Mattole Road is a

county road A county highway (also county road or county route; usually abbreviated CH or CR) is a road in the United States and in the Canadian province of Ontario that is designated and/or maintained by the County (United States), county highway departme ...

Humboldt County, California Humboldt County () is a county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 136,463. The county seat is Eureka. Humboldt County comprises the Eureka–Arcata–Fortuna, California Micropolitan Statistica ...

. It originates at Ferndale, passes through Capetown and crosses the Bear River, then reaches the Pacific coastline at

Cape Mendocino Cape Mendocino (Spanish: ''Cabo Mendocino'', meaning "Cape of Mendoza"), which is located approximately north of San Francisco, is located on the Lost Coast entirely within Humboldt County, California, United States. At 124° 24' 34" W longitude ...

and follows the beach for , passes through Petrolia and Honeydew, crosses Panther Gap at elevation, and terminates near U.S. Route 101 (US 101) and

Avenue of the Giants The Avenue of the Giants is a scenic highway in northern California, United States, running through Humboldt Redwoods State Park. It is named after the coastal redwoods that tower over the route. The road is a former alignment of U.S. Route 101, ...

inside

Humboldt Redwoods State Park Humboldt Redwoods State Park is a state park of California, United States, containing Rockefeller Forest, the world's largest remaining contiguous old-growth forest of Sequoia sempervirens, coast redwoods. It is located south of Eureka, Califor ...

. It is the only public access to the Pacific Ocean coastline of the

Lost Coast The Lost Coast is a mostly natural and undeveloped area of the California North Coast in Humboldt and Mendocino Counties, which includes the King Range. It was named the "Lost Coast" after the area experienced depopulation in the 1930s. In add ...

. It was built as a

wagon road ''Wagon Train'' is an American Western series that aired 8 seasons: first on the NBC television network (1957–1962), and then on ABC (1962–1965). ''Wagon Train'' debuted on September 18, 1957, and became number one in the Nielsen ratings. It ...

in the 1860s. The road is popular among bicyclists, motorcyclists, and automobile enthusiasts. It has been called "one of America's finest scenic routes", "one of the best adventure drives", and "a must-do road for many motorcyclists". One writer said the view when the final ridge of the coastal hills between Ferndale and the Pacific Ocean is crossed is " e of the most glorious sights anywhere". The road is included in a

National Geographic Society The National Geographic Society (NGS), headquartered in Washington, D.C., United States, is one of the largest non-profit scientific and educational organizations in the world. Founded in 1888, its interests include geography, archaeology, and ...

book titled ''Drives of a Lifetime''.

See also

References

Further reading