Daytrippin’ in Humboldt – Beach Bouldering and the Lost Coast Brewery

Our coast is truly one of Northern California’s gems

By Ryan Loughrey

With the holiday season, traffic and locales around Redding have been busy. Not to mention the heat, so we decided to take an impulsive trip to the coast. Kiva and I loaded everything we could possibly need into my little car (meaning: snacks, bouldering gear, skimboard, swimsuits and sweatshirts due to the unpredictable nature of weather on the northern California coasts, also more snacks) and headed westward.

After very minimal traffic, we made it to Eureka. Although we normally go north to Trinidad or Patrick’s Point, we decided to do something we’ve never done before: Tour the Lost Coast Brewery. My first brewery tour was of Sierra Nevada in Chico, one of the largest craft brewers in the US, and I was hooked on the smell of hops and the look of the huge silver vats that process the liquid. We’ve tried to see the Lost Coast Brewery before, but our impulsive trips always lead to us arriving after they close.

A post shared by Brii (@brii_andah) on

I have to admit, I don’t have a lot of experience with Lost Coast. My personal history with the company mainly began because their sweatshirts started showing up with my teenage friends who I’m pretty sure had never tried their beer. Still, their stark and cubist style has a way of catching your eye. After doing research, I learned that the early designs were the work of Duane Flatmo – he created the iconic Great White label. (After doing more research, I found that the artist and the company have since parted ways, not quite on the best of terms). Still, despite recent controversies, the company has also been making news as it grows as a microbrewery and as an ambassador for the Humboldt area. So we had to check it out.



We arrived on an overcast and cool Saturday and took the last tour of the day. Since it was the weekend, everything was shut down, and it gave the impression that we were innocently trespassing in the pursuit of knowledge. I still have a child-like part of me that is fascinated by machinery at work, seeing bottles being cleaned and swung and filled and labeled and packed is strangely mesmerising. With the building empty aside from us however, we could actually make out what the tour guide was saying. During the week, this might have been a much more difficult feat. We got to wander around their facility, and one of the highlights was seeing the piece they entered in the Kinetic Race a few years back. (The race is eclectic and features artistic creations that must be human powered and be able to travel over land and water competing).

The piece, of course, is the now infamous Great White, their flagship and most popular beer.

We also learned they are starting to can beers, due to the fact that in California, it is illegal to have bottled beers at festivals and beaches, according to our chipper guide. After the tour, we were able to try four different samples of beers (totaling about a pints worth). I was excited to try some of their fruitier beers, such as their Apricot Wheat or Watermelon Wheat.

After the tour, we decided to get to the ocean. One of my favorite beaches is Moonstone Beach, as it is secluded and has ample rocks for climbing and exploring. However, we arrived in the middle of a wedding, so the beach was busy with photographers and we were sorely underdressed. So, we decided to try a new beach that I had read about in the Northern California Bouldering book.

It’s called Houda Beach, is a small hike, and is stunningly pretty. I went back and forth about sharing it’s location. It seems to me that when people find a special place, they wish to hide it and keep it to themselves. I can see the logic behind this, as more and more people discovering a spot can inevitably bring trash – whether it is intentional or thoughtless litter such as cigarette butts, or just by overuse, which can lead to trampling of natural fauna. That being said, it is my opinion that people protect what they love, so by sharing my love of beautiful and natural places, I do so in the hopes that visitors will be responsible and take the same care that we do. I am a utilitarian conservationist, and believe that we can enjoy the bounties of earth in an engaged way and still preserve it for future generations. Okay, mini-rant over.



We parked on top of an overlook, and took the small staircase cut into the bank down to the shore. We trudged down our bulky crashpad and climbing shoes, as well as our guidebook. I felt like a tourist, carrying the book around, but it was invaluable.

As soon as we saw the rock, we could make out the chalky locations where rock climbers of days gone by had been. It turns out, this spot has perfect bouldering locations for people of our skill level, which is to say people who are beginner to intermediate. That being said, there are also some really tough routes, so people of any skill levels could find a good challenge here. (Shout out to Shasta Rock Club, where we have summer memberships and are trying to hone our skills). We also learned the difficulty in using climbing shoes on the beach, when slick, wet sand sticks to the bottom of climbing shoes and renders the ordinarily grippy soles useless.



In addition, as high tide approached, one of the rocks that was perfect for climbing soon had water surrounding its base. We moved locations, and kept climbing as much as we could.

As the sun set, we packed up our crash pad and sore muscles, and just walked along the beach. On other parts of the beach, there were driftwood structures people had built, and we climbed inside and admired the architecture. I should note the beach is also great for skimboarding or for people to bring their dogs.

We ate dinner at a cozy little diner after the sun had set. Our stomachs full of comfort food and hot coffee, we fueled up and headed inland towards home. It was a half-day, impulsive, coastal trip, and I had a blast. I love the winding drive along the Trinity River, arriving at the coast and smelling the salty air, and putting my feet in the sand at the immense edge of the great Pacific. Our coast is truly one of northern California’s gems.

Active NorCal

Telling the Stories of Northern California

93 Comments

  1. It is appropriate time to make some plans for the future
    and it’s time to be happy. I have read this post and if I could I want
    to suggest you few interesting things or tips.
    Perhaps you can write next articles referring to this
    article. I desire to read more things about it!

  2. Greetings from Ohio! I’m bored to death at work so I decided to browse
    your site on my iphone during lunch break. I love
    the information you present here and can’t wait to take a look
    when I get home. I’m shocked at how quick your blog loaded on my mobile
    .. I’m not even using WIFI, just 3G .. Anyways, awesome site!

  3. Hello there! Would you mind if I share your blog with my facebook group?

    There’s a lot of folks that I think would really enjoy your content.
    Please let me know. Thank you

  4. Hi there to all, how is all, I think every one is getting more
    from this website, and your views are pleasant in support
    of new users.

  5. After looking into a handful of the blog articles on your web site,
    I seriously appreciate your way of blogging. I saved it to my bookmark site list and will be checking back in the near future.
    Please check out my web site as well and tell me
    what you think.

  6. Link exchange is nothing else except it is only placing the other person’s web site link
    on your page at suitable place and other person will also do same in support of you.

  7. No matter if some one searches for his necessary thing, thus he/she wishes to be
    available that in detail, therefore that thing is maintained over
    here.

  8. Oh my goodness! Impressive article dude! Thank you, However I am experiencing troubles with your RSS.
    I don’t know the reason why I can’t subscribe to it. Is there
    anyone else getting similar RSS problems?
    Anyone that knows the solution can you kindly respond?
    Thanx!!

  9. Molly Malm, a lawyer for Swedish law firm Lexly, points out
    that Sweden’s all round higher divorce price compared to the rest
    of the EU is linked to its gender equality objectives.

  10. Excellent blog here! Also your website a lot up fast!
    What host are you the usage of? Can I am getting your associate hyperlink on your host?
    I wish my site loaded up as quickly as yours lol

  11. Hey I know this is off topic but I was wondering if you knew of any widgets I could add
    to my blog that automatically tweet my newest
    twitter updates. I’ve been looking for a plug-in like this for quite some time and was hoping maybe you would have some experience with something like this.
    Please let me know if you run into anything. I truly enjoy reading your blog and I look
    forward to your new updates.

  12. It’s a pity you don’t have a donate button! I’d certainly donate
    to this excellent blog! I guess for now i’ll settle
    for bookmarking and adding your RSS feed to my Google account.
    I look forward to new updates and will talk about this
    site with my Facebook group. Talk soon!

  13. Hey there! Do you know if they make any plugins to safeguard against
    hackers? I’m kinda paranoid about losing everything I’ve worked hard on. Any suggestions?

  14. Heya i’m for the first time here. I found this board and I find It really useful & it helped me out a lot.
    I hope to give something back and aid others like you helped me.

  15. Hey there! I’ve been following your website for some time now and finally got the bravery to go ahead
    and give you a shout out from New Caney Tx! Just wanted to mention keep
    up the excellent work!

  16. This is the right web site for everyone who wishes to understand this topic.
    You understand a whole lot its almost hard to argue with you (not that I really would
    want to…HaHa). You certainly put a new spin on a
    topic that has been written about for many years.
    Great stuff, just great!

  17. Thanks for the auspicious writeup. It actually was once a enjoyment account
    it. Glance advanced to more added agreeable from you!
    However, how can we be in contact?

  18. If some one needs to be updated with newest technologies after that he must be pay a quick visit this web page and be
    up to date all the time.

  19. Hi are using WordPress for your blog platform? I’m
    new to the blog world but I’m trying to get started and set up
    my own. Do you need any html coding knowledge to make your own blog?
    Any help would be really appreciated!

  20. My relatives every time say that I am wasting my time here
    at net, except I know I am getting familiarity all the time by reading such fastidious articles or reviews.

  21. I’m not sure why but this blog is loading incredibly slow
    for me. Is anyone else having this problem or is
    it a problem on my end? I’ll check back later on and see if the problem still exists.

  22. Excellent weblog here! Also your web site lots up very fast!
    What web host are you using? Can I get your associate hyperlink for
    your host? I want my website loaded up as quickly as yours lol

  23. After I originally commented I appear to have clicked the -Notify me when new comments are added- checkbox
    and now whenever a comment is added I recieve four emails with the exact same comment.
    Is there a means you are able to remove me from that service?
    Kudos!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Back to top button