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The Stunning Beauty of California’s Lost Coast (In Photos)

10/06/2014 by Kristin Addis 18 Comments

 “The two girls grew up at the edge of the ocean and knew it was paradise, and better than Eden, which was only a garden” – Eve Babitz

If you ever get the chance to visit California, grab it with both hands, embrace tightly, and enjoy the ride. You’ll be astonished with delight at every single turn. Somehow she’s everything they say she is — the place of legends and unimaginable fantasies — and yet an utter enigma. Just when you think you finally understand her, you’ll find, once again, that she has an endless number of tricks up her sleeve.

She’s home to the world’s tallest trees (coast redwood), one of the hottest places in the world (Death Valley), Hollywood legends, world class surf, and one of the most-visited national parks in the world (Yosemite).

Then, there are the places that remain hidden, are hardly spoken of, and many do not even know of their existence.

One of these places is the Lost Coast in Humboldt County, a sparsely-populated area in the far north of the state. The fact that it is relatively unknown is surely its saving grace and the reason why most of the beaches are almost devoid of people – pristine, wild, and rugged.

I’ve traveled the world, and I’ve seen amazing natural phenomena, but honestly, nothing compares to California:

lost coast california
My best friend and her dog, Heidi, are lovely muses

I’m hopelessly entangled in the love affair with California. She’s the one who haunts me in my dreams with memories of summers spent on boats in the wild Pacific or playing in the warm sand.

I never took her for granted. I always knew how lucky I was for every blessed moment.

lost coast california
Samoa Beach
lost coast california
Unreal colors

Science fiction writer Kim Stanley Robinson describes it perfectly:

“I grew up in a utopia, I did. California when I was a child was a child’s paradise, I was healthy, well fed, well clothed, well housed. I went to school and there were libraries with all the world in them and after school I played in orange groves and in Little League and in the band and down at the beach and every day was an adventure. . . . I grew up in utopia.”

lost coast california
Thank you, sunset

She’s inspired many before me, and surely many after me.

lost coast california
Loleta Beach

Novelist and poet Jack Kerouac was hopelessly in love, too:

“California–wild, sweaty, important, the land of lonely and exiled and eccentric lovers come to forgather like birds, and the land where everybody somehow looked like broken-down, handsome, decadent movie actors.

Happy. Just in my swim shorts, barefooted, wild-haired, in the red fire dark, singing, swigging wine, spitting, jumping, running—that’s the way to live. All alone and free in the soft sands of the beach by the sigh of the sea out there” – Both from Dharma Bums.

lost coast california
Moonstone Beach

lost coast california
Is this Eden?

As well as writer Henry Miller:

“Out yonder they may curse, revile, and torture one another, defile all the human instincts, make a shambles of creation (if it were in their power), but here, no, here, it is unthinkable, here there is abiding peace, the peace of God, and the serene security created by a handful of good neighbors living at one with the creature world,” (Speaking of Big Sur, which is an 8-9 hour drive south of the Lost Coast with similar trees and scenery).

lost coast california
Dance in her beauty

…and novelist Christopher Isherwood:

“For this is the real nature of California and the secret of its fascination; this untamed, undomesticated, aloof, prehistoric landscape which relentlessly reminds the traveller of his human condition and the circumstances of his tenure upon the earth.”

lost coast california
Mad River Beach (check out that gelatinous sea foam!)

And perhaps most significantly, John Muir, who is responsible for much of the conservation of California’s natural parks and protected lands:

“Keep close to Nature’s heart… and break clear away, once in awhile, and climb a mountain or spend a week in the woods. Wash your spirit clean.”

“I never saw a discontented tree. They grip the ground as though they liked it, and though fast rooted they travel about as far as we do.”

lost coast california
Coast redwood trees can reach a height of 380 feet (116 meters)
lost coast california
Hugging a redwood tree
lost coast california
Lichen on a fallen redwood tree – still giving life

Thank you California, for inspiring so many with your beauty, mystique, and grandeur.

I’ve loved you harder and more passionately than anything else in my life, and that will never change, because you never stop amazing me.

You reluctantly understand that I need to explore and see other things. The great beyond beckons, and that’s the kind of citizen of the world a place as diverse as California cultivates.

Yet you always welcome me back with open arms, and for that, I’m grateful.

 What’s your favorite place in the world?

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About Kristin Addis

Kristin Addis is the founder and CEO of Be My Travel Muse, a resource for female travelers all around the world since 2012. She's traveled solo to over 65 countries and has brought over 150 women on her all-female adventure tours from Botswana to the Alaskan tundra.

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Comments

  1. Katie says

    10/06/2014 at 8:56 am

    As a long time California native (born Norcal and later moved to Socal), I love this post. Thanks for reminding me on the beauty doesn’t always have to be found in an exotic foreign destination and truly exists off the shores of my home. 🙂

    Reply
    • Kristin says

      10/06/2014 at 9:04 am

      I’ve come to realize that each place has its own special beauty, but I really am blown away whenever I come home. California is a truly special place.

      Reply
  2. Franca says

    10/06/2014 at 12:33 pm

    When I think of California the first things that comes to my mind are some TV series I used to watch when I was a teenager with stunning and endless beaches. It looks like that is not so far from the reality at all judging by your photos. I love how happy and content the dog is by the way, it looks like he really loves it 🙂

    Reply
    • Kristin says

      10/07/2014 at 12:52 am

      Heidi’s life revolves around the game of fetch. If we’re not playing it, she really wishes we were. When we are, everything is right in the world to her. It’s adorable.

      Reply
  3. Jimmy Dau says

    10/07/2014 at 8:26 am

    Time in the US is on the plans for next year maybe. Ever since going to Patagonia I’ve been drawn to national parks and being amongst the company of myself or very few others.

    Reply
    • Kristin says

      10/08/2014 at 1:15 am

      It’s so nice being in the wilderness and those you come across are usually pretty cool, like-minded people.

      Reply
  4. Jeremy says

    10/08/2014 at 12:17 am

    Great photos, Kristin! Hug that tree, you big hippy! 😉

    Reply
    • Kristin says

      10/08/2014 at 1:12 am

      I’m a totally hippy. Sorry not sorry.

      Reply
  5. Nichelle says

    10/08/2014 at 12:36 am

    Indeed, there’s no other place like home. We may go to various places and explore different culture, but still, nothing beats the beauty of our homeland. I just so love your photos and the quotes you included from authors which add to the rhythm of your sentiments. I can feel so much love for this post.

    Reply
  6. Ryan Biddulph says

    10/09/2014 at 8:43 pm

    Hi Kristin,

    When we were staying in the rice fields in Bali, our villa was one of 2 on the compound. Beyond awesome spot, a good 5 minute motorbike ride through the fields away from civilization. I recall the man living in the other villa for 3 months was from Big Sur. He raved about it, speaking of the pristine beauty, unparalled views and overall unspoiled nature of the area. We were entranced, and we promised to visit him one day. Your mention of Big Sur above and comparison to the Lost Coast makes me want to go even more. What beauty. You really were blessed to grow up in California.

    I did the NJ thing for 35 years of my life then decided to become a citizen of the world more than anything. Nothing like a beach, especially a beach which you and your doggie share. The silence, the beauty, and the peace you feel being in nature, you can’t compare it to anything else. Each shot above was beautiful, and more than anything, when one dwells on the range of spots in Cali, from the forests, to Yosemite, to the beaches, it really is mind boggling. I’ve yet to visit but when I stop by my cousin’s in Maricopa, Arizona, I may do Southern California for a minute. So much beauty down there too.

    I’ve done little travel in the US but intend to see more of my beautiful country soon, especially the West Coast. I’ve only been west to Ohio 😉 But if you count where I am now, few on earth have been as EAST as I am, now, because I’m in Fiji, right by the International Date Line. 19 hours ahead of you Kristin, and as I write these words at 3:40 PM on a Friday afternoon, you’re at 8:40 PM on Thursday night. Amazing world we live in, with so much of it to see, and enjoy. Lovely pictures, and I love your writing style. Keep up the great work and keep on inspiring, because folks need to hear your story.

    Thanks much! Tweeting.

    Signing off from Savusavu 🙂

    Ryan

    Reply
    • Kristin says

      10/09/2014 at 10:48 pm

      Actually I’m in Malta right now! Thanks for the kind words and you should definitely check out both Northern and Southern California. Both are really amazing and each part of the coastline has its own special beauty as it’s constantly changing as you drive from one end to the other.

      Reply
  7. Whitney says

    10/20/2014 at 11:21 am

    The west coast really is the best coast isn’t it? I too love California but my favourite place on earth is definitely the Pacific Northwest (BC, Washington, Oregon). The scenery is stunning! We have amazing beaches, mountains, rainforests, islands upon islands, and really cool cities too (Vancouver, Seattle, Portland).

    Reply
    • Kristin says

      10/20/2014 at 2:55 pm

      Yes it is! I can’t wait to see the PNW for myself.

      Reply
  8. Reine says

    04/18/2015 at 6:54 am

    Beautifully written! It sure is a magical place. 🙂

    Reply
    • Kristin says

      04/18/2015 at 12:23 pm

      Thanks and agreed!

      Reply
  9. Brittany says

    08/08/2015 at 8:43 pm

    I lived in Humboldt County for 5 years. You captured the region’s beauty perfectly!

    Reply
    • Kristin says

      08/10/2015 at 5:17 am

      Thank you! I could happily live there for a while too

      Reply
  10. nirmala says

    08/28/2017 at 4:00 am

    Hi Kristin,
    Really nice post, The photos are amazing.

    Reply

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