Point Reyes National Seashore

Sir Francis Drake (1540?-1596) One of Elizabethan England's greatest seamen, who was the first European known to circumnavigate the earth in his own ship, visited Point Reyes National Seashore area in 1579.

Point Reyes National Seashore, California

Tanya and I liked exploring Point Reyes National Seashore near San Francisco.

You can get there by driving US 1 from San Francisco or following Sir Francis Drake Boulevard from US 101 (Just south of San Raphael.)

The National Seashore is a ten or twelve mile long sort of triangular piece of land which includes mountains, estuaries, rocky cliffs and some long, dramatic, tan sandy beaches.

The famous San Andres earthquake fault separates most of the parkland from the mainland of California---this fault zone is easily seen on maps of the area: Tomales Bay on the north becomes Bear Valley which then becomes Bolinas Lagoon in the south.

The workers at the National Seashore recommend that your tour begin at the Bear Valley Visitor Center and that is a good idea. There is a large parking lot and a really fine picnic area with beautifully maintained lawns and wonderful huge trees. There are also several well-marked walking trails from the Center which we sampled and enjoyed.

We like lighthouses and there is a fine one out on the cliffs about fifteen scenic miles across the park from the Bear Valley Center. Parking is limited to roadside areas and on a sunny weekend afternoon there may be none at all near the lighthouse, but there are several long sand beaches on the way with plenty of parking and which are attractive.

If you do get to the lighthouse, you can hike down (and back up!) the 300 concrete steps to the old light tower and tour the restored facility—though it is no longer a functioning warning light, it is very worthwhile for lighthouse buffs.

Don’t expect to be alone! There are scads of tourists speaking all the languages of the world—but that just shows their appreciation for this fine park—and also shows that the huge and always growing population of the Bay Area is just over the hill!

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