An independent publisher of web and print media. Printed ♻️ in the 🇺🇸.

Back Country Press logo

Cart

  • Classes
    • Arborist CEUs
  • Products
    • Books
    • Gift Card
    • Book Resources
    • Sale Items
    • Posters
    • ID Guides
    • Free Downloads
    • Hats
  • Authors
  • News
    • Podcast
  • About
    • Calendar
    • Vendor Sales
    • Newsletter
    • Scholarships
    • Find Our Books
  • My account
    • Orders
    • Downloads
    • Checkout
    • Lost Password
    • Login

Drury – Chaney Groves Trail

December 14, 2018 by Backcountry Press 1 Comment

From Hiking Humboldt V2 by Rees Hughes

Drury – Chaney Map by Jason Barnes

In the massive flood of 1964, the once bustling community of Pepperwood was inundated by 30 feet of water. What remains on this floodplain of the Eel River are a few homes and farms, some vegetable stands, and a robust redwood forest. The Drury-Chaney Groves trail bisects the flat alluvial bench populated with redwoods that lie between the Avenue of the Giants and US 101. It is a flat walk and an accessible trail through several extensive groves of towering redwoods.

Ralph Works Chaney Memorial Grove

It was Berkeley paleontologist Ralph Chaney who first brought back ‘dawn redwood’ seedlings with him from China in the late 1940s. This deciduous sequoia joins the coast redwood and the giant sequoia as the three conifers known as redwoods.

Peaceful trail along the Eel River floodplain.

Getting there: Drive south on US 101 for 32.5 miles taking Exit 674 (Avenue of the Giants/Pepperwood). Turn left onto the Avenue of the Giants for 2.7 miles. The road passes through what remains of the community of Pepperwood taking a bend to the south, quickly reaching the parking area for the Drury-Chaney Groves trailhead. Parking is available on both sides of the Avenue of the Giants. Approximate driving time, 40 minutes.

Evergreen [Sword Fern (Polystichum munitum)] and deciduous ferns [Lady Fern (Athyrium filix-femina)] abound.

The route: From the parking area, the trail crosses a small open space and enters the redwood forest for the remainder of the walk. The level trail crosses the old Barkdull Road (0.6) — a right turn here will take you to another access point from the Avenue of the Giants in half a mile; a left turn leads to the general location of the old Barkdull Ranch (0.1). After crossing the Barkdull Road, the trail reaches the loop trail (0.7). The loop is 0.9 mile long (1.6). The return to the parking area necessitates retracing your steps (2.4).

Extras. Once located between Pepperwood and Stafford, the town of Elinor had a railroad stop, hotel, post office, and logging camp on the east side of the Eel River and a collection of homes, store, and school on the west side. A ferry plied the river connecting the two sides of the town. However, when the 1964 floodwaters receded there was little of Elinor left. Just after you turn left onto the Avenue of the Giants from Exit 674, turn left again on Elinor Road and drive 150 yards to the concrete barriers that block old US 101. You can follow the old road for a short distance to the bridge (dated 1938) crossing Jordan Creek. During periods of low water, it is possible to wander east to the Eel River.

Share this:

  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook
  • Click to share on X (Opens in new window) X
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) Pinterest
  • Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email

Like this:

Like Loading...

Filed Under: Hiking

Comments

  1. Chris Valle-Riestra says

    December 16, 2018 at 11:34 pm

    The Drury-Chaney Groves are among the most magical places in the north coast redwoods. These groves have many enormous trees, and stand apart from others for the garden-like forest floor, mostly very level and carpeted with oxalis and ferns. The groves are surprisingly quiet, considering their close proximity to the freeway.

    Reply

Leave a ReplyCancel reply

Events

Join Our Newsletter, get 10% off

* indicates required

Our most recent Podcast

Trivia Challenge: Wildflowers of the Klamath Mountains

https://backcountrypress.com/podcast-player/21109/trivia-challenge-wildflowers-of-the-klamath-mountains.mp3

Download file | Play in new window | Duration: 19:11 | Recorded on July 8, 2022

Recent Posts

  • Feed June 1, 2025
  • The Evolution of Trees of California: From Jepson to Today May 20, 2025
  • Mapping the Hidden Forest May 2, 2025
  • Discover California’s Native Trees: A Guide to the Arboreal Wonders of the Golden State April 26, 2025
  • Second Edition of Hiking Humboldt Volume 2 by Rees Hughes Now Available! March 2, 2025

Product tags

Botany California Cascadia Conifers Desert ecology ectotherms explorations field guide Fire Fire Ecology Forest pathogens Fungi Geology Hiking Hiking Guide Humboldt County Identification Card Invertebates Klamath Mountains Klamath Mountians Lassen Volcanic National Park Literature Mammals mushrooms Natural History Oregon Pacific Crest Trail pathogens Pines Plant Exploring Plants redwood forest Rivers road guide sea vegetables Seaweed Trees Trinity Alps Vernal Pools Washington wildflowers

RSS Follow Backcountry Press updates

  • Second Edition of Hiking Humboldt Volume 2 by Rees Hughes Now Available!
  • Truffle Season in the Pacific Northwest

GIft Card from BCP

bookstore

Subscribe to the Backcountry Press Blog

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 309 other subscribers

FREE shipping on orders of $75 or more. Dismiss

%d