Yonder north, a redwood country ramble

It’s easy to forget that San Francisco is not really Northern California, that the state extends almost as far above the Golden Gate Bridge as below it. But it does. The state gets wilder after you cross the bay and head north on U.S. 101. Cities give way to towns, towns to vineyards and farms. Then, somewhere past Willits, the self-proclaimed “Gateway to the Redwoods,” the trees get really big.

A weekend in Garberville at the Benbow Inn, even a long weekend, is not for the faint of heart. From L.A., it took nearly 10 hours to get to the inn, which is about 70 miles south of Eureka. But last month when we finally arrived, we were instantly glad we’d come.

It isn’t just that California’s redwoods are majestic or that the inn is elegant and welcoming or that the air smells wonderful. It’s that this is someplace else entirely, someplace very different from Los Angeles.

That’s not to say there is anything wild about the Benbow. The imposing 55-room Tudor-style inn opened in 1926 and retains the graciousness of an earlier era. The large lobby has polished hardwood floors and Oriental rugs. The building overlooks a bend in the Eel River that is dammed in summer to make a lake, and mullioned windows have a view of a lovely patio. The bellhops are strong, which is good because the hotel has no elevators.

A reservations clerk had patiently explained the room choices. Two adults and a teenager would need at least a king-sized room with space for a rollaway. Rooms in the newer section of the hotel were the only ones with TVs, she said, and were slightly more expensive. A television-free room sounded more appealing to us, though, so we chose the older main building.

Our large corner room (about $165 plus tax a night) had a bay window with a bench overlooking the mountains. It was nicely but simply furnished, and the small bathroom was adequate. The hotel is closer to the 101 than one might wish, but even when logging trucks passed, we heard nothing.

My husband, Carl, and son, Sam, weren’t interested in making themselves “casually elegant,” the requested dress code for the dining room, so we had dinner on the stone patio. It was a good decision. The evening was cool enough for a sweater, but the patio, illuminated only by strings of tiny white lights and candles, still radiated some of the heat it had absorbed during the day. The wine, Chardonnay from a nearby vineyard, was crisp and delicious, and our hearty salads, one a chicken Caesar and the others with spinach, feta, olives and pancetta, were exactly what we wanted after a day of driving.

The next morning, after an excellent breakfast of duck hash and a spinach, goat cheese and caramelized onion omelet, we set out to explore.

The hotel’s grounds are compact but beautiful. A rolling lawn, ideal for stretching out on a chaise longue with a book, slopes down to the Eel River. A small dock can accommodate a canoe or kayak, and a swimming platform is anchored in the middle of the river.

We asked about hikes from the hotel, but good hiking, the clerk told us, required a short drive, and we weren’t yet feeling like getting back in the car. Nor were we feeling that we all had to do something as a group, having had a lot of togetherness the day before. My husband wanted to take a long swim in the lake. Our son went for a run along a winding road that paralleled the river. I rented a canoe across the street at the Benbow Lake State Recreation Area.

Out on the lake, where powerboats are banned, I watched an osprey perch by its nest and stare down at the fish swimming deep in the clear water.

Stratford-upon-Benbow

The inn sponsors events throughout the year: a costume party in October, a murder mystery weekend in November, special galas at Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s. At the time of our visit, many people came to the stage near water’s edge for “Shakespeare at Benbow Lake,” when, over two long weekends, the Festival Theatre Ensemble traveled from the Bay Area to perform. We got tickets to “The Taming of the Shrew.”

The evening started with a dinner of locally caught salmon or barbecued tri-tip served at long tables set up on a lawn near the lake. It was a party atmosphere with minstrels entertaining and lively conversation among strangers. The play was well acted, but the biggest pleasure was that it was all happening as the sun set over a pristine lake.

The next morning, I wanted more of the redwoods. As the early riser, I headed north a few miles to the Avenue of the Giants, which winds through the area’s great redwood forests. Just being on the road, surrounded by the tallest trees on Earth, was awe inspiring.

But I wanted to walk among the big trees too, so I took a short loop trail in the Rockefeller Forest west of Weott. In old-growth coast redwood forests, the trees sometimes live for 2,000 years. The average one is between 500 and 800 years old. They’re so tall -- up to 350 feet -- that the tops can’t draw water from the roots. Instead, they take in water from the heavy mist that often enshrouds them.

Few other trees can grow in their shade, so you’re alone with the giants and a soft forest floor of moss and ferns growing in rich and ancient loam. As John Steinbeck wrote, these “are not like any other trees we know.” They are ambassadors from another time.

On the way back to the hotel, I stopped at the Organic Bagelry in Garberville for surprisingly good bagels fresh from the oven. After collecting the family, I was ready for a more serious hike at Richardson Grove State Park, a few miles south of the Benbow.

The Durphy Creek Trail recommended by the ranger was beautiful and challenging, winding steeply uphill along a stream through a forest of evergreens and madrono trees. The only disappointment is that it had no redwoods. We headed down to the visitor center, which is in the middle of a small grove of old-growth trees that has a short trail and signs explaining redwood lore.

Richardson Grove’s other claim to fame, at least locally, is its swimming hole, formed by a sharp bend in the Eel. Kids have piled up rocks to create a fast-flowing chute of water leading into the swimming area, and they stand in line to bump along the “rapids.” My son and husband swam happily in the shade of the redwoods while I sat on a rocky beach with my book.

A late lunch on the Benbow patio on our last afternoon, followed by the delicious scones and tea served to hotel guests in the lobby each day at 3, refreshed us. Then we had to decide what to do with our scant remaining time. I’d hoped to drive the 20 or so miles over to Shelter Cove on “the Lost Coast” of Humboldt County or even to get to Eureka to do some birding. Instead, I did what I’d been looking forward to since I first saw the hotel’s lawn. Parking myself with a glass of wine and a book, I absorbed all the redwood country calm I could. And it was good.

*

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Expenses for this trip:

Benbow Inn

Three nights, with tax $539.00

Dinner

Benbow Inn $76.10

Breakfast

Benbow Inn $39.05

Canoe rental $8.00

Dinner and play

Shakespeare at Benbow $110.00

Breakfast

Organic Bagelry $12.31

Day-use fee

Richardson Grove State Park $5.00

Other meals $105.05

Gas $96.00

Final tab $990.51

CONTACT:

Benbow Inn, 445 Lake Benbow Drive, Garberville, CA 95542; (800) 355-3301 or (707) 923-2124, fax (707) 923-2897, www.benbowinn.com.

Sue Horton is editor of the Sunday Opinion section.