| Henry Cowell Redwoods Park Brochure |
Henry Cowell
Redwoods
State Park
Our Mission
The mission of California State Parks is
to provide for the health, inspiration and
education of the people of California by helping
to preserve the state’s extraordinary biological
diversity, protecting its most valued natural and
cultural resources, and creating opportunities
for high-quality outdoor recreation.
This lush redwood
forest, with sunlight
glimmering through
trees along the
San Lorenzo River,
California State Parks supports equal access.
Prior to arrival, visitors with disabilities who
need assistance should contact the park at
(831) 335-4598. If you need this publication in an
alternate format, contact interp@parks.ca.gov.
CALIFORNIA STATE PARKS
P.O. Box 942896
Sacramento, CA 94296-0001
For information call: (800) 777-0369
(916) 653-6995, outside the U.S.
711, TTY relay service
www.parks.ca.gov
SaveTheRedwoods.org/csp
Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park
Day Use: 101 North Big Trees Park Road
Felton, CA 95018 (831) 335-4598
Campground: 2591 Graham Hill Road
Scotts Valley, CA 95060 (831) 438-2396
© 2011 California State Parks (Rev. 2017)
offers visitors a
peaceful retreat.
H
enry Cowell Redwoods State Park
inspires calm reflection among ancient
giant redwoods and sunny sandhill ridges.
The park’s historical significance and its
spectacular scenery draw travelers from
around the world.
Visitors can enjoy hiking, horseback riding,
picnicking, swimming, camping, and fishing
on more than 4,650 acres of forested and
open land in the Santa Cruz Mountains.
The park’s groves of old- and secondgrowth redwoods flank the San Lorenzo River.
In the serene Fall Creek Unit, a few miles
north of the main park, hikers experience
a verdant, fern-lined river canyon and
encounter the remnants of a successful
lime-processing industry.
PARK HISTORY
Native People
The Sayante tribe, a subgroup of the Ohlone
culture, lived in this area before Spanish
rule. They found plentiful shelter, water, and
food both on the land and in the river. The
San Lorenzo River was a major source of
fish for the Sayante people, allowing them
to exchange steelhead and salmon with
neighboring tribes for acorns, obsidian,
and other resources.
Early Entrepreneurs
Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park is located
on several former Mexican land grants known
as Rancho Rincon, Rancho Zayante, and
Rancho Carbonera. Ownership of the land
changed hands many times as pioneers
arrived — introducing logging, tanoak-bark
harvesting, lime manufacturing, and even
gold mining in the area.
In 1867 Joseph Warren Welch Sr. purchased
350 acres here. Although much of the
surrounding land had been logged, the
large tract of old-growth redwoods we enjoy
today still stood. He advertised the grove
of uncut giants, and the Welch Big Trees
Grove became a famous tourist destination.
After his death in 1876, Welch’s widow, Anna
Isabella, leased the land to entrepreneur J.M.
Hooper, who ran the resort that included a
small hotel and dance floor near the Frémont
Tree. Famous people such as Andrew
Carnegie and Presidents Benjamin Harrison
and Theodore Roosevelt visited.
General Frémont Tree: (left to right) General
John C. Frémont, his wife Jessie Benton
Frémont, and their daughter Elizabeth
Explorer John C. Frémont reputedly
camped in this tree’s fire-hollowed base
when he and legendary scout Kit Carson
visited Isaac Graham in 1846. When he
returned to the grove in 1888, then-General
Frémont was reported to have said, “It’s a
good story; let it stand.”
Creating the Park
On a fateful afternoon in 1900, Andrew
P. Hill photographed “The Giant”
redwood tree in the Welch Big Trees
Grove. When the proprietor objected to
the unauthorized pictures, demanding
the negatives, Hill angrily refused. Hill
resolved that there should be a public park
where the trees belonged to everyone.
He reported the incident to journalist
Josephine Clifford McCrackin, who followed
up with a letter to the Santa Cruz Sentinel
urging Californians to “Save the redwoods.”
The movement led to the creation of
nearby California Redwood Park in 1902
(now called Big Basin
Redwoods State Park),
where the Sempervirens
Club was founded.
The Big Trees Grove
resort operated here for
another 30 years. William
T. Jeter, with the help of
his wife Jennie Bliss Jeter
and friend Joseph Welch
Jr., worked tirelessly
to ensure the creation
of Santa Cruz County
Big Trees Park in 1930.
Citizens dedicated the
Jeter Tree in his memory;
the County managed
the park for more than
20 years. It became
part of a new state park
in 1954, when Samuel
(Harry) Cowell donated
1,600 adjoining acres on the condition that
the combined park be named for his father
Henry. The Cowell Family Foundation
deeded the Fall Creek Unit to the State
in 1972. Since then, Save the Redwoods
League helped to add more than 800 acres
to the park.
Fall Creek and Henry Cowell
Fall Creek Unit, the northern section of Henry
Cowell Redwoods State Park, is located
about ¼ mile west of the town of Felton. The
2,390-acre area contains nearly the entire Fall
Creek watershed, extending southeast from
Ben Lomond Mountain. The Ben Lomond
Fault runs along the base of the mountain,
exposing huge amounts of limestone. This
limestone was formed by pressure that
crystallized layers of tiny sea creatures’
fossilized remains. Heating raw limestone
in kilns for several days yielded lime used
in mortar and plaster — staples of the
building industry.
At the time of peak demand, 80% of
lime came from Santa Cruz County. Kilns
were built on the North Fork of Fall Creek
to convert the quarried rock into usable
material. Hundreds of thousands of cords of
redwood were burned over the years to keep
the kiln fires blazing — baring the hills.
Eventually, raw limestone and log supplies
dwindled as concerns about deforestation
arose; lime processing here ceased. The Fall
Creek kilns closed in 1919.
Today, the old lime kilns can be seen along
the South Fork Trail. The second-growth
redwoods nearby testify to nature’s resilience
as the hillsides become forested once again.
NATURAL HISTORY
Geology
Located in the rugged Santa Cruz Mountains,
Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park
provides a fascinating geologic view into
the landscape. The San Lorenzo River flows
through the park, roughly following the path
of the Ben Lomond Fault. Stream erosion and
fault movement are the primary forces that
have helped shape this land.
The northern part of the park is composed
of soft sandstone and mudstone, with fossil
evidence that it was once a shallow inland
sea, including sand dollars and shark teeth.
The southern portion of the park consists
of harder granite and schist formed from
magma. These geologic factors determine
the vast diversity of flora and fauna that
inhabit the park. Three of the park’s four
main ecosystems — redwood, riparian
(streamside), and sandhill chaparral — were
shaped as a result of these processes. The
human-made grassland is the park’s fourth
main ecosystem.
Wildlife
The park’s four distinct ecosystems allow for
many wildlife viewing opportunities. Watch
for white-tailed kites and white-crowned
sparrows flying above the grasslands looking
for their next meal.
Along the San Lorenzo River, listen for
the belted kingfisher and catch a glimpse of
the great blue heron. This year-round river
is home to endangered steelhead trout,
providing a nourishing place for the fish
to spawn.
In the forest, the melody of the Pacific
wren and the clicking sounds of the darkeyed junco echo through the forest. Banana
slugs slide along the path, and western gray
squirrels leap from limb to limb.
The wrentit’s lilting song and the scrub jay’s
screeching calls fill the air in the sandhill
chaparral ecosystem. Two rare endemic
insect species, the endangered Zayante
band-winged grasshopper and the Mt.
Hermon June beetle, inhabit this area of the
park. Coyotes, bobcats, and black-tail deer
roam freely throughout the park searching for
food, water, and shelter.
Plant Communities
Among the world’s
tallest old-growth coast redwoods, the
largest trees surrounding the Redwood
Grove Loop Trail may be up to 280 feet (85m)
tall and 1,500 years old. Climate change is
diminishing the plentiful rain and moist fog
that sustained the redwoods’ growth.
California bay trees, tanoaks, and hazelnut
shrubs adapt to the shade beneath the
redwoods. Clover-like redwood sorrel carpets
the forest floor, along with wild ginger,
trillium, and milk maids.
The nearby San Lorenzo River supports
a remarkable riparian ecosystem. Large
western sycamore, black cottonwood, white
alder, and California box-elder trees offer
cooling shade for river inhabitants. Arroyo
willows stabilize the river’s banks.
On the ridgetops of the sandhill ecosystem,
drought-tolerant plants with long taproots
flourish in the sandy soil. Here, in one of
the world’s five marine ponderosa pine
communities, ponderosa and knobcone
pines grow along the ridge tops and
surround the park’s observation deck.
Manzanita, bush poppy, chamise, sticky
monkeyflower, and ceanothus all bloom in
spring. The Ben Lomond spineflower and
Ben Lomond buckwheat, found only in
this area, add to the distinctive Santa Cruz
sandhills ecosystem.
Native plants such as California poppy,
coyote brush, and lupine endure among
non-native grasses, thistle, and sweet pea
in the grassland. The riparian forest that
once covered this area is now reclaiming
its former territory.
RECREATION
Weather changes quickly in the Santa Cruz
Mountains. Winter temperatures range from
the upper 30s to mid-50s and from the high
40s to the 80s in summer.
Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park offers
camping and a large day-use area. Limited
catch-and-release steelhead fishing attracts
anglers to the San Lorenzo River. Visit
www.wildlife.ca.gov for updates, licensing
regulations, and fishing restrictions.
Equestrians may use the main park trails
as posted. Bicycles are allowed only on
Pipeline, Rincon, Ridge, and Powder Mill fire
roads. Bicycles are not allowed in the Fall
Creek Unit. Observe all trail postings.
The privately owned Roaring Camp and
Big Trees Railroad adjoins the property
outside the main park. For a fee, the train
takes passengers on a rail tour through the
forested area of the park.
Camping
Sites are open seasonally. For details and
site-specific advance reservations, call
(800) 444-7275 or visit www.parks.ca.gov.
Henry Cowell Trails:
Redwood Grove Loop Trail — Along the .8mile, self-guided, accessible loop stands the
tree named for “The Pathfinder,” Lieutenant
John C. Frémont.
Ridge Fire Road near Pine Trail — The
observation deck at 805 feet, one of the park’s
highest points, offers vistas of Monterey Bay.
Fall Creek Unit
Open for day use only, Fall Creek includes
almost twenty miles of connecting trails.
Parking and trailheads are marked on Felton
Empire Road off Highway 9.
ACCESSIBLE FEATURES
The Redwood Grove Loop Trail is
accessible. The campground has accessible
sites with restrooms and showers. The
Visitor Center and Mountain Parks Store are
both accessible; curbside pickup and dropoff is recommended for people with mobility
issues. For accessibility updates, visit
http://access.parks.ca.gov.
NEARBY STATE PARKS
• Big Basin Redwoods State Park
21600 Big Basin Way
Boulder Creek 95006
(831) 338-8860
• Wilder Ranch State Park
1401 Coast Road
Santa Cruz 95060
(831) 423-9703
PLEASE REMEMBER
• All natural and cultural features are
protected by law; do not disturb them.
• Camping and fires are permitted only in
designated areas.
• Dogs must be on a leash no longer than
six feet and are allowed only in picnic
areas and campsites and on the Meadow
Trail, Pipeline Road, Graham Hill Trail,
and Powder Mill Fire Road.
• Except for service animals, dogs are not
permitted to use other trails, fire roads,
or the Fall Creek Unit.
• All pets must be attended at all times
and confined in a tent or vehicle at night.
• Camping, bicycles, smoking, and fires
are prohibited in the Fall Creek Unit.
• Stay on established trails and out of all
undeveloped areas and unlabeled trails.
• Be alert for rattlesnakes and mountain
lions. Check for ticks
after hiking.
• Poison oak can be
identified by its
leaves — they grow in
groups of three with
gently lobed edges. The
plant may appear as a
bush, vine, or ground
cover with green
“Leaves of three
or reddish leaves.
— let it be.”
Many people
are allergic to its oil.
This park is supported in part through
the Mountain Parks Foundation
525 N. Big Trees Park Road
Felton, CA 95018 · (831) 335-3174
www.mountainparks.org
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