Humboldt Bay

Humboldt Bay is a natural bay and a multi-basin, bar-built coastal lagoon located on the rugged North Coast of California, United States entirely within Humboldt County. It is the largest protected body of water on the West Coast between San Francisco Bay and Puget Sound and the largest port between San Francisco and Coos Bay, Oregon. The regional center and county seat of Eureka and college town Arcata adjoin the bay, which is the second largest enclosed bay in California. In addition to being a seasonal or permanent home to more than 200 bird species and 100 species of fish, Humboldt Bay is the second largest estuary in California and houses the largest commercial oyster production operation on the West Coast, producing more than half of all oysters farmed in California.

The Port of Humboldt Bay (sometimes also referred to as the Port of Eureka) is a deep water port, with harbor facilities that include large industrial docks at Fairhaven, Samoa, and Fields Landing designed to serve cargo and other vessels, while several marinas also located in Greater Eureka have the capacity to serve hundreds of small to mid-size boats and pleasure craft. Since the 1850s, the bay has been used extensively to export logs and forest products as part of the historic West coast lumber trade, with infrequent shipping occurring currently.