Lighthouse at Point Reyes

For help, designing YOUR next adventure, grab a free phone call with Melanie, today!

There was a light at the end of the tunnel, or - in this case - journey.

After traveling a mere 2 hours from the bustle of San Francisco's Pier 39,  through the coastal redwoods of Muir State Park,  I found myself here...
at the lighthouse on the Wyoming-esque peninsula known as Point Reyes National Seashore.

SIGNIFICANCE OF POINT REYES LIGHTHOUSE

30 nautical miles north of San Francisco, on a stretch of coast washed by north-south currents, the Point Reyes lighthouse is respected as the most important light station on the Pacific coast.
To complicate mariners' concerns, the offshore Farallon Islands (a spanish word for "pillar") lie only 20 miles SW of Point Reyes.   So mariners could not just steer a wide berth around Point Reyes;  to reach San Fran harbor, they were forced to navigate carefully between Point Reyes and the rocks.

Point Reyes' statistic as the 2nd foggiest place in North America made this passage even more precarious.

Imagine my luck, to arrive here on a day like this:

WHERE'S POINT REYES LIGHTHOUSE:
Check out that tiny point due north of the Farallons on the above map.

STEPS TO POINT REYES LIGHTHOUSE
Enjoy the ride out through the peninsula's brown hills, because you have a hike in front of you!  20 minutes up a small rise, through a tunnel of evergreens, with sweeping views over the white-shark-infested Gulf of Farallones,  you'll reach the steps to the Point Reyes lighthouse:   308, to be exact.

HISTORY OF POINT REYES LIGHTHOUSE







For its opening in 1870, the  Fresnel (pronounced fray-nel) lens was crafted in France and shipped around the bottom of South America to the port at San Francisco, where it was sailed on to Drake's Bay, then oxcart-ed down the peninsula, to be lowered to the construction site.  
Despite its effectiveness -- shining out 24 miles compared to the earlier mirror technology of 8-10 miles of light -- there were still so many sailing emergencies that, in 1890,  a life-saving station was added. Today there's a cemetery, marked by this amusing sign:


GETTING AROUND POINT REYES PARK:




Your drive around Point Reyes National Seashore takes you past estuaries, through barren brown fields, and past historic farms.

You'll wind your way through this agrarian landscape to the finger of Tamales Bay.
Welcome, oyster-lovers!

"EATS" AT POINT REYES LIGHTHOUSE
Oysters are the key ingredient at Point Reyes.
The Farm House restaurant in Point Reye's gateway town, Olema, may have the biggest reputation for these BBQed bivalves, but my favorite spots offered fresh shellfish and BBQ grills for do-it-yourselfers.

Check out Tamales Bay Oyster company, where you pick your bivalves out of a tank at $12-15/dozen, then set up your picnic at a nearby table on the shoreline.  Forgot oyster knife or gloves?  Need charcoal?  It's all for sale there.   They've even installed oyster-cracking horseshoes, for beginners.  Don't forget your beverage, though!

The famous Drakes Bay Oyster Company is another favorite.  Located WITHIN Point Reyes park, you can shuck for yourself, right on the beach.

wharf at Nick's

Want to slurp without the work?   Try Nick's over in Marshall, on the northern shoreline of Tamales Bay, or any number of oyster stands along the drive.

WHERE TO SLEEP AT POINT REYES?

I found a boathouse... technically, the boatman's quarters.. right on Tamales Bay, where a blazing wood fire illuminated the rustic interior as the full moon sparkled on the bay just outside the 8'-long window-seat where I made my bed for the night.
It's not like I had no alternative, though.  Check out the bedroom!

Stay posted for "Sleeping in a boathouse on Tamales Bay", coming soon on the TLT blog!

Curious about a lighthouse crawl along the California coast?   Grab a free phone call with Melanie to explore the possibilities!

Melanie can show you the inside scoop on Point Reyes!