Thomas H Kuchel Visitor Center

I loves me any excuse to pee, get informed and do souvenir shopping all in one place, but when it’s a visitor center that is located right on a rugged, beautiful, dog-​friendly beach, HELLO, IT’S ME YOU’RE LOOKING FOR.
After I peed, was informed and did some souvenir shopping, it was off to the beach to meander and enjoy the views and stretch my legs — mine AND my four legged beast’s! On the beach, I found several patches of rocks that reminded me of a bunch of broken teeth. I have a vivid imagination.
The staff were extremely helpful with some driving tips and suggestions.

Great informative 12 minute video on the history of the pacific redwoods — from their beginnings to logging and up to today. I was surprised to learn a few new things– such as how they reproduce (burls! teeny tiny pinecones!), and happy to see my favorite creature, the banana slug was in the video as well.
There is a nice gift shop with inexpensive items– and don’t forget to get your National Parks Passport stamped here!
The staff is very helpful with places to go — whether you’re handicapped, traveling with children, or even need some dog-​friendly hiking tails (there are surprisingly quite a few– mostly paved areas, though, including an 8mi walk), there is information about opportunities for everyone.
Tip– if you have a National Park Pass you will not need to pay a fee for any of the State Park/​beaches in the area as they are inside National park lands. Just show your pass. There are a small handful of nice beaches and camp areas to explore at no additional cost with your National Pass.

Super nice visitor center with veteran staffmember who had his presentation down.
Many trails here and various growth forests with most of the old growth at Jedediah.
Nice place to start your Redwoods adventure.

This visitor center is on the south side of the Redwood National & State forests. They were really helpful in providing basic information for a first timer like myself.
There are free maps and guides you could take for your visit to the Redwoods.

The visitor center was slammed this Labor Day weekend! Despite this, the staff was very friendly and the rangers were handing out maps and suggestions left and right. They patiently answered my questions and gave us some great suggestions for places to hike.
If you want, there are also exhibits, a movie about the redwoods you can see, and merchandise.

Who doesn’t use a visitor center when visiting a national park? I’ll tell you who, people who get lost, those that think they know everything, and people who believe in drive-​thru tourism. The Kuchel Visitor Center is the first place one should stop before taking on wonderful Redwood National Park.
All of the rangers provide excellent information, just ask a question about the park and they will not only answer with the patience of a Saint and a smile far more generous than the Mona Lisa, but also offer an opinion like the talking heads on cable news shows — and that is what you want, friendly guidance.
The rangers will query you too to find out how much time you have, are you fit (well they can tell that by seeing your muffin top or your beer gut so they probably won’t ask that), are you hiking, do you want to go to a beach, etc. in order to tailor the visit to each individual.
Whether you are an adventure seeking climber and hiker or a sedentary couch surfer who doesn’t even own a pair of waterproof shoes, these wonderful rangers will make sure to clue you in on the must sees and make the visit special for you. These people really love their jobs and it shows in the way they communicate to every person who stops in.
The visitor center itself is modern, clean, and has all the usual national park «stuff»: exhibits, books to buy, free maps, you can catch a film, and yes there are restrooms. There is plenty of parking and even a picnic area outside and make sure you take a look at the exhbit on the native people and the very cool canoe outside.
So make sure to stop in so that you don’t get lost, and shake off that smug belief that you know everything (you don’t), and save the drive-​thru for your favorite fast food chain back home.
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From the National Park Website for your convenience:
Location: US Highway 101 at Orick, Calif.
Hours of Operation
*Spring-​Fall: Open daily, 9 am to 5 pm
*Winter: Open daily, 9 am to 4 pm
*Closed: New Year’s Day, Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas Day.
Interpretive Programs & Activities
Patio talks and coast walks occur during the summer. Redwood National and State Parks’
Junior Ranger activity newspapers are available here.
Exhibits
Exhibits focus on coast redwoods and watersheds