We just got back from a few days on the coast in Northern California and Southern Oregon. I was able to bike in many of our stops but I think my favorite coastal trails were in Eureka, California. The Eureka Waterfront trail was only 6.5 miles but I was able to see a lot of different things. I started near the middle and rode to both ends so I ended up with about 13 miles.
I started downtown and road on the boardwalk North to a bunch of wetlands. A lot of birds including some new ones for my Audubon Life list- Marbled Godwits, Least Sandpipers and a couple of Long-billed Curlews. There were lots of great egrets and great blue herons as we got towards the North end. You can see on the map, the Samoa Dunes Recreational area. I didn’t ride there but was able to drive the whole length. It has a lot of beaches over the dunes for most of the stretch but I would have liked to try biking all the way to the southern peninsula to see some more birds.
After watching birds I headed South and rode past a lot of active crab boat yards and marinas. There were also some huge log yards with enormous piles of redwood logs. The trails changed from boardwalks to nicely done asphalt bike paths and again turned into some great bird marshlands. I rode all the way to the Southern end where it connected back to Highway 101.
Glad I brought my bike so I could try this section out. Someday I plan to ride from Seattle to San Francisco and I will remember to take this detour off the highway for some quieter riding.