Ranger Tales
Avenue of the Giants (California)
Driving tourWorks with CarPlay

Avenue of the Giants (California)

27 stops· 43 min· 30.5 mi· narrated by Ranger Quinn

🎧 Listen in the app

Buy the self-guided tour now, or get it in the app.

🎫 One-time purchase♾️ Yours forever — no expiry📡 Works fully offline🚗 Apple CarPlay
Highlights include
  • Welcome — The Avenue of the Giants
  • Journey's End — Phillipsville
  • Onto the Avenue
  • What You're Actually Looking At
  • Why They Grow Here and Nowhere Else
  • The Men Who Stood in Front of the Saws
  • The Eel River
  • The Forest Floor
The route

Driving route · 27 stops. Live GPS playback and turn-by-turn pins are in the app.

Every stop

What you'll see and hear

27 narrated stops along the way — waterfalls, overlooks, history, and Ranger Boone's campfire tales.

  1. Welcome — The Avenue of the Giants
    01

    🥾 Welcome — The Avenue of the Giants

    The southern start of the Avenue of the Giants (CA-254) at Phillipsville — 31 miles of old-growth coast redwoods through Humboldt Redwoods State Park.

  2. Journey's End — Phillipsville
    02

    • Journey's End — Phillipsville

    The southern end of the Avenue of the Giants at Phillipsville, where CA-254 rejoins US-101.

  3. Onto the Avenue
    03

    🌲 Onto the Avenue

    Onto the Avenue — a stop on the Avenue of the Giants.

    Onto the Avenue guide →
  4. What You're Actually Looking At
    04

    🌲 What You're Actually Looking At

    Coast redwood (Sequoia sempervirens) — the tallest tree species on earth, reaching over 350 feet and living 2,000 years.

    What You're Actually Looking At guide →
  5. Why They Grow Here and Nowhere Else
    05

    🌲 Why They Grow Here and Nowhere Else

    Why They Grow Here and Nowhere Else — a stop on the Avenue of the Giants.

    Why They Grow Here and Nowhere Else guide →
  6. The Men Who Stood in Front of the Saws
    06

    🔥 The Men Who Stood in Front of the Saws

    Now hold on a minute before you get too comfortable in all this green, because I want you to picture this road the way it nearly was. Name's Ranger Boone Merrick, and I'll be telling you the tales along the Avenue. R…

    The Men Who Stood in Front of the Saws guide →
  7. The Eel River
    07

    🌲 The Eel River

    The South Fork of the Eel River, which the Avenue follows for its entire length — the reason the big trees grow on these flats.

    The Eel River guide →
  8. The Forest Floor
    08

    🌲 The Forest Floor

    The Forest Floor — a stop on the Avenue of the Giants.

    The Forest Floor guide →
  9. The Little Towns of the Avenue
    09

    🎧 The Little Towns of the Avenue

    Phillipsville, Miranda, Myers Flat, Weott, Redcrest, Pepperwood — the small settlements strung along the old highway.

    The Little Towns of the Avenue guide →
  10. The World Three Hundred Feet Up
    10

    🌲 The World Three Hundred Feet Up

    The World Three Hundred Feet Up — a stop on the Avenue of the Giants.

    The World Three Hundred Feet Up guide →
  11. The Drive-Thru Tree
    11

    🎧 The Drive-Thru Tree

    The Shrine Drive-Thru Tree at Myers Flat — one of California's classic roadside drive-through redwoods.

    The Drive-Thru Tree guide →
  12. Fire, Flood, and Why They Don't Die
    12

    🌲 Fire, Flood, and Why They Don't Die

    Fire, Flood, and Why They Don't Die — a stop on the Avenue of the Giants.

    Fire, Flood, and Why They Don't Die guide →
  13. The Night the River Came
    13

    🔥 The Night the River Came

    Now let me tell you about the water. Pull up a seat, friend, because on this quiet road with the trees standing so peaceful, it is very hard to believe what I'm about to say — and every word of it is true. December,…

    The Night the River Came guide →
  14. The Boom, and What It Took
    14

    🌲 The Boom, and What It Took

    The Boom, and What It Took — a stop on the Avenue of the Giants.

    The Boom, and What It Took guide →
  15. The Visitor Center — and the Flood Line
    15

    🎧 The Visitor Center — and the Flood Line

    The Humboldt Redwoods State Park Visitor Center near Weott — exhibits, maps, and the marker showing how high the 1964 flood rose.

    The Visitor Center — and the Flood Line guide →
  16. Founders Grove — the One Stop to Make
    16

    🌲 Founders Grove — the One Stop to Make

    Founders Grove — a flat, easy half-mile loop trail among giant old-growth redwoods, including the fallen Dyerville Giant.

    Founders Grove — the One Stop to Make guide →
  17. The Night the Giant Fell
    17

    🔥 The Night the Giant Fell

    Stay put right here a minute, because you are standing next to a body. That is the honest word for it. The Dyerville Giant is lying in Founders Grove, and I want to tell you how it came down. In its life it stood thr…

    The Night the Giant Fell guide →
  18. Rockefeller Forest — the Greatest of Them All
    18

    🌲 Rockefeller Forest — the Greatest of Them All

    Rockefeller Forest, reached via Bull Creek Flats Road — the largest contiguous old-growth coast redwood forest remaining on earth.

    Rockefeller Forest — the Greatest of Them All guide →
  19. How to Read a Second-Growth Forest
    19

    🌲 How to Read a Second-Growth Forest

    How to Read a Second-Growth Forest — a stop on the Avenue of the Giants.

    How to Read a Second-Growth Forest guide →
  20. How a Redwood Lives
    20

    🌲 How a Redwood Lives

    Redwood ecology — fog drip, fire resistance, burl sprouting, and the aerial ecosystems living hundreds of feet up in the canopy.

    How a Redwood Lives guide →
  21. The Widow's Grove
    21

    🔥 The Widow's Grove

    One more before we run out of big trees, and this one is quiet. They call me Ranger Boone. You've been passing little signs all day — Bolling Grove, Garden Club of America Grove, the Franklin K. Lane Grove, and hundr…

    The Widow's Grove guide →
  22. The Immortal Tree
    22

    🌲 The Immortal Tree

    The Immortal Tree near Redcrest — a survivor of logging, fire, flood, and a lightning strike that took off its top.

    The Immortal Tree guide →
  23. Who Else Lives Here
    23

    🌲 Who Else Lives Here

    Who Else Lives Here — a stop on the Avenue of the Giants.

    Who Else Lives Here guide →
  24. Why Any of This Is Still Here
    24

    🌲 Why Any of This Is Still Here

    The Save-the-Redwoods League, founded 1918, and the memorial-grove system that assembled Humboldt Redwoods State Park.

    Why Any of This Is Still Here guide →
  25. Making the Most of It
    25

    🌲 Making the Most of It

    Making the Most of It — a stop on the Avenue of the Giants.

    Making the Most of It guide →
  26. Welcome — The Avenue of the Giants (from the north)
    26

    🥾 Welcome — The Avenue of the Giants (from the north)

    The northern start of the Avenue of the Giants (CA-254) near Pepperwood — for drivers heading south toward Phillipsville.

  27. Journey's End — Pepperwood
    27

    • Journey's End — Pepperwood

    The northern end of the Avenue of the Giants at Pepperwood, where CA-254 rejoins US-101.

Plan your visit

Good to know

How long is the Avenue of the Giants (California) tour?
The tour has 27 stops over about 30.5 miles with roughly 43 min of narrated audio. You set the pace — pause, linger, or skip ahead anytime.
Do I need cell signal to use the tour?
No. Download the tour before you go and it works completely offline — the audio plays by GPS even with no bars, which is exactly where most park tours lose signal.
How does a self-guided audio tour work?
You drive the route at your own pace and the Ranger Tales app plays the story for each stop automatically when you arrive, using your phone's location. No tapping, no reading while you drive. Ranger Quinn guides and Ranger Boone tells the campfire tales.
How do I get the tour?
Download the free Ranger Tales app from the App Store, then unlock this tour inside the app. The tour downloads to your phone so it's ready offline before you arrive.
Can I cancel or get a refund?
Change of mind? Full refund if you request it within 24 hours of purchase. If a verified technical issue prevents access, contact support within 7 days for a refund or credit. All requests are reviewed at our discretion and refunded to your original payment method.
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Avenue of the Giants (California)
one-time · yours forever · works offline