race day traffic, but will be open on Saturday.

Open Exits: 
Southbound 101
Take Exit 667ANorthbound 101
Take Exit 667

Road Closures:
Avenue of the Giants and the Bull Creek Road will be closed from 7:30am to 2:00pm, please use caution before and after these times.

Run, jog or walk beneath the stunning old-growth redwood canopy along Avenue of the Giants at the 44th Annual Humboldt Redwoods Marathon. Entry fee benefits Save the Redwoods. Register online.

Free public transportation will be available by People Mover Transit (stops between Clendenens, Rohner Park and Downtown @ 12th and Main)  Please plan accordingly.

This sweet town-wide event celebrates local history and local farms. The day-long festival begins with a street fair in downtown Fortuna, featuring vendors, food trucks, music and more. Then, head on over to Clendenen’s Cider Works, the hub of the Fortuna Apple Harvest Festival for apple and cider tasting, family activities, more music and, of course, the opportunity to take some of the bounty home with you. The celebration ends at Rohner Park with a themed skate night.

Visit https://fortunaappleharvest.org/ for details.

Celebrate the diversity of the Arcata community and the Fall Equinox over two days with arts and crafts vendors, food and information booths, parades, live music and performances.

For more information, visit http://www.northcountryfair.org/

A 67-acre old-growth redwood grove is a surprising green getaway in the middle of residential Eureka. It  has biking and hiking trails, a children’s playground and picnic areas, creeks and duck pond and a small  fun-sized zoo that opened in 1907. The oldest accredited zoo in California houses red pandas, river  otters, a barnyard petting area, and a walk-in aviary with exotic birds. 

The most popular attraction is the Redwood Sky Walk, an instant hit following its 2021 debut. Soar as  high as 100 feet above the forest floor on the elevated trail. While the world’s tallest trees can feel  remote in their incomprehensible heights from ground level, the Sky Walk brings humans closer to the  mighty trunks for unrivaled views of the forest. The entire quarter mile route is wheelchair-accessible  too, save for the “adventure leg,” a narrow segment with open mesh decking that offers oohs and aahs  with a back and forth sway. Humboldt residents can take advantage of a modest price discount. Tickets  include admission to the Sequoia Park Zoo.

Visit the biggest of all Humboldt dunes, a sprawling, 1 million-cubic-yard sand mountain barely  contained by the Ma-le’l Dunes Cooperative Management Area. Jointly supervised by the Bureau of  Land Management and the Humboldt Bay Wildlife Refuge, this federal preserve features rare coastal 

plants and animals, a spooky skeleton forest and, once one trudges to the top of said dune, panoramic  views of ocean, bay and inland mountains. Look for beach strawberries, sea rocket plants and rare  Humboldt Bay wallflowers, or crisscrossing tracks left at night by foxes, skunks and raccoons. The  southern unit, which permits horses and dogs, is open daily. The northern unit, which offers more direct  access to the monster dune, is open weekends.

While inside Redwood National Park, most of Bald Hills Road resembles anything but a primeval forest.  Rather than foggy groves, the area is dominated by sunny prairies, with occasional clumps of oaks, once  grazed by sheep and cattle. The grassy hillsides, with panoramic views of the redwood groves below in  the Redwood Creek valley, offer perfect places to picnic, especially in the spring when wildflowers like  purple lupines pop up everywhere. To start, from U.S. Highway 101 just north of Orick, turn east on Bald  Hills Road, pass the signs for the Lady Bird Johnson and Tall Trees groves, and ascend into what looks  like a scene from The Sound of Music. Three suggested lunch stops: Dolason Prairie, which includes a 9- mile trail for the ambitious; Schoolhouse Peak, which at 3,097 feet is the highest point in the park; and  the old Lyons Ranch, whose original barn and bunkhouses are intact and worth exploring. The barn is  11.5 miles from U.S. Highway 101. The bunkhouses, which require a few miles of unpaved road, are just  shy of 18 miles from the highway. Bonus tip: Keep an eye out for rare California condors, which are  periodically released into the wild from a sanctuary in the Bald Hills. 

As arboreal hunters search the depths of Redwood National and State Parks for giant trees, hidden in  plain sight is one of the most photogenic champions: the so-called Picnic Tree, an old growth monster  near the campground of Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park. It’s been featured in travel magazines and  websites, but few who pass notice it on the edge of a cozy picnic spot, steps from the Prairie Creek  Visitor Center. This massive vertical spire has sprawling roots flaring around its base like the foot of a  mastodon, shading a moss covered stone grill that adds to its prehistoric charm. Should you eat here  among the Giants, there are plenty of picnic tables, and you can work off the meal with a stroll on the  Revelation Trail—an easy, wheelchair-friendly mile that showcases more monster trees. 

Lacks Creek is a recreational hidden treasure and offers a wide range of outdoor activities. Ride a horse  or bike along the multi-use trails, or find your own secluded campsite with a view. Lacks Creek is located  in Humboldt’s northern Coast Range, about 15 miles inland from the Pacific Ocean and 20 miles  northeast of Eureka. The area includes 9,000 acres of Bureau of Land Management public lands, 7,000  acres of which are within the Lacks Creek watershed. The management area is surrounded by large  private land timber holdings, and the region contains some of the most productive and intensively  managed commercial forest lands in the United States. The immediate surroundings are sparsely  populated with scattered ranches in adjacent Redwood Valley. For directions, drive east on Highway 299 for 18 miles from Highway 101. Turn left at the Redwood Valley turnoff (Bair Road) and travel 4 miles.  Make a right turn at the sign that reads “Hoopa – 22 miles”, and travel 6 miles up this windy gravel road.  The entrance is a left turn. 

Trinity River Farm, located in the mountains of eastern Humboldt County near the small town of Willow  Creek, is a family-run business that grows great-tasting fruits and vegetables. The owners of the farm,  the O’Gormans, keep their roadside store open from April 1st until the end of October. Along with their  produce, they sell bedding plants and many local jams, jellies and sauces. Farmer Tom O’Gorman has  created a beautifully landscaped spot and he encourages visitors to walk freely around and picnic. Tom  is particularly proud of the wide variety of trees that he has grown over the years and welcomes anyone  interested to ask for a tour. 

Waste goes in and pride comes out in Arcata’s pioneering wastewater treatment plant, also known as the Arcata Marsh and Wildlife Sanctuary, a 307-acre expanse with freshwater marshes, salt marsh, tidal sloughs, grassy uplands, mudflats, brackish marsh and 5 miles of walking and biking paths. Located at the north end of Humboldt Bay, the sanctuary is situated along the Pacific Flyway, a major migratory route for thousands of birds that breed in the far north and winter in California, Mexico and Central and South America. It has probably the most populated bird coastal site between Bodega Harbor and Washington, with literally thousands of birding visitors annually and organized bird walks held at least weekly on the year-round viewing deck. Start at the Humboldt Redwoods Interpretive Center, which explains the low tech wonder and explores the many birds that reside there full or part time.

A popular hiking and cycling trail just north of Arcata showcases the varied landscapes of the Redwood Coast. Taking hikers and bikers across open fields, lush woodlands and a stunning beach, the Hammond Trail is simply amazing. The 5.5-mile segment of the California Coastal Trail is a multi-use trail that’s open for hiking, biking and horseback riding. It stretches north from the Arcata Bottoms up to Clam Beach County Park in McKinleyville. It starts at the Mad River pedestrian bridge, originally the site of a wooden covered bridge built in 1905. It was later replaced with steel and used as a railroad bridge up until 1961. The southern stretch of the trail provides panoramas of the ocean and Mad River. Keep an eye out for seals, sea otters, herons, ducks, cormorants and Aleutian geese.

After reaching the town of McKinleyville, the trail meanders through neighborhoods and Hiller Park. Beyond the park, the trail zips through a conifer forest and spectacular bluffs. There are picnic tables and benches situated along the path so you can rest and take in the view. Continuing north, you’ll descend onto a short, paved section that crosses Strawberry Creek. The trail ends with a nice walk in the sand at Clam Beach County Park.

Open from April-October, the famously friendly Log Cabin Diner with its hearty country-style cooking will not disappoint. You can’t go wrong with the traditional 2-or-3-egg breakfast. Carnivores can add Chicken Fried Steak, top sirloin, country ham, bacon or sausage. Sides include everything from hash browns, home fries, cottage cheese to a biscuit and gravy—just like Grandma used to make. For those with a sweet tooth, french toast and pancakes round out the breakfast selection. There’s a menu just for kids, too. At lunch, opt for one of Log Cabin Diner’s special burgers, homemade soups, salads or sandwiches. Try the spicy, flavorful Klamath Burger featuring fresh grilled jalapenos, onions and grilled green pepper with pepper jack cheese or the house-smoked tri-tip Hoagie. Here, you’ll fill your belly for the highway ahead. 

Pure nostalgia is the best way to describe the menu and the “Happy Days” ambiance at this landmark classic American diner. Bob’s Footlongs was founded originally in 1949 at the Humboldt County Fair. The current downtown location on 12th St (with era-specific decor of coral and white striped walls) has been a staple in the community since 1967. Students who once walked here from Fortuna High (or worked at Bob’s as teens) are now bringing their kids and grandkids to Bob’s to experience the same made-to-order freshly-dipped corn dogs, hush puppies, footlong dogs, burgers and fries. Enjoy specialties like a Chili Cheese Dog, the Deluxe Cheeseburger with onion rings, or order like a local and have the Four Way Fries smothered in chili, cheese and onions. Wash that down with a root beer float or a tasty milkshake. Finish a meal with soft serve ice cream, a chocolate sundae or a banana split. 

Chef/Owner Danny Emmenecker of South G Kitchen has been dreaming about his own menu since the age of 9 and Humboldt County is pleased that dream’s being realized here with what he’s coined as “Pub Fusion”. He’s partnered with Redwood Coast Brewing Company in Arcata to bring us not only his wildly popular original food truck South G SmashBurger, 2 Wagyu beef patties, seasoned and smashed with gooey melted cheddar, and house pickles on a toasted brioche bun with lettuce, tomato, onion, and “two” thousand island, but also specialties like the Yogi Bowl, soy-chili marinated tofu on white rice with pea shoots, sesame slaw, sliced cucumber, carrots topped with pickled daikon, roasted peanuts, green onions, cilantro, and finished with peanut sauce and hoisin and Black Garlic and Beef Tacos. Pair your selection with your favorite  rotating Redwood Curtain Brewing Company beverages. Order online and don’t overlook the seasonal specials.