What I love about living in San Francisco is that I am less than a three hour drive to the most beautiful areas in California. I can explore the redwoods and coastal shore as a day trip, or travel further to the snow or rustic desert for an entire weekend. Because of the ample travel locations that the Golden State has to offer, I try to take every weekend as an opportune time to explore outside the city. A few weeks ago the girls and I took a trip to Point Reyes National Seashore, a peninsula located an hour north of San Francisco. You can spend a day traveling around the peninsula, or stay for a weekend by camping out. Below I’ve included a step-by-step guide on how to see the best of Point Reyes in a day.
First stop: Point Reyes Station.
The girls and I left San Francisco promptly at 9am. Looking back at our trip, I wish we could’ve left sooner to see more of Point Reyes. In an hour we had arrived at our first stop, Point Reyes Station, the main town and home of the original Cowgirl Creamery.
Travel Tip: I would suggest leaving early morning (8-9am) for Point Reyes to make most of your day. The peninsula is to be enjoyed during the daytime. Since the roads lack streetlights, driving in the evening can be unsafe.
Point Reyes Station has a downtown area that is merely a strip lined with small shops, a bakery, general store, a saloon, and restaurants. Just off the strip is Cowgirl Creamery, a shop known for their splendid cheese. I love Cowgirl Creamery and their grilled cheese sandwiches! I make sure to grab one from their flagship booth located in the SF Ferry Building. The girls and I each had a open face grilled cheese sandwich and it was delicious!
Travel Tip: Stopping by Cowgirl Creamery is must. However, if that doesn’t fancy you, there’s plenty of other grub spots that is worth checking out:
Bovine Bakery– Small bakeshop with amazing pastries. There hasn’t been a pastry that I didn’t like from there.
Osteria Stellina – Come here if you’re looking for something more high end. Their seafood dishes and oysters are delicious.
Side Street Kitchen – This restaurant is fairly new. But from the looks of the menu, it’s definitely a spot worth checking out. They serve brunch and their interior is IG worthy.
After lunch, we walked down the strip and came across the cutest general store: Toby’s. The general store happened to be hosting a farmer’s market, which I learned occurs every Saturday from 9am-1pm. They had plenty of vendors out, along with live music! I love browsing through Toby’s because they’re filled with novelty items, and has an art exhibit in the back!
Next stop:Point Reyes Ship Wreck.
We then headed 10 mins north to Inverness, which is home to the infamous Point Reyes Ship Wreck. The ship wreck has an unknown background. No one knows how this fishing boat ended up on the shore behind a general store. But regardless, it attracts visitors every day. This particular spot is a major gem for photographers.
Travel Tip: If you can’t find the exact address to the ship wreck, navigate to the Inverness Store, which is located at 12784 Sir Francis Drake Blvd. Park behind the store and you’ll spot the ship wreck out in the water.
Next stop: Cypress Tree Tunnel.
After taking some snapshots at the shipwreck, we headed to our next spot: the Cypress Tree Tunnel. Another amazing gem for photographers and visitors alike, the cypress tree tunnel is home to an abandoned radio station. However, the radio station is not the highlight of this location. The trees are. The way the trees hover over the road while the fog rolls in is quite mesmerizing. It’s a great photo opportunity and definitely worth checking out.
Travel Tip: Parking on the shoulder of the cypress tree tunnel is not allowed. I suggest parking on the street at the entrance of the tunnel or in the parking lot in front of the radio station.
Next stop: North Beach.
The girls and I then left towards North Beach which is another short 10-15 minute drive. I have never stopped at this location, so I had to check it out. Sure enough North Beach was a full blown beach. It was pretty chilly, so we didn’t stay there too long. I could see this beach being a great place to lay out a blanket with a book during a sunny day.
We then left towards our next stop: Chimney Rock.
This particular spot requires comfortable walking shoes. Chimney Rock is a cliff side trail that leads to a dead end that overlooks Drakes Bay. A hike to the tip of the Chimney Rock is 1.6 miles from the parking lot. There’s opportunity for great ocean views and spotting wildlife. From my past trips to Chimney Rock, I’ve spotted coyotes, deers, hawks, and elephant seals. During this particular trip we came across an entire herd of elephant seals resting on the shore of the beach.
Next stop: Point Reyes Lighthouse.
After hanging at Chimney Rock for an hour or so, we started heading the opposite direction towards Point Reyes Lighthouse. As we progressed down the road to Point Reyes Lighthouse, the fog became denser and denser. When we arrived to lighthouse parking lot, the fog was so dense that we couldn’t see a couple walking ten feet ahead of us. Because the fog was so dense, we decided to abort the mission.
However, to give you an idea of what the lighthouse looks like I’ve included pictures that I’ve taken a few years ago. As you can see by the photos, there is a large amount of steps that you need to take to get down to the lighthouse, so wear comfortable shoes!
Because we were running out of daylight, we decided to head home. If we had more time, we would’ve drove to the Tule Elk Reserve. Tule Elk Reserve is an elk reserve located at Tomales Point, the most northern point of the peninsula. It takes about an 45 minutes to get to from Point Reyes Lighthouse. At the reserve you can spot herds of elks in their natural habitat. It’s an amazing sight to see. And if you’re feeling hungry, you can drop by the Tomales Bay Oyster Company to purchase some fresh oyster.
Travel Tip: Picnicking at Tomales Bay Oyster is not allowed. However, you are welcome to purchase oysters and eat it at neighboring locations, like the beaches. Click here for a list of options.
On our way out, we came across a foggy swamp area that looked so mystical to me. I had to pull over for a few photos. What I love about the Point Reyes peninsula is that it is multi-climate. One part of the day we were enjoying 70 degree weather in Point Reyes Station, and just a 30 minute drive away we were immersed in fog at the lighthouse. One area is a swamp area, and towards the coastline you’ll find golden sands on the beach.
I hope my day guide to Point Reyes was helpful! It is truly an extraordinary place! Each location deserves at least an hour of your time, therefore fulfilling a full 8 hour day.
xoxo Justina
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