The Dool Trail - Creeping Forest Trail Loop is a short yet beautiful day hike in Big Basin Redwoods State Park. The trail is not handicap accessible, but is an easy trek for people of most abilities - and is also an excellent stretch for trail running. Leaving from the Redwood Trailhead, the well maintained path glides along Opal Creek while passing through some of the park's most mature coastal redwood stands. Many groves are named for park supporters as memorials to their devotion to protect this old growth forest. Due to its proximity to a perennial water source, wildlife frequents this trail affording visitors the chance to see Big Basin's diverse fauna.

Typical redwood trees, like these on the Creeping Forest Trail, have a life span of 400 to 2,500 years

Opal Creek - named for its opalescence caused by suspended mineral deposits in the water

A vast diversity of flora exists in the lower elevations of Big Basin including multiple species of fern

A baby coastal redwood stands underneath its likely parent

Coastal fog is absorbed by redwood trees, providing the vast majority of their water intake during dry seasons

Most of the coastal redwoods that exist today are the offspring of trees that stood 30 to 40 million years ago

Hollowed out redwood trunks play an integral role in housing the area's wildlife

A down redwood acts as a land bridge along the Creeping Forest Trail

Most fine California wines are kept in redwood vats due to their ability to preserve flavor and quality

The early morning sun 'creeps' through the old growth forest giving name to the Creeping Forest