Point Reyes Tree Tunnel

Point Reyes National Seashore Sand Castle Competition @ Drake’s Beach

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It’s not the first time I’ve written about Point Reyes and nor will it be the last. This gorgeous stretch of ocean is magnificent and enjoyable no matter the time of year. The Drake’s Beach Sand Castle competition brought us for this journey and it did not disappoint. People and their abilities and imagination were immensely entertaining. Other times of the year the enormous Elephant Seals are breeding or calving on this very beach so it’s never dull.

*To those that had the foresight to recognize these gorgeous places as National Seashores or Parks you have my gratitude. And to those who continue to fight to keep them in that status you also have my gratitude. I am so lucky to have a place like this to share with my son who thinks it’s just normal to have these treasures.

I stop and take our photo in the tree tunnel every time we visit and hope I continue to have them when my son is bigger than me!

Tomales Bay Shipwreck – Point Reyes

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This will be my last installment for Tomales Bay until I have the opportunity to visit again which I suspect will be sooner rather than later. 😉 Driving through Inverness on my way to the Tomales Point Trail Hike I HAD TO STOP when I saw this grounded ship. Google tells me that this ship was wrecked and the owner always intended on fixing it but it soon became a roadside attraction. I was there at the right time because the lighting, the sun, and the reflection were ideal. This was the first photo of the day, which as many photographers know, makes the rest of the day icing on the cake. I am often terribly critical of the photos I take and this one is no exception taken only with my iPhone and not my “good camera.” However, I love this photo and can’t stop looking at it. I hope you enjoy it too.

“Only two sailors, in my experience, never ran aground. One never left port and the other was an atrocious liar.” -Don Bamford

Cypress Tree Tunnel – Point Reyes National Seashore

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So who isn’t a fan of a good tree tunnel?  Well, it’s been on my mind for a while to go check this one out.  So, the little guy and I headed out early in the morning and Point Reyes National Seashore did not disappoint.  We travelled through the lovely and picturesque town of Inverness (aptly named because it certainly harkens back to the Scottish Loch Ness with a long thin waterway flanked by hills on either side) through some washed out roads and one lane drives to get to the North District Operations Center.  The communications center, an Art Deco building lovely in its own right, is overshadowed by its gorgeous driveway.  Kudos to whatever random person took the time to tree line this driveway so many years ago.  It was clearly unnecessary but boy am I grateful.  It took me back to Northern Ireland visiting Dark Hedges, only this was two hours from my house on my beloved and spectacular California coast.

We left the Cypress Tree tunnel and made for the lighthouse on an even worse road.  But, we were delighted by a bunch of Tule Elk presumably in the mood for love because they were fighting and there wasn’t a lady Elk anywhere to be seen.  I am told by a lovely and protective Ranger that Point Reyes Lighthouse was recently renovated.  It had only reopened the week prior to my visit.  Apparently locals were uptight over the cost of said renovation.  I’ll bet that old lighthouse could tell some stories about some epic storms and some shipwrecks of which there have been many around this dangerous peninsula.  She probably deserves a good tidy up from time to time if you were to ask me.  So, my sweet little guy got to see his first real tree tunnel, his first lighthouse, his first Tule Elk, and got to see the beach/ocean again.  Hurray for a wonderful day out!

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