Parking
Big Tree Wayside parking area on Newton B. Drury Scenic Parkway at mile marker 127.96. Parking is limited; vault toilets are at the lot.
Overview
About Circle Trail
Why go
- A memorable giant redwood is an easy stop off the scenic drive.
- The level paved approach and vault toilets make the wayside convenient.
Heads up
- The wayside has limited parking.
- The Big Tree platform can be busy with visitors and tour groups.
Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Redwood map
Full mapElevation214–252 ft
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Safety
6 active Redwood alerts
- CautionU.S. 101 construction traffic controlsExpect construction-related traffic stops and one-way controlled traffic on U.S. 101; allow extra time and drive cautiously. - NPS reports multiple stops between Orick and Crescent City; delays vary.Official details
- CautionU.S. 199 construction traffic controlsExpect 24/7 one-way controlled traffic on three U.S. 199 segments because of construction. - 6–6.2 miles north of Gasquet: through 6:00 p.m. December 15, 2026; delays up to 10 minutes. - 9.6–9.Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Redwood Tour Guide
Your drive to Circle Trail, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Redwood National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the Redwood audio tourRecorded for this trailhead
Big Tree Wayside0:00 / 0:26
“Up ahead is Big Tree Wayside, an easy stop for a close look at a redwood estimated to be more than fifteen hundred years old.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Redwood Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- Cal Barrel Road and Foothill Trail
- Corkscrew Tree
- Prairie Creek Visitor Center and Elk Prairie
- Find the Wren by Ear
- 85 audio storiesacross Redwood’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Black Bear, Elk, California Condor, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 83 trails, 48 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Trail guide
Hiking Circle Trail
A quick loop to Big TreeThis very easy loop starts at Big Tree Wayside and circles through the redwoods before…
This very easy loop starts at Big Tree Wayside and circles through the redwoods before returning to the same parking area. The complete lot-to-lot walk is about 0.3 mile and usually takes 15–30 minutes with a stop at the tree. A 0.2-mile figure is also published for Circle Trail; the route mapped here includes the short access legs on Foothill Trail and Cathedral Trees Trail.
The forest and the treeThe short approach to Big Tree is paved and level.
The short approach to Big Tree is paved and level. The mapped Circle section follows forest path and crosses a short wooden bridge, so the whole circuit is not just pavement. Big Tree is a large old-growth coast redwood, reached at a viewing platform with interpretive signs. Trailhead audio boxes share reflections from Yurok elders about redwoods. The platform is a popular stop for visitors and tour groups; for a sense of scale, include a stretch of its viewing fence in a photo.
Start here, and know the rulesUse the marked Big Tree Wayside lot on Newton B. Drury Scenic Parkway at mile marker 127.96.
Use the marked Big Tree Wayside lot on Newton B. Drury Scenic Parkway at mile marker 127.96. Parking is limited, and vault toilets are at the lot. Day use runs from sunrise to sunset. Pets are not allowed on park trails except service animals. Foothill and Cathedral Trees continue beyond this short circuit if you want a longer walk; those extensions add substantial distance.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Redwood
256 sightingsBlack BearMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
2,389 sightingsElkMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
62 sightingsCalifornia CondorMost seen around 1 PMSighting map
60 sightingsCalifornia Sea LionMost seen around 11 AMSighting map
216 sightingsHarbor SealMost seen around 10 AMSighting map
13 sightingsMountain LionMost seen around 7 PMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Redwood. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
