Fieldbrook, CA

Fieldbrook is a census-designated place on the north bank of the Mad River, about seven miles northeast of Arcata and just outside the redwood country of Humboldt County. The 2020 census counted 827 residents. Much of the place was tied to lumber companies in the late 1800s and early 1900s, and the old post office ran from 1902 to 1932. Today Fieldbrook School serves as the local center, with a K-8 campus and a school district that carries the community's name. The Mad River is never far from the conversation.

ATTRfrom the NPS Archive: http://photo.itc.nps.gov/storage/images/redw/redw-Full.00001.html / Public domain

Fieldbrook sits where the river valley starts tilting toward the Coast Range. Fieldbrook Road runs inland toward Blue Lake, while Highway 299 is the big east-west connection for the wider county. Redwood forest presses close, but the daily map is still made of school runs, river weather, and roads that wind between homes and hills. Fieldbrook is a small Humboldt County place with a lumber past, a Mad River edge, and a very recognizable redwood backdrop.