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Daily Bucket - A Cool Trip to Point Reyes National Seashore [1]
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Date: 2023-09-04
Spouse and I hit the road last week to escape the valley heat and headed west to the cool air of the Point Reyes National Seashore. The journey took us through miles of valley farmland and coastal dairy farms but most interesting through a portion of the San Pablo Bay National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) on the northern edge of the San Francisco Bay.
At the NWR, the highway shrinks from 4-lanes to 2 and into congestion. The only good thing is that the slow crawl allowed me to take a peek and see the birds. This time I saw about a dozen Snowy and Great Egrets, 2 Great Blue Herons, a large raft of White Pelicans, several Black-Necked Stilts, a Redtail Hawk on a fencepost, some blackbirds on the highway shoulders and some small shorebirds and ducks too far away to ID. Yes, I kept a safe distance from the car in front of me.
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After a leisurely cruise through rural Marin County, my first stop at Point Reyes was the visitor center where I can gain some info on any special bird sightings. Just outside the center, I encountered my first birds.
Black Phoebe sitting on a fence in the shade of a large tree
Western Bluebird on the same fence in the sun.
A very scruffy CA Scrub Jay scrounging for crumbs scattered on the parking lot.
One of a dozen Brewer’s Blackbirds foraging on the ground outside the center.
Map shows a number of locations for viewing birds. The point’s extension into the ocean makes it an ideal stopping point for weary warblers and other migratory birds.
We drove over to Drakes Beach which is a good spot for gulls and other birds. There is a also a small grove of trees that migrating warblers favor; however it was just a little too soon for them to make their appearance.
I did see a new lifer!
Red-Breasted Nuthatch at the Drakes Beach Visitor Center.
Another view without a tree branch in the way.
There were plenty of White-Crowned Sparrows.
A WC Sparrow waits near my picnic bench for any potential crumbs.
The 2 juvenile WC Sparrows unsuccessfully begged for food from Daddy bird on the left.
A large flock of mixed gulls rested peacefully on the sandy beach. The cliffs and the location on the south side of the point provide protection from the worst of the winds and the rough seas rolling across the Pacific. This beach is also favored by elephant seals in the winter and spring.
Mostly Westerns with a few Heermanns and California Gulls.
As I watched, a few birds took flight.
Western Gull
Heermann’s Gull
Other seabirds flew by. I also noticed large groups of birds floating offshore at a far distance.
Brown Pelican passing by.
Cormorant heading south.
There was an inlet pond that connects to the ocean at high tide. It bordered the length of the parking lot. There were several gulls swimming in the pond. I also saw the following:
Canada Geese resting in the ground cover next to the pond.
A Great Egret takes off after he spotted me and my camera.
I took this shot before he made his getaway.
After our visit to Drakes Beach, we headed out to the point where the historic lifesaving station and the lighthouse are located.
On the way, I saw a kestrel sitting on the fence and camera shy ravens all around the extensive pasturelands. A coyote crossed the road in front of us and swiftly disappeared into the underbrush. We also saw the iconic Tule Elk.
A large bull Tule Elk rests in the grasslands.
Because we have disabled plates we were able to drive all the way down to the historic lifesaving station. While my spouse enjoyed the views from the car, I wandered a bit for more photos.
A solo Ring-Billed Gull rests among a group of Double Crested Cormorants sunning on the dock of the historic lifesaving station.
A trio of DC Cormorants at different ages as shown by the feathering.
A juvenile White-Crowned Sparrow sits on a white picket fence.
A turkey vulture soars above the point searching for a meal.
A deer ambles through the brush at the rear of the lifesaving station.
Finally, we headed to the lighthouse. Once again, we were able to drive close so my spouse could enjoy the view.
View of the beaches north of the lighthouse. These waves roll in from across thousands of miles of open ocean.
I walked to the lighthouse overlook. There is a 300 step staircase down to the lighthouse but it was closed. I couldn’t even attempt to try it even if it was open. From the disabled parking spots, the walkway is broad and easy. There is a small museum that was closed when I visited.
Point Reyes Historic Lighthouse
I didn’t see any birds but I noticed the lovely wildflowers.
These yellow flowering bushes were planted all over a slope undergoing restoration.
Lovely magenta flowers
Large red spikes punctuate the landscape.
The walk to the lighthouse overlook takes you past some very interesting geological features. Point Reyes is a spot where the North American Plate meets the Pacific Plate and has the bonus feature of the San Andreas Fault running right through it.
The unique geology under the Point Reyes National Seashore. Graphic provided by the National Park Service. Note Point Reyes is on the Pacific Plate and the rest of California is on the North American Plate.
Sandstone cliff carved into an abstract sculpture by the wind and rain.
I think this is shale where constant wind delineated the rock layers. This layer is just above the sandstone in the previous photo.
Exposed cliffs reveal different soil layers shows the effect of two plates and an earthquake fault.
My spouse was tiring so we didn’t stay for sunset which can be spectacular.
The temperatures dropped 25 degrees in Sacramento the next day as a Low Pressure System chased hot temperatures out of our area for a wonderfully temperate Labor Day Weekend. We are headed back to the 90s next week, warm but okay.
What’s up in your neck of the woods?
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