On the way to see the redwoods we visited a beach in
Humboldt County California. There
“sneaker waves” often come up on the beach leaving beautiful pieces of drift
wood. The beach we visited was near
Orick, California. It is one of the
gateways to the wonderful Northern California redwood forests.
The town itself has about 400 people. [1]
The first post office opened in Orick in 1887 [2]
and though Orick is not as well know as
the neighboring cities of Eureka and Fortuna , it none the less played a
part in the gold rush of the 1840’s and 50’s.[3]
Gold was discovered north of town in
1851 and an area of about 10 miles along the coast contained black sand laden with
gold deposits. The first placer mine was
established in 1852 and continued until the 1880’s. By 1888 it had yielded more than a million
dollars worth of gold.[4] Aside from gold, two rare minerals have been
discovered in very small amounts in the area.
They are named after the town and after a peak found close by. They are Orickitie and Coyoteite .
Though Gold played an important role in Orick and Humboldt County,
timber was more important to its growth . Orick is surrounded by old growth redwoods[5] Wood was in high demand in San Francisco in
the 1850’s and Humboldt County contained a readily available source. In Eureka
in 1856 there were 7 saw mills which turned out 2 million board feet of lumber
a month. [6]
The Spanish and English were the first Europeans to visit
this part of the coast in the 1400’s. Among them were Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo
and Sir Francis Drake. They sailed the
coastline, exploring the harbors and searching a continental water passage. But
they didn’t brave the rock of the coast to explore inland.[7]
Juan Francisco de Bodega came ashore at Trinidad in 1775. There his expedition planted a cross to lay
claim to the bay and surrounding land for Spain. There is a cross there today as a memorial to
the first European landing in the area.[8]
Orick was named for an Indian village. [9]
The area was inhabited by the Tolowa, Yurok and Chilula Indians. They were
living on this part of the coast when it was explored in the 18th
century. When the gold rush began the
Yurok were friendly and helped move things with their canoes. As more and more
settlers began arrive and take away the Yurok lands hostilities ensued. As a result 75% of the Yurok people were lost
to disease, hostilities and the loss of their cultural ways. In 1885 the Yurok reservation was established
and the Yurok peoples were moved. After a flood washed the fort away another
reservation was established in the Hoopa Valley. Today the Yurok and Tolowa
still exit. The Yurok people are the
largest tribe in California with over 5000 enrolled members. [10] The Chilula blended with the Hupa culture. Sumag Villiage at Patrick’s Point State Park
is a re-creation of a Yurok village. It was created by the Yurok people in 1990
with traditional materials. Part of the village is a native plant garden. These plants represent traditional plant materials
used for food, medicines and baskets making. [11]
The village provides cultural education for future Yurok generations and
educates the general public.
Today there are many things to do in the area. From Orick you can ride horses through the
redwoods. Or if you aren’t inclined to
ride you can take the “Fun Bus” There is kayaking and if you would like to
see some of the local plant life there is a self guided tour of the Lady Bird
Johnson Grove on Bald Hills Road. There are plenty of picnic and day use areas
as well as camping facilities for RV’ers or tent camping. Seasonal sport fishing is available for salmon
and steel head. Freshwater Lagoon is
also a good fishing spot. Fern Canyon is
a breathtaking hike. You might also see
elk in the area and other wild life. [12]
There is a lot to see, do and learn about Humboldt County
and the town of Orick. Hope you enjoy
the pictures.
