Seattle to Redwood national park in April?

Is this a reasonable rough itinerary for this route? Looking at round trip, using 101 on the way down and I 5 to return. It would be me and my kids-ages 9, 13 and 5 months. So, only one driver.

Any and all tips welcome!

Spring road trip
Stay ar holiday inn wxpress ferndale
Redwood national park
Day 1 seattle to salem or
Day 2 salem to brookings
Day 3 4 stay in ferndale see redwoods arcata other area sights
Day 5 head north via I 5; spend night ??
Day 6 mid or to chelasis or so
Day7 chehalis to seattle

Hello and welcome back to RTA !

I would say that the overall outline of the trip is reasonable for a week on the road. Where you wish to stop should be based on what appeals to you and factors such as what time you will depart Seattle and at what time of day you want to[or have to] return. For example you could spend the first night on the Oregon coast, but if Salem appeals [I have not been] then that's what matters. On the way home you could break your journey up around Mt Shasta and Portland. They should all be reasonable travel days with the children in mind and give you time out of the car to break the journey, even if it's just for them to let off steam running around a local park.

I mostly picked Salem because it would break up the drive into a reasonable chunk.

I've been playing with the AAA TripTik and testing distances between various cities/towns for stops.

We just did a successful road trip from Seattle to Richmond BC, with 3.5 hours in the car the longest stretch without a stop.

Now to figure out if the Redwood park areas will be accessible the first week of April...

I don't know of any reason why accessability would be a problem and it should be more peaceful than in the peak tourist season, pack some wet gear though, 'just incase'. In April the wildflowers are out and there organised walks, take some binoculars and who knows, the Kids may spot a whale ! For info you can't really beat the Redwoods NP's webpage.

More info for Humboldt State park where you can journey along the famous 'Avenue of the Giants'.

I've got about 6 days to go from Seattle to Crescent City, most likely via I-5 to Grants Pass and then 199 to Crescent City. The plan is to take 2 days to get there, spend two days in the Redwoods and take 2 days to get back to Seattle.

It'll be me, my 9 and 13 year old DDs and my 4 month old DS. Due to him, we'll likely need to stop every 2-2.5 hours. I'm hoping to find interesting little spots to put on the map to stop at--diners, outlet malls, antique shops, natural wonders, etc.

Please help me find some cool sights!

Moderator Note: Please don't create multiple threads about the same trip.

In addition to the ideas that you've already been provided, make sure to check out the RTA Map Center which is designed for exactly the kind of question you have: finding lots of unique attractions along your route.

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Originally Posted by Tiki

Moderator Note: Please don't create multiple threads about the same trip.

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Sorry! Thanks for moving the post.

I'll check the Map Center.

I have narrowed down my route. Seattle to Grants Pass to Crescent City to Coos Bay, then back to I-5 and up to Portland, then Seattle. I wonder if I'm missing something good by cutting over at Coos Bay rather than doing more on 101...

Thanks for the links-I hadn't included the Humboldt redwoods...will have to put them in, Avenue of the Giants sounds amazing.

Updated itinerary:
Seattle -Cottage Grove night 1
Cottage Grove to either Crescent City or Arcata -nights 2 and 3
CC or Arcata to Coos Bay night 4
Coos Bay to Portland night 5

I'm still trying to decide between staying in Crescent City and Arcata. CC is supposedly a dump, though the hotel I have booked sounds nice and gets decent reviews. I'm torn because Arcata is farther away, and I think there will be plenty to see in Crescent City area. But then, I think, we've driven this far, why not go down to Arcata?

Anyone been to both and have a preference?

I have not stayed in either place, but it looks to me like Eureka would have a wider choice of lodging than Arcata. I'd push on for Arcata or Eureka if you want to go to Humboldt and drive the Avenue of the Giants.

It also looks to me like Eugene has a lot more than Cottage Grove.

Just wanted to pop in and comment on how my trip went. We took 6 days as it turned out.

Day 1 - Seattle to Cottage Grove, OR. That wasn't the best choice, as the restaurant I had planned on dining at turned out to only have their bar side open. We ended up with Little Caeser's Pizza for dinner, not my fave. Best Western had a nice pool though. Next time I need a stop in that area, I'll stick to Eugene or push on to Grants Pass.

Day 2 - Cottage Grove to Grants Pass, where we stopped for lunch at the Taprock Grill. As the Trip Advisor and Yelp reviews say, the food's decent but not great, ditto the service but the view of the Rogue River is amazing. They had a good kid menu, so it worked well for us. Then on to Crescent City via Hwy 199. Gorgeous drive and we took Howland Hill road into Crescent City, stopping at Stout Grove on the way. Those trees! Wow. I was blown away by their majesty. Best Western in Crescent City was ok, not great. Pool was fine, breakfast meh, and lack of indoor corridors really annoying when it rained. Dinner at the decent & tasty Wing Wah chinese.

Day 3- We toured around Crescent City, seeing a beach with tide pools and the Trees of Mystery. Great day. Lunch from the gourmet deli Vita Cucina and dinner at the Good Harvest Cafe. Lunch was great, dinner was just ok.

Day 4- Heading back north via 101, we stopped in Brookings for lunch at the Hungry Clam. Stayed at Best Western Coos Bay, which was quite nice.

Day 5 More northing on 101, with stops along the way. Had good pie at Don's Main Street Restaurant in Reedsport. I cut over to I-5 too soon; should have stayed on past Florence as the rain was heavy and the traffic ended up being worse on I-5 than on the 101. We only made it as far as Salem before I called Uncle and we picked a hotel. La Quinta - yeah, not my fave, but they had a pool, the price was right and the kids helped find it in the guidebook.

Day 6 back to Seattle!

On the whole, a great trip. Thanks again for the help figuring out the route.

Great report, thank you. Sounds like you had a great time. Any pics to share? We love pics.

Lifey

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Lunch from the gourmet deli Vita Cucina and dinner at the Good Harvest Cafe. Lunch was great, dinner was just ok.

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Funny, when I was in Crescent City a couple weeks ago, we were deciding between two place - a place right at the pier, and Good Harvest. After eating at the pier, we'd kind of wished we'd went with Good Harvest instead. Good to see we didn't miss out on anything spectacular!