Plan a day getting to know Giants and Pygmies ... forests that is.

Giant redwoods are easy to find with 13 Redwood parks in Mendocino County; two close to Fort Bragg and two more with large stands of old growth redwoods, just a short drive.

• Otis R. Johnson Wilderness Park - Located right in Fort Bragg, at the east end of Laurel Street. The park offers shady walking trails and a close-up experience with redwoods and other nature.
• Jackson State Redwood Forest - Just a short drive on Highway 20 takes you to a grove of old growth Redwoods at Camp One's day use area. From Highway 1 go east on Highway 20 to the 5.8 mile marker. Turn on Road 350 (there's no sign). Go 3 more miles, and you're there.
• Montgomery Woods State Park - This 1142 acre State Reserve is located on both sides of the Comptche-Ukiah road about thirty miles east of the town of Mendocino. It's an excellent example of a magnificent coastal Redwood grove and a beautiful fern forest.
• Hendy Woods State Park - This park features two virgin Redwood groves. The park is located on Greenwood Road, just off Highway 128, near Boonville. It takes less than 1 hour to get there from Fort Bragg.

Hans Jenny Pygmy Reserve -  Stunted trees and shrubs are caused by a complex ecological condition associated with underlying wave terraces and their unusual soils. The poor soil fertility and wetness of the soil restricts the growth of vegetation and induces a dwarf condition. Though short, the trees in the Pygmy Forest can be hundreds of years old. The pygmy forest is located at Jug Handle State Reserve features a 2.5-mile self-guided nature trail called The Ecological Staircase which explores five wave-cut terraces formed by glacier, sea and tectonic activity that built the coast range.

Each of the terraces was uplifted from sea level about 100,000 years before the one below it. Plants on each terrace represent a more advanced stage in succession, indicating what the previous, next lower terrace may look like in 100,000 years. The lowest terrace consists of prairie; the second is covered with pines; the third supports a unique pygmy forest with knee-high trees possibly several decades old