Richardson Grove State Park is located at the southernmost border of Humboldt County, south of

Eureka, California Eureka ( ; Wiyot: ; Hupa: ; ) is a city and the county seat of Humboldt County, located on the North Coast of California. The city is located on U.S. Route 101 on the shores of Humboldt Bay, north of San Francisco and south of the Oreg ...

, United States, and north of

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

. The year-round park, which has approximately , straddles

US 101 U.S. Route 101, or U.S. Highway 101 (US 101), is a major north–south highway that traverses the states of California, Oregon, and Washington on the West Coast of the United States. It is part of the United States Numbered Highway Syst ...

, causing the narrowest point of its entire distance. Said to have the 9th largest tree of all remaining Coast Redwoods, it is known for swimming on the South Fork of the Eel River and day use in addition to 159 campsites. The park is named after

Friend Richardson Friend William Richardson (born William Richardson; December 1, 1865September 6, 1943) was an American newspaper publisher and politician. A member of the Progressive Party and later the Republican Party, Richardson was elected as the Californi ...

, the 25th

Governor of California The governor of California is the head of government of the U.S. state of California. The Governor (United States), governor is the commander-in-chief of the California National Guard and the California State Guard. Established in the Constit ...

between 1923 and 1927.

Road widening

The first road through Richardson Grove, eventually to become

, was constructed in approximately 1915 and first surfaced, most likely with gravel and oil, in 1927. A proposed project to adjust the alignment of Route 101 both inside and outside park boundaries to accommodate industry standard-sized trucks in compliance with the

Surface Transportation Assistance Act The Surface Transportation Assistance Act of 1982 was a comprehensive transportation funding and policy act of the United States Federal Government, . The legislation was championed by the Reagan administration to address concerns about the su ...

(STAA) has been in development by Cal Trans (Caltrans). STAA-compliant vehicles are currently prohibited north of

Leggett, California Leggett (formerly Leggett Valley) is a census-designated place in Mendocino County, California, United States. It is located on the South Fork of the Eel River, by road northwest of Laytonville, at an elevation of . It is home to some of the l ...

, on Route 101 through Richardson Grove State Park. The feasibility of constructing a four-lane bypass of Richardson Grove State Park was analyzed in 2001, but deemed infeasible due to the high cost and/or environmental disruption. Some north coast businesses, whose success is tied to shipping out of the area, favor the project. According to Caltrans, 54 trees under in diameter, none of which are old growth redwoods, would be removed for the project (32 trees in the park and 24 trees outside of the park). Trees to be removed would not all be redwood, but would include Douglas Fir, Big Leaf Maple, Live Oak, Tan Oak, and Red Alder. A total of two redwoods would be removed within the park itself. There are several preservation groups against the currently proposed changes in the road alignment. One of these groups, the

Save the Redwoods League Save the Redwoods League is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to protect and restore coast redwood (''Sequoia sempervirens'') and giant sequoia (''Sequoiadendron giganteum'') trees through the preemptive purchase of development rights ...

, worked with the state to increase the park to around . Groups and community members against the project, whose website is entitled "Save Richardson Grove," posit that the result of widening the highway may cause Humboldt County to become a casualty of unlimited commercial development. Some suggest, by removing redwoods from the grove, there would be adverse effects on the root systems of remaining massive old-growth redwoods, even causing death to unintended trees and habitat.

Campgrounds

Richardson Grove State Park offers 160 campsites and a large group site across three campgrounds: Huckleberry, Madrone, and Oak Flat. The campsites are mainly intended for tent camping but some can accommodate RVs/Trailers. Formerly, cabins were also available for rent. Each site has a picnic table, a food locker, a fire pit, and coin-operated showers are available at nearby restrooms. The state park has a Visitors Center offering displays on the natural wildlife in the surrounding area, a general store, and offers hiking, swimming, fishing and picnic sites near the Eel River.

Climate

References

External links

Official Richardson Grove State Park website

{{authority control State parks of California Parks in Humboldt County, California Coast redwood groves Protected areas established in 1922 1922 establishments in California U.S. Route 101