West Ridge and Rhododendron Loop

West Ridge and Rhododendron is about a 7.5-mile loop in Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park. It links the Karl Knapp, Zigzag #1, West Ridge, Zigzag #2, Rhododendron, and Brown Creek trails into one circuit. Allow five to six hours. The tread is rough with exposed roots, Zigzag #1 climbs steeply, and the ridge keeps rising and dipping. In return, the forest changes from giant redwood groves and ferny creek valleys to open ridge woods and denser mixed forest. This is the Brown Creek access loop, separate from the shorter South Fork/Rhododendron/Brown Creek route.

Use the Drury Parkway access across from Brown Creek Trailhead, near mile marker 129.0. The opening grove is open and lush, with huge redwoods beside a brook. After roughly half a mile, the path leaves the redwoods for brush beside Prairie Creek, crosses the creek, and reaches Zigzag #1. A footbridge at the early creek crossing is reported to be seasonal; when it is out in winter, a shallow wade may be needed. Check conditions before setting out.

Turn left on Zigzag #1 and climb through a fine stand of large redwoods; the trees get smaller as the slope steepens. At the top, turn right onto West Ridge. Its first stretch feels open and a little isolated, with repeated ups and downs. After about half a mile, larger trees and a lusher forest return. Save some energy for this rolling section instead of treating the first climb as the only hard part.

Zigzag #2 descends through increasingly large redwoods into a ferny ravine and crosses Prairie Creek on two footbridges. Cross Drury Parkway and follow Rhododendron up a broad canyon. The trail runs partway up the slope, with views across and down through redwoods and ferns. Over the next ridge the forest changes: redwoods thin out and a denser understory of tanoak, huckleberry, and rhododendron takes over. The path then drops into another stream valley, climbs a ridge, and eventually descends toward Brown Creek.

Brown Creek follows a wide valley through dense redwoods. The trees grow larger toward a bridge and a small memorial grove loop before the trail returns to Drury Parkway. That side loop is optional and adds about a tenth of a mile; it is not included in the route distance above. No food or drinking-water service is listed for this loop, so bring what you need for the half-day walk.

Day use is sunrise to sunset, and park trails are closed to pets except service animals. Drury Parkway closes to motor vehicles on the first Saturday of each month from October through May for Hike and Bike Day, so plan your access around that recurring closure. Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park is on the ancestral land of the Ner’-er-nerh/Coastal Yurok People; Yurok and Pulikla tribal groups and Trinidad Rancheria descendants partner in caring for the park’s cultural and natural resources.