Armstrong Redwoods

EXPERIENCE DESCRIPTION

Armstrong Redwoods State Natural Reserve is a mile up Armstrong Woods Road from downtown Guerneville: a flat walk through a residential neighborhood that transitions almost without warning into a cathedral of old-growth coast redwoods. The Colonel Armstrong Tree is more than 1,400 years old; the Parson Jones Tree rises over 310 feet. The main loop through the grove is paved and accessible, takes about 45 minutes at a relaxed pace, and is almost always quieter than Muir Woods despite being equally impressive. Free to enter on foot.

OPERATOR STORY

Armstrong Redwoods State Natural Reserve was set aside in the 1870s by Colonel James Armstrong, a lumber baron who recognized the old-growth forest was not inexhaustible. His daughter continued preservation efforts; the grove was purchased by Sonoma County in 1917 and passed to California State Parks in 1934. The 805-acre reserve contains some of the oldest and tallest coast redwoods in Sonoma County — the Colonel Armstrong Tree is over 1,400 years old, the Parson Jones Tree over 310 feet.