Small Town, Good Times in Trinidad California

Trinidad, California is a really small town, and I do mean small, on California‘s northern Humboldt County Coast. How small is it? Actually, with less than three hundred residents it’s the smallest incorporated city in California as well as one of the oldest, and thanks to the curving shore line here, one of the furthest west. A history rich, peaceful town with the feeling of a remote fishing village, the beautiful, often fog shrouded coast helps visitors take a step back in time. 

Sheltering the harbor is Trinidad Head, a rocky promontory that guards and protects the town harbor and old fashioned fishing pier. An easy, hour long trail loops around the head itself offers great views; but you can also have a wonderful view from the porch of your bed and breakfast or the small waterfront cafe on the pier. 

Trinidad is the kind of place where you can do nothing at all and enjoy it tremendously. Many people don’t even know it’s there until they’re driving by on Highway 101 going toward the coastal redwoods, the college community of Arcata, or en route to San Francisco. We planned our stop here, but we didn’t plan on loving it so much that we extended our stay – which we did. 

The Memorial Lighthouse in Trinidad stands at the head of a wonderful beach trail.

The town welcomes tourists but has no tourist-attraction sensibility; people wave at you on the street; children are doted upon in the restaurants and many of the bed and breakfasts. Start your exploration of Trinidad with a look at the Memorial Lighthouse which honors lost sea travelers. There’s a beautiful bell here, too. Steps – steep but quite doable with a small child either in arms or walking and holding your hand – lead down to Old Home Beach. Here are pebbles for hours of sorting, tide pools, and two small creeks perfect for wading and splashing. You’re on the Axel Lindgren Memorial Trail which offers hard packed sand for beach walking, and shelter from the sea winds by rocks and cliffs. The waves are generally quite cold, and more appropriate for wading than swimming; waters here are very shallow and protected with small waves. You’ll find pelicans, harbor seals, cormorants and oyster-catcher birds, too. Bring a bucket and a shovel and just dig for your own oysters. Whether you find any or not, it’s an incredibly peaceful and scenic way to spend a morning. 

If you keep walking you’ll find He-Woli beach, with even more pebbles, and views of sea stacks – those big rock formations that pop up in northern coastal California and coastal Oregon. Some of these rocks are an impressive ten stories tall. They’re also a designated part of the California Coastal National Monument, made up of small islands, rocks, reefs and cliffs along over a thousand miles of California coastline. Sea coves and small caves are sprinkled throughout this area, and are great fun to explore. 

Just outside of town at Trinidad State Beach you can explore some incredible tide pools. A ranger here pointed out barnacles, star fish, purple and green anemones, and a thick cluster of other sea life. You’ll want to take binoculars for a good view of one of the state’s biggest colonies of Common murres – you’ll find almost sixty thousand birds nest on several of the larger rock formations in spring and summer. We thought it was interesting to learn that these birds actually spend most of their lives on the open ocean and only come to the rocks to nest. 

Foggy, fun afternoon spent watching the birds and rocks in Trinidad.

When you’ve worked up an appetite from your beach walks, head on down to the Catch Cafe on the pier or the Beachcomber – pretty much the only venues in town – for wonderfully fresh fish, chowders, sandwiches, and soups. While you’re on the pier, you may see fishermen coming in with your lunch – we viewed large hauls of salmon and crab. After lunch, we took a stroll through town, with its Cape Cod and Victorian style houses, rose gardens, and bluff side views of the beach and the sea stacks. 

You can also take a short drive out of town to Patrick’s Point State Park. Lots of trails, grassy meadows and the beach of course – all of it easy to access and easy to walk on for even the smallest explorer. The park has beautiful forest land with redwood trees, tall pines, and spruce; in the spring and early summer wild flowers fill the meadows. Again, a simple pleasure – walking among the flowers can fill a morning or afternoon. Along with pebbles and shells you can find bits of sea smoothed agate rock along the shoreline here. It’s a serene setting, interrupted only by the barking of sea lions lounging on the rocks and the calls of many sea birds joining their human counterparts fishing off the coast. Whale watching is prime in the spring and fall; and the point offers beautiful sunsets too. 

Also in the park is a recreation of a Native American Yurok Village called Sumeg that includes traditional shelters, a sweat lodge, a dance house and redwood canoes which were used by the Yurok for travel and fishing. And next to the village there’s a plant garden with native plantings used for food, medicine and ceremony. Tribe members often come to the village offering dance or musical performances or docent led walks. While we were there we saw a basket making demonstration. 

Another wonderful spot are the redwood groves near Orick, about a half hour north of Trinidad. Highway 101 is called the Redwood Highway for a reason…and old growth forests such as the Lady Bird Johnson Grove are a wonderful trip in themselves. But before I take you on an exploration of big trees and beautiful forest, you need a place to base your explorations. 

One of the pleasures of Trinidad is the availability of its very family friendly Bed and Breakfasts, rental homes, and a few small motels; we chose the Trinidad Bay Bed & Breakfast Inn to house us. A Cod style home with fantastic views of ocean and garden, each is large enough to accommodate a family of four. The Trinity Alps room has a kitchenette and is separate from the rest of the house, making it an ideal family choice. The breakfasts are awesome, with home made entrees like french toast and cheese omelets. The owners tell great stories about Trinidad and even offered the kids a chance to explore the Volunteer Fire Station. The owners also offer you breakfast service in your room, an indulgence we loved. 

Trinidad California is a small town with simple pleasures that resonated with our family in a really big way. Now about those big trees…in the next blog.

About the Author: Genie Davis is a multi-published fiction author, screen and TV writer, and travel writer. If it was possible, she'd like to spend every day traveling. www.geniedavis.com