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Crescent City → Fern Canyon → Medford 199 mi (320.2 km) |
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Life found a way, everyone!
Or in other words, the morning after our celebration at Battery Point Lighthouse, my brothers and I found our way south to Fern Canyon, nestled in the heart of Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park. This primordial canyon is only accessible down a long, dark, winding road through giant redwoods and across several creeks, but I wanted to spend some time with my brothers in a beautiful place this Sunday morning!
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It was raining softly as we crossed the bridge over Home Creek. As beavers, we did not mind the rain so much. I wanted to know more about what Flatty and Woodchuck had been up to! They have both been very busy (as is any self-respecting beaver), Flatty with his veterinary work and Woodchuck with construction, but both are on the verge of going places! Flatty is planning a trip to visit some of his friends in Thailand, while Woodchuck is going to head north and look for a new home in the Beaver State of Oregon! He’s still determined to find himself a mate, and Beaver, Utah just isn’t doing it!
They wanted to know what I was going to do now that I’ve finished hunting historical landmarks and still haven’t found George. I told them I’m going to explore all the national parks and monuments of America, and the Seven Wonders of the World! At that moment, the silence was broken by the roar of engines, and a blazing red stegosaurus pulled up in a blazing red pickup truck!
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His name was Schwifty, and as he slid to a stop on top of a log, blaring pop music and shaking his head ferociously, we were flabbergasted! What the heck was he doing driving around in Fern Canyon, made famous in the movie The Lost World? With a hoot and a holler, he shouted for us to come with him, and he careened off the log and onto the gravel upstream!
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The trouble with the truck was that it was tiny! It was so tiny that we kept having to wait for Schwifty to catch up to our relaxed walking pace! It was able to conquer all kinds of terrain, though! Streams! Rocks! Logs! He drove right up with us as we posed for photos together, until the rain washed his truck right off the log we were on! Schwifty had to stay behind and repair his truck, but he told us to go on without him. That’s one reason why off-roading in state parks isn’t a good idea!
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With the truck and the pop music out of the picture, we were left to resume our Sunday morning in a quiet cathedral of ferns—five-fingered ferns, sword ferns, and lady ferns—whose ancestry stretches back 325 million years! They hung like delicate tapestries on all sides of us, sealing in the sounds of the creek and the tinkling of the rain!
I asked if either of them had heard from Mom lately, since no messenger albatrosses had arrived at my place for quite some time. The last any of them heard, she was still a homebody, watching her shows and occasionally playing Tuho with some of the local wildlife at Wolmido. I wonder if I should pay her a visit. I haven’t been to Incheon in ages. Maybe it’s time!
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The canyon was not very long, but it was rich with colors and textures. Its shape keeps it from drying out, which makes this an ideal home for green tree frogs, giant coastal salamanders, and all kinds of neat mushrooms! I, of course, had to check them out!
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At the very end of the canyon, we stopped in amazement! There, still in the stream bed where it had fallen in eons past, lay a mighty dragon! None of us had ever seen a full-sized dragon before, and though covered in moss and mushrooms, this one had been excellently preserved through the ages! Where it came from and how it got here, we may never know, but one thing is for sure, this canyon and its mysteries are sure to stick with me for a long time!
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Well, that wraps up adventures for this year. It’s going to take some serious adjustment not to be planning out the next historical landmark adventure each month, since trips are only going to get more expensive from here, but I’m still determined to continue the quest! If two of my brothers can find me this way, it’s only a matter of time before George appears once again!
So long!
P.S. Keep your car locked at all times when you visit! Somebody stole my hat and a camera lens out of the car when I ran into the hotel to get my luggage! I’m glad they didn’t steal the whole car!
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Total Ground Covered: 890.4 mi (1,432.8 km) |
More 2016 Adventures |