Big Basin Redwoods State Park is a state park in the U.S. state of California, located in Santa Cruz County, about northwest of Santa Cruz. The park contains almost all of the Waddell Creek watershed, which was formed by the seismic uplift of its rim, and the erosion of its center by the many streams in its bowl-shaped depression.
Big Basin is California's oldest State Park, established in 1902, earning its designation as a California Historical Landmark. Its original have been increased over the years to over . It is part of the Northern California coastal forests ecoregion and is home to the largest continuous stand of ancient coast redwoods south of San Francisco. It contains of old-growth forest as well as recovering redwood forest, with mixed conifer, oaks, chaparral and riparian habitats. Elevations in the park vary from sea level to over 600 m (2,000 ft). The climate ranges from foggy and damp near the ocean to sunny, warm ridge tops.
The park has over of trails. Some of these trails link Big Basin to Castle Rock State Park and the eastern reaches of the Santa Cruz range. The Skyline-to-the-Sea Trail threads its way through the park along Waddell Creek to Waddell Beach, and the adjacent Theodore J. Hoover Natural Preserve, a freshwater marsh.
The park has many waterfalls, a wide variety of environments (from lush canyon bottoms to sparse chaparral-covered slopes), many species of mammals (deer, raccoons, an occasional bobcat) and abundant bird life – including Steller's jays, egrets, herons and acorn woodpeckers.
The CZU Lightning Complex fires in August 2020 burned over 97% of Big Basin and destroyed the park headquarters, closing the park for 2 years during rebuilding efforts before it reopened in Summer 2022.
History
Archaeological evidence has sporadically found prehistoric people inhabited old growth forests within the Park. Numerous resources would have been available to California Indians in the old growth forests, such as basketry material, plant foods like acorns and bulbs as well as animal prey for hunters and perhaps traditional sacred places. Ohlone tribes that lived on watercourses which begin in the park were the Quiroste, Achistaca, Cotoni and Sayante. In October 1769, the Portola expedition encountered the redwoods of southern Santa Cruz County, and camped at the mouth of Waddell Creek, in present-day Big Basin, later that month. Although many in the party had been ill with scurvy, they gorged themselves on berries and quickly recovered. This miraculous recovery, as it seemed at the time, inspired the name given to the valley: 'Cañada de la Salud' or Canyon of Health.
By the late 19th century, redwood forests were gaining international appreciation while also being decimated. Early conservationists, including notable Santa Cruzans William T. Jeter and A.A. Taylor were joined by Santa Clara County activists Andrew P. Hill, Father Robert Kenna and Carrie Stevens Walter. Their movement to preserve the Big Basin redwood forest began at Stanford University on May 1, Soon after Santa Cruzans led an excursion to the park where seven men and two women formed the Sempervirens Club. The Sempervirens galvanized the state-wide effort resulting in ground-breaking legislation being signed into law in March 1901. The official land transfer occurred in 1902: The California Redwood Park initially consisted of , most of it old growth forest.
In the following decades, visitation to Big Basin grew steadily as park amenities were developed. The Big Basin Inn offered cabins to rent, a restaurant, general store, barber shop, gas station and photographic studio. There were also a post office, a concrete swimming pool, boating areas, tennis courts and a dance floor. Campsites cost 50 cents a night in 1927 and many families stayed all summer. During the Great Depression of the 1930s, the Civilian Conservation Corps assigned a company to Big Basin. These men built the amphitheater, miles of trails, and many of the buildings still used today. The main administration building, built by the CCC in 1936, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Save the Redwoods League purchased a parcel known as Cascade Creek in 2020 that links Big Basin with Año Nuevo State Park.