Things to do / Travel Guide
Visit the only one of 18 national Forests in the state of California not crossed by a paved road or highway. Filled with unique flora and fauna, Mendocino National Forest is an outdoor experience which promises tranquility, solitude and reconnection with nature.
Thousands of years before pioneer explorers from the eastern U.S. entered the area, Mendocino was inhabited by five Native American peoples who lived off its bounty. Now just a three hour drive north of San Francisco and Sacramento, the Forest's 913,306 acres are bountiful with recreational opportunities. Among the mountains and canyons, visitors can go camping, hiking, backpacking, boating and fishing, as well as enjoy off-highway vehicle travel. Nature lovers will be in awe of the wide variety of wildflowers that bloom through spring and summer including California poppy, shooting stars, wild iris, milkweed, Indian paintbrush and buttercups.
The diverse vegetation at Mendocino National Forest includes mixed conifer forests, oak woodlands and savannah, chaparral, annual and perennial grass glades and wet meadows. Mendocino is also home to many species of wildlife including black-tailed deer, bobcat, coyote, skunk, jackrabbits, oppossum, badger, pacific tree frog, quail, blue grouse, golden eagle, spotted owl, goshawk, prairie falcon, peregrine falcon, bald eagle, scrub jays, woodpeckers and a variety of migratory water and song birds. Fisherman will enjoy the abundant salmon and steelhead which spawn in streams of the Covelo and Upper Lake Ranger Districts, along with the abundant rainbow trout.
To get to Mendocino National Forest from Red Bluffs, travel I-5 and go east on State Hwy. #36 to the first turnoff (about 100 yards) which is Sale Lane. Turn south and travel to the end of the road (.5 miles) to the picnic ground.