Thanks to a van named Fern, I finally saw Fern Canyon. And got a great trip back to my childhood.

For years I had been dreaming of seeing Fern Canyon, an oasis of green and wet in a remote corner of northern California. 

What was keeping me away? The four-hour drive from my home with few places that I could stay nearby without camping. But then a friend offered to drive me in her van — a van, no joke, named Fern!

That was cool.

Especially because even after all that anticipation, finally walking through a 50-foot high canyon covered in ferns didn’t just live up to my expectations, it exceeded them.

But the coolest thing about that journey in Fern was how it drove me back to some of my favorite childhood memories, only with some great new upgrades:

1. The water spigot 

As a kid I spent tons of time in a van, especially the 1968 Chevy van my parents drove my sister and I to what felt like every campground in California. I remember many hours of being bored, hungry and thirsty in that van, and how whenever I told my father I wanted something to drink, he'd reach for the engine block between us and pantomime pouring me a glass of water from an invisible spigot, a trick that usually silenced me for at least an hour.

But Fern? Fern had water! A re-purposed olive oil can with a spigot that actually filled my glass with water. Score one for Fern.

2. The bed

My most vivid memories in my parents' van are of waking up in my sleeping bag while they were driving at night. 

In those moments surrounded by darkness, with no idea where I was and no control over where I was going, it felt like floating in outer space. And yet I also felt completely safe, sure that my parents knew where we were headed.

So I would look out the windows and watch the trees and poles flying overhead until I fell back asleep, not caring where we were going, just happy that my family was going there together.

All those feelings came back to me as I laid down to sleep in Fern, looking up at the roof and feeling as secure as that kid in the Chevy, easily falling asleep for a solid eight hours without disturbing dreams or waking up once during the night. 

And again, Fern had something even better than my parents' van: a comfy mattress for me to sleep on instead of just the floor or all our baggage. Score two for Fern!

3. The surprise dinner

Perhaps to ensure that our journey in Fern was a true adventure, my friend and I did not fully prepare for the trip. 

We did not make reservations for a place to sleep, but the friendly young person in the kiosk at Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park had a campsite to offer us. 

We also did not bring enough food for dinner, but my friend suggested we announce loudly our need for food while walking through the campground in the hopes that someone would answer our call. 

Sure enough, a man overheard us and suggested we drive five miles back to the town of Orick, where the local volunteer fire department was holding a fund-raising dinner. There we each bought a plate piled high with steak, baked potato, salad, green beans, and desserts.

But as happy as I was eating tri-trip and huge slices of watermelon instead of another protein bar, that meal in Fern could never beat the miracle M&Ms I ate one night in my family’s van.

My mother usually only let us have sweets on special occasions like Halloween and Easter, so it was quite the surprise when my parents stopped at a roadside stand one night on the way home for a carton of eggs, and for some reason bought a package of M&Ms for us.

I remember holding the colorful candies in my palm like they were precious jewels, eating them one by one so slowly that each had warmed through by the time it reached my mouth. And I loved the feeling of the shell cracking on warm, slightly melted chocolate so much that I resolved to always eat M&Ms like that, if I ever got them again.

To this day, those M&Ms are the best thing I have ever eaten. Sorry, Fern — that will forever be a score for the Chevy van.

Other cool things we found with Fern:

 4. The Pay Phone

Me phone home.

With no cell service at our campground, I could not get my phone to make a call or even send a text. 

Luckily, the visitor center at Prairie Creek Redwoods has a working pay phone that I used to finally call home and tell my husband we arrived safely and scored a campsite for the night.

That phone alone was a wonderful trip back in time, making my friend squeal with joy when she picked up the receiver and heard an actual dial tone!

 5. And, yes, even an old Chevy van:

Funny enough, we also saw an old Chevy van on our trip to Fern Canyon. 

On the north end of the tiny town of Orick, there is a van that has been parked along the highway so long that it is nearly completely covered by the vines growing on its carport. It wasn't as old as the 1968 Chevy my parents had, but it was still super fun to see. 

Thanks to my friend and her van Fern, I had one of the coolest trips ever:

And this video will take you to Fern Canyon itself: