01-29-2020 Visiting Point Reyes National Seashore

I recently read a blog from Nickie about their visit to Point Reyes National Seashore back in 2015. It looked wonderful, and as we planned our trip south I made sure that we would spend an extra day on the road to enjoy the park. I didn’t think I had been there in the past, but when I perused old photos I found that on our very first trip to California together, Mo and I visited Drake’s Beach, right in the middle of the sanctuary.

It was a long time ago, back in 2004, and it was a short side trip on our route south. Mo didn’t remember our visit either. It’s a good thing I have photos or I wouldn’t remember much at all, especially in the days before blogging. I am pretty sure there is a journal entry back home in our old leather journal, but that doesn’t help much when on the road.

We began our morning with a short jaunt from the campground to the Bear Valley Visitor Center. The building is architecturally lovely, with lots of tall glass windows reflecting light in all directions. We first stopped at the information desk where a very knowledgeable park ranger answered our many questions about visiting the park. I was especially curious about the geology of the area, and without a moment’s hesitation she explained the “accreted terranes”, mentioned John McPhee’s book “Assembling California”, and offered a book with a great geologic map of the area. Such a delight.

I had been trying to think of the term “accreted terranes” for many miles during the previous day as we drove along the highway and Mo asked me about the geology. Imagine a bunch of dishes on a table, and tilt that table and watch them all slide together, mashing up into a big mess, then heat it up a bit, watch them melt and resolidify and become part of the table next to them. The American Plate and the Pacific Plate come together here on either side of the San Andreas Fault which runs through the park. Driving down the coast, we are on the American Plate, driving out to Point Reyes, we are on the Pacific plate. I love geology, can you tell?

We wandered through the exhibits, enjoying the panoramas, the information about the plants and animals in the park, and marveling at some truly spectacular garbage art decorating one of the hallways.

Point Reyes is located just north of San Francisco Bay and covers more than 100 square miles of coastal wilderness. The park preserves the natural ecosystems, native plant and animal species, and cultural heritage sites that are part of a diminishing undeveloped western coastline of the United States. There is a LOT to see, much more than we would be able to manage in our one day of visiting.

We spent most of our time exploring as much of the area that we could access and marveled at the incredible diversity of the landscape. There are vast beaches, grasslands, salt and freshwater marshes, coniferous forests, and magnificent granite headlands. We learned that there are more than 1,000 species of plants and animals that are protected here.

The park also contains several historic farmhouses, barns, and creameries that have been preserved as cultural heritage sites and are still in operation.

We couldn’t decide which way to go first, thinking we would head north toward the Tule Elk Reserve area but somehow missed the turn. Instead we traveled west through some rough roads toward the lighthouse. Along the way we stopped at North Beach, and then South Beach. Our friendly park ranger had drawn specific areas that were accessible to dogs on a leash on our map. Mattie was appreciative.

The lighthouse wasn’t open for tours on the day of our visit. I am reasonably certain that even if it had been open I wouldn’t have managed the more than 300 steps down. Just over a year ago, I could climb all the steps in Florence, but this year is a bit different. My legs aren’t working quite right and I am in the midst of the long process of diagnosis. Sticks are now required for balance and lots of stairs are now off the table. But that is another story for another time. In the mean time, I do what I can, and after our day at Point Reyes, I happily noted that I managed to walk 3.5 miles, but not all at once.

The lighthouse is high above the ocean, but far below the high point of the headland where our trail led to a breathtaking viewpoint overlooking the lighthouse and the entire coast. It was built in 1870, but retired from service in 1975 when many lighthouses were automated due to the rising costs of manning and maintaining them.

Point Reyes is the windiest place on the Pacific Coast and the second foggiest place on the North American Continent. Weeks of fog, especially during the summer months, reduce visibility to a few hundred feet. The Point Reyes Headlands, jutting ten miles out to sea, are a threat to ships entering or leaving San Francisco Bay. The Point Reyes Lighthouse has warned mariners of danger for more than 100 years.

After our visit to the lighthouse, we meandered slowly along the somewhat rough and narrow road to the elephant seal overlook. A short hike to a viewing platform is accompanied by the snorts and squeals and calls of the seals, long before they come into view. I made the mistake of leaving our binoculars in the MoHo for this trip, silly me, and was only able to see the pups through the telephoto lens of the camera.

We returned to a road that led to the highest point of the reserve. The Point Reyes Peninsula is geogically separated from the rest of Marin County and almost all of the Continental United States by the rift zone of the San Andreas Fault, part of which is sunk below sea level and forms Tomales Bay. The bay was barely visible through the late afternoon fog from the summit of Mt Wittenberg, at just over 1,400 feet elevation.

It was getting late in the day, but we still hoped to see some marshy muddy wetlands and find some shore birds. Driving back west, into the setting sun, we dropped down rapidly to sea level toward Limontour Beach, where a trail adjacent to the marsh promised great views of birds. We could see a few in the distance, but up close observation would have required more hiking and the day was drawing to a close. I did manage a photo of a pair of ducks and one last view of beach.

We traveled back east up the 17 percent grade, happy that the sun was at our backs, and arrived at camp after sunset. I would love to return and spend more time walking the trails and enjoying this beautiful place. At this time of year it was wide open and uncrowded, but a bit cool. Warmer temperatures later in the season would no doubt bring out more crowds. For the time being, I am grateful for two nights at Olema Campground that gave us a full day to explore Point Reyes National Seashore.