Come explore the rich cultural and natural history of Humboldt Redwoods State Park through unique, carefully planned and guided adventures which we call Field Seminars. Rediscover your relationship with the environment. Sharpen your senses and express yourself through drawing, painting and photography. Learn more about the flora and fauna that reside in and around this magical ancient forest and world class park. All that the adventure needs now is you!
Humboldt Redwoods State Park is the third largest California State Park. Located in the northwest corner of the state, its 52,000 acres are comprised of rolling hills, open prairies, steep slopes, mixed conifer and hardwood forests, babbling brooks, swift streams and the nutrient-rich alluvial flats along the Eel River where the tallest living things on earth, the coast redwoods, grow.
The average summer day temperature ranges from mid 50s to mid 80s. Fog often rolls in during the evening and stays until mid-morning. It has been known to rain during the summer.
Humboldt Redwoods Field Seminars are sponsored by Humboldt Redwoods Interpretive Association (HRIA), an educational non-profit organization dedicated toward promoting a greater appreciation of the cultural and natural history of the North Coast Redwoods District. HRIA operates the Visitor Center and Bookstore at Humboldt Redwoods and the Nature Center in Ferndale, working in cooperation with the California Department of Parks & Recreation to provide quality interpretive programs, literature and exhibits.
The 1997 seminar season is over. Watch this page for updates on the 1998 seminars. Coming soon. Follow these links to see what we have offered in the past.
[Spring Wildflowers of Humboldt Redwoods]
[Landscape Painting]
[Birdwatching in Humboldt Redwoods]
[Exploring With a Pencil: The Plants and Animals of the Redwoods]
[Photography in Humboldt Redwoods]
[Animals Don't Cover Their Tracks]
[Tales and Trails of Humboldt Redwoods: A Magical History Tour]
[Amphibians and Reptiles]
[Fossils and Geologic History Along the Eel]
Ahh, springtime in the redwood forest; so refreshing, so green, so many little flowers...
Join us for a closer look at the beauty of Humboldt Redwoods diverse floral tapestry. This fun exploration will introduce you to the basics of wildflower identification. Through a slide presentation, discussion, handouts and lots of field study you will learn the morphology (shapes and forms) and terminology necessary to get you started and comfortable keying plants. Emphasis will be on the plant families commonly found within Humboldt Redwoods State Park. Ages 12 and up. Limited to 20 people.
Instructors: Gisela Rohde and Denise Del Secco
Date: Saturday, April 26
Time: 10:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Location: Visitor Center and selected locations
Fee: $15.00
Spend the day exploring your creativity in the beauty of the redwood forest! This class is designed for adults who have had some painting experience. Through individual instruction and demonstration you will have the opportunity to learn new techniques as well as expand current skills in some of Humboldt's most inspirational settings. We'll visit forest, meadow and streamside locations where you will have plenty of time to contemplate and execute a painting or two. Your senses will be refreshed and stimulated as we go for short nature walks and enjoy each other's company. Ages 13 and up. Limited to 15 people.
Instructor: Arupa Richardson
Date: Saturday, May 17
Time: 10:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Location: Visitor Center and selected locations
Fee: $15.00
Cultivate your birdwatching ability with an evening slide show and a day of birding. Optional camping and early morning Marbled Murrelet segment are included. The nuances of many birding skills and techniques are difficult to learn through books and on your own; yet they can be easily acquired by being around other birdwatchers. Birdwatchers, like in most other human endeavors, carry with them traditions that are nicely passed around in situ. This seminar will be a springboard for your birdwatching abilities: watch them soar! We will focus on the available resources and the attitudes, techniques, and tools needed to feel more intimate with the bird world. For example, frames of mind such as patience and attentiveness will be stressed. The techniques of learning by sketching birds' shapes, actions, patterns, and colors, and by phonetically writing bird sounds will be explained, and the fine points of the horizon-expanding binoculars and scopes will be examined. All the while, we will be watching birds. All ages and skill levels welcome. Emphasis will be on beginners. Limited to 12 participants.
Instructor: Elias Elias
Date: Friday, May 23 and Saturday, May 24
Time: Friday, 7:00 PM - 8:30 PM slide show and Saturday, 4:30 AM - 2:00 PM
Location: Visitor Center and selected locations
Fee: (includes overnight camping): Adults $25.00, Children 12 and under $10.00. Must be accompanied by an adult.
Explore the amazing detail of plant and animal life of the redwood forest through drawing. The goal is not necessarily a finished drawing to hang on the wall, but, rather, the observer's own heightened awareness of the beauty and wonder of nature. Drawing is a hands-on way of seeing. The process of drawing the form of a plant or animal, reveals its function. The perception of the observer, meanwhile, is enriched through this meditative approach to a relationship with the redwoods. In this two day seminar you may choose to attend the first day only or both days. We will warm up by drawing the animal and bird mounts at the Visitor Center, and then move outside to observe and draw, firsthand, the plants and animals of the forest. All ages and level of skill. Limited to 15 people.
Instructor: Joan Dunning
Date: Saturday and Sunday, June 6 and 7
Time: 10:00 AM - 4:00 PM each day
Location: Visitor Center and selected locations
Fee: Both days $30.00, 12 and under $14.00
Saturday only $16.00, 12 and under $8.00
Children 12 and under must be accompanied by an adult.
Celebrate the first days of summer and explore the intricate components of this ancient coast redwood forest quietly working while you watch through the lens of your camera. Discover the dynamics of light as it filters through the forest canopy. You may choose to attend the first day only, or both days. The first day will cover exposure, focus, depth of field and proper use of your camera. The second day will deepen your understanding of principles learned by review and experience and will also incorporate various elements of composition. Through a selection of exercises, demonstrations, individual guidance and discussion, you will see the importance of composition in creating meaningful, personal and successful images. Much time will be spent outdoors with some easy, level walking required. An optional early Sunday morning search for rays of light and mist in the trees will be offered. Participants are encouraged to bring the camera and film that they normally use. Ages 13 and up. Limited to 15 people.
Instructor: David Carey
Date: Saturday and Sunday, June 21 and 22
Time: 10:00 AM - 4:00 PM each day
Location: Visitor Center and selected locations
Fee: $35.00 both days or $20.00 Saturday only
"Here is the distinct trail of a fox stretching a quarter of a mile across the pond. I know which way a mind wended this morning, what horizon it faced, by the setting of these tracks; whether it moved slowly or rapidly, by the greater or less intervals... for the swiftest step leaves yet a lasting trace." -Henry David Thoreau
You're hiking along enjoying an evening stroll and you encounter a fresh track on the path ahead. It is a large track with five toes and big claws. What is it? If you have ever been intrigued by the mystery of which animal left a particular print, this seminar is for you. With tracking, you will become a detective, discovering new mysteries every time you walk out your door. Learn how to identify the animal tracks you find and how to read the fascinating, ever-changing stories written on the ground. Tracking will open up a whole new world to you. Your excursions into nature will never be the same gain. Ages 7 and up. Limited to 20 people.
Instructor: Kim A. Cabrera
Date: Saturday, June 28
Time: 9:00 AM - 3:00 PM
Location: Visitor Center and selected locations
Fee: Adults $15.00, Children 12 and under $9.00. Must be accompanied by an adult.
Join the authors of Humboldt Redwoods State Park: The Complete Guide, on a journey through several of the park's most scenic and historic spots. The day will be made up of a series of short walks (approx. 2.5 miles total) and drives, whereupon which you will discover insights into the area's rich cultural and natural history. Visit native Sinkyone Lolangkok village sites, imagine the lifestyles of early settlers and lumbermen, learn about interesting characters and disappearing towns, walk through the groves that inspired the save-the-redwoods preservation movement and get familiar with the incredible diversity of flora and fauna which reside within this jewel of a park. All ages. Limited to 15 people.
Instructors: Jerry and Gisela Rohde
Date: Saturday, July 5
Time: 10:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Location: Founders Grove and selected locations
Fee: Adults $15.00, Children 12 and under $9.00. Must be accompanied by an adult.
Frogs, salamanders, lizards, and snakes are often scorned and feared, but they are beautiful and fascinating little animals. Come and learn to recognize the species found in and around Humboldt Redwoods. This exploration will include study of their breeding habits, their natural history and relationships, food and predators, and their sensitive dependence on ecological conditions. The day will begin with slides and lecture, then you'll be off to visit mountainsides and streamsides in search of these timid and secretive creatures. Bring your patience and a keen eye along on this wildlife quest. Minimum age limit is 10 years. Limited to I 5 people.
Instructor: Dr. James Waters
Date: Saturday July 19
Time: 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Location: Visitor Center and selected locations
Fee: Adults $15.00, Children 12 and under $9.00. Must be accompanied by an adult.
This year's geology trip will focus on local fossils and what they can tell us about local geological history. Learn how to identify fossils found along the Eel River, how they got preserved and how geologists use them to date rocks. We will start at the Visitor Center with a brief display, but mostly we'll be out in the field at a local outcropping to search for, and learn about fossils. Discussions will continue throughout the day. Participants are encouraged to bring along their own fossils and rocks for identification. Be prepared for 15 to 20 miles of driving (carpooling) and approximately 2 miles of walking on flat ground. Minimum age is 7 years. Limited to 15 people.
Instructor: Sam Morrison
Date: Saturday, August 2
Time: 10:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Location: Visitor Center and selected locations
Fee: Adults $15.00, Children 12 and under $9. 00. Must be accompanied by an adult.
Kim Cabrera's lifelong interest in tracking began in southern California where she tracked coyotes, fox and deer in the Whittier Hills. She attended a tracking class at Tom Brown's Tracking, Nature, and Wilderness Survival School and has participated in several search and rescue tracking classes from Universal Tracking Services, where she earned her Tracking Aware certificate. Kim graduated from Humboldt State University in 1995 with a B.S. in Natural Resource Planning and Interpretation. She has written tracking guides for Humboldt Redwoods, Palomar Mountain and Cuyamaca Rancho State Parks. She wrote and maintains the Beartracker’s Animal Tracks Den web site.
David Carey is an accomplished fine arts photographer whose career spans over 20 years. He has studied with many internationally known photographers and works in the Ansel Adams tradition of exquisitely crafted black and white photographs. He also conducts workshops through Sonoma State and Chico State Universities, Santa Rosa Junior College and his own workshop series.
Denise Del Secco is HRIA's Interpretive Coordinator. She has worked at Humboldt Redwoods for nine years, six of those as a naturalist. She has a B.S. in Natural Resource Planning & Interpretation from Humboldt State University, but her passion for the redwood forest began in her backyard on Mt. Tamalpais, CA, before she could talk.
Joan Dunning is a painter and writer from Arcata. She graduated from U.C. Santa Barbara with a double major in Art and Creative Writing, with coursework in Botany. She studied drawing in New York City before embarking on a career that includes painting and writing. Author and illustrator of two books, The Loon: Voice of the Wilderness and Secrets of the Nest, she is currently working on a book about redwood forest ecology. Joan has taught painting classes for Redwood National Park Field Seminars and Humboldt State University Center Activities.
Elias Elias has a lifelong interest in the world of birds. His passion for birds drives him to work as a professional field biologist. He also devotes considerable time toward volunteer efforts of two northwest California non-profit organizations; the Redwood Region Audubon Society and the Friends of the Arcata Marsh. Conservation of the natural world is his end and the study of birds, those "vivid expressions of life," are his means.
Sam Morrison has mapped and studied fossils and geology of Humboldt County for the past 25 years. He has worked locally for the Office of Earthquake Studies and Water Resource Division of the U.S. Geological Survey. He is currently employed with the U.S. Forest Service at the Redwood Sciences Laboratory in Arcata. His main geologic field of interest is paleontology and he enjoys educating people about the unique and fascinating geologic history of the redwood region.
Arupa Richardson is a native coastal Californian and Fortuna-based painter. She has studied fine art at U.C. Santa Barbara, U.C Berkeley, Humboldt State University and College of the Redwoods. She enjoys painting in watercolor and acrylic. "The incredible wealth of natural beauty along the north coast inspire my landscape paintings greatly." In addition to showing her work in local galleries, Arupa instructs youth art in Fortuna, Eureka and Willow Creek. She is a member of the Ink People.
Jerry and Gisela Rohde are the authors of Humboldt Redwoods State Park: The Complete Guide, and Redwood National and State Parks: Tales, Trails and Auto Tours. They have formed their own company, Mountain Home Books and recently completed their third publication, Mount Rainier
National Park: Tales, Trails & Auto Tours. Jerry is a teacher, author and president of the Humboldt County Historical Society. Gisela is a Library Assistant at Humboldt State University and specializes in plant and wildlife identification and lore.
Dr. James Waters is a Professor of Zoology at Humboldt State University. He teaches vertebrate anatomy, paleontology, and natural history. He has led numerous workshops and public lectures on reptiles and amphibians, including field seminars at Redwood National Park.
Membership benefits include:
A 20 percent discount at the Bookstore and Nature Center. Subscription to The Living Museum, the association newsletter. The satisfaction of knowing that you are participating in an organization dedicated toward expanding the awareness of one of the most unique forests on earth.
All fees are in U.S. dollars. All times are Pacific Standard Time.
Humboldt Redwoods Interpretive Association
P. O. Box 276
Weott, CA 95571 USA
Phone: (707) 946-2263
Fax: (707) 946-2618