Be sure to do the Davison Road drive, unpaved scenic road. It goes to Gold Bluffs Beach and Fern Canyon. Take Highway 101 south from Crescent City 30 miles to Davison Road (not marked end of July 2006 when we were there) or travel north 2 miles from Orick.
We bumped our way to the end of this drive (Fern Canyon) and were delighted to find 4 elk peacefully feeding at the start of the trail head. Awesome sight.
Then we backtracked a bit and went to Gold Bluffs Beach. Absolutely beautiful and essentially deserted.