Page 207 - WINE DINE AND TRAVEL SPRING 2025 GRAND VOYAGE

Joshua Hendy came to California
from England in 1849. His first venture was a
redwood lumber mill and he also bought
acres of the redwoods. He vowed he would
never allow his ancient redwoods to be cut
down, and “he was as good as his word,”
says the park. Although large stands of red-
woods surround Hendy’s grove were logged
before and after his death, his groves were
spared.
After he died, groves were sold but
timber was never cut from these groves. En-
couraged by locals and Save the Redwoods
League, the state bought the original 586
acres that became this park in 1958. It has
since grown to 816 acres.
There is nothing compared to walk-
ing in an old-growth redwood forest. The
reddish bark is beautiful, the canopies are
soaring into the sky and the remarkably
lacy evergreen branches make pine trees
look uttery boring by comparison.
A walk in the Hendy woods was a
highlight among many in Mendocino, where
the landscape and the historic town really
are second to none.

IF YOU GO:

VisitMendocino.com for listing of all
parks, accommodations, restaurants and
attractions. Request a brochure to be
mailed to you.
NicholsonHouse.com, for one of the
finest accommodations in town.
I flew into the Charles Schultz airport in
Santa Rosa and rented a car for the two-
hour drive to Mendocino.
https://sonomacountyairport.org/
Otherwise, Mendocino is about a three-
hour drive north from San Francisco

Left:A fern canyon winds along Little River
in Van Damme State Park.

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