Check out our adventures over 2 days at Point Reyes National Seashore in California. Along with Becky and our daughter, today we are visiting the Point Reyes Lighthouse and exploring more of the park. Teeming with amazing wildlife and views, see what makes the rugged coastline in Point Reyes so special!
This is the 2nd of 2 posts on Point Reyes. You can see our 1st post here: The Amazing Point Reyes National Seashore.
Planning a Visit to the Point Reyes Lighthouse
Point Reyes National Shore is just a short drive north of San Francisco in Marin County. And the one place you have to visit in the park is the Point Reyes Lighthouse. This historic lighthouse built in 1870 has warned ships of this rocky point for over 150 years! But the visitor center and stairs leading down to the lighthouse are only open between 10:00AM-4:00PM. And if you want to see inside the lighthouse, it’s only open on the weekends between 1:30-3:30PM. Check out more information here: Visit the Point Reyes Lighthouse.
Our goal is to get to the lighthouse when it opens. So, we’ll leave from San Francisco in the morning stopping for brunch in Point Reyes Station. Afterwards we’ll head to the coast, checking out the Chimney Rock area of the park 1st. We are hoping to see more seals here at the Elephant Seal Overlook. Then we’ll head to the lighthouse parking lot and walk to the Lighthouse Visitor Center. And hopefully we’ll time it right to see the lighthouse when it’s open. Point Reyes is remote and has no food options in the park. So, we are prepared with water and snacks. And though there is no fog today and sunny, we’ll bring some light jackets in case it gets chilly by the ocean.
Driving to Point Reyes National Seashore
There are multiple way to drive to Point Reyes National Seashore from San Francisco. Yesterday we drove to Muir Woods 1st before heading up the coast to Point Reyes. Click here to read about: Muir Woods Walk through the Redwoods & More. Today, I wanted to take a different route on Lucas Valley Road. If you are a fan of Star Wars, yes this road leads to Skywalker Ranch.
If you are so inclined to do a drive-by or stop for a picture, unfortunately you can only see the gate. But it’s also a beautiful drive through rolling hills and forested areas. We saw tons of yellow wildflowers, and though it’s a little curvy, it’s a relaxing drive. And it ends in Point Reyes Station, a great place to stop to eat before you head in the park.
Brunch in Point Reyes Station
Point Reyes Station is the closest town to the park with multiple food options. And after we drive through downtown once, we circle and find a parking spot on the main street. They have a charming downtown area and we walk down the street until we find Station House Cafe.
This restaurant is not as casual as I was hoping, but today is Sunday brunch which sounds perfect for us. It’s just after 10:00AM and we have plenty of time, so we head inside to find a table. A hostess seats us and we find some things we want on the menu. I order the Hangtown Fry which is an omelet with local oysters and bacon. Nearby Tomales Bay is known for their oysters.
Instead of a kids meal, we order the French toast for our daughter. We figure we can share. And Becky gets the corned beef hash. Both of our dishes came with greens tossed in a light vinaigrette which is surprisingly good. My omelet is large with some fried oysters and chunks of bacon. I felt it needed some sauce or cheese to bring it together, but I tried something new. However, the French toast was covered in fresh strawberries and powdered sugar and big enough for everyone to enjoy. Though this restaurant is a little pricey, we leave full and ready to explore the park.
Driving to Chimney Rock
It’s a 35 minute drive from Point Reyes Station to the Chimney Rock area we want to explore first. And after leaving the small town, the landscape turns into the grasslands we saw in the park yesterday. After crossing a small bridge, we turn onto the same park road that took us to Drakes Beach yesterday. But this time we continue past it, and soon after I spot something on the side of the road.
This time I am sure it’s a coyote. It’s walking parallel to us and we get a great view of it. And Becky is able to take some photos of it as we drive past it. We continue on the road and we’re starting to see the Pacific Ocean in the distance. We make the turn toward Chimney Rock down a one way road. And just before we get to the parking lot, something else walks across the street in front of us.
It’s a black-tailed deer, a subspecies of mule deer that live along the Pacific Coast. Excited to see wildlife just on the drive here, we are even more excited to explore this area. And it’s still before noon and we have over an hour before we need to get to the Point Reyes Lighthouse. There are vault toilets here for a quick pit stop. And afterwards, we want to check out the Elephant Seal Overlook first.
Elephant Seal Overlook
It is windy today and we’re glad we brought our jackets. After layering up, we walk down a road with a sign that points left to the overlook. And the 0.2 mile trail starts near the shoreline.
Already getting great views, we continue on the paved path that follows the shoreline. Though it’s really windy today, it’s a short 5 minute walk to the overlook. Though we didn’t pass anyone on the trail, there are multiple people at the overlook when we arrive.
The elephant seal pupping season is over here or normally there would be hundreds on the shore below. But one of the others here tells us we can spot a sea otter. Though it’s hard to see from this distance, we can definitely see it moving in the water below.
And we see some seals swimming in the water, too. Though they look like harbor seals which may have moved in after the elephant seals moved on. You never know what you’ll see in Point Reyes.
Before we leave the overlook, someone offers to take our picture together. And after 10 minutes looking down at the protected cove below, we head back. While leaving, we see even more seals in the water.
Historic Lifeboat Station
As we’re getting closer to the parking lot, a truck drives down the road and stops in front of us. It’s a park ranger and tells us we should walk down to the historic lifeboat station on the other side. It’s too windy to try the Chimney Rock Trail today, so we decide to walk down to the lifeboat station instead.
The truck goes down the road before us, and as we walk down we see a white house. It’s a park residence and we think how cool it would be to live here. Past the road continues down to the lifeboat station.
Even though the Point Reyes Lighthouse was built to protect boats from the rocky shore, ships continued to wreck here. So the U.S. Life-Saving Service opened a station in the park in 1889. And in 1915, they combined with the U.S. Revenue Cutter Service to form the U.S. Coast Guard. In 1927 they built a new lifeboat station, which served here until 1969. You can read more about its history at: Lifeboat Station History at Point Reyes.
Though the station is closed today, it does open to public sometimes. So check with the park service. Behind the station appears to be a dock with a hundred birds on it. But it was actually a pier built to launch their lifeboats into the water. Just past the pier, the shoreline ends at Chimney Rock above, so we turn around and head back. The walk to the station and back takes us less than 25 minutes.
Parking and Walk to Lighthouse Visitor Center
Back at the parking lot, we see more black-tailed deer. But it’s about 12:45PM, so we get in our car to drive to the Point Reyes Lighthouse. It’s only a 5 minute drive, and when we pull into the parking lot it is busy. But luckily we find a spot right up front. I say this because others were turned away after us, so plan accordingly. There are also restrooms here, but we walk across the street to an overlook.
At the overlook, you can see Point Reyes Beach all the way down the coast. A sign here says you can even spot whales on a clear day. However it’s pretty rough and all we can see are white caps. Though it’s a great view here, we still have to walk a 1/2 mile to the lighthouse.
The walk is actually a road that parallels the coast with great views of the beach behind us. And we spot something we weren’t expecting up here. On the right side of the road is some brush along the bluff to the ocean. And walking through the brush is another coyote looking for food. It doesn’t seem to mind us as we watch it for a few minutes. And the road is much higher so we feel safe while still getting close views of it.
It takes us about 10 minutes until we reach some green buildings. We see a sign for restrooms to the left, but we pass another park residence on the way to the visitor center.
Point Reyes Lighthouse Visitor Center
We make it to the Point Reyes Lighthouse Visitor Center with over 5 minutes before 1:30PM. We couldn’t have timed it better. But unfortunately, we find out something else we weren’t expecting.
Once we walk in, Becky finds the passport stamp for her book on a counter in front of some park rangers. While she is stamping it, I ask if the lighthouse is open yet. But they inform us the stairs to the lighthouse are closed, because the wind is above 40 miles an hour. So, even though it is a clear day when the lighthouse would be open, we can’t even walk to it.
Bummed, we look around the small visitor center. It has a few exhibits and a very small store. But it is also connected to the Ocean Exploration Center. There is some interesting things here, but we still want to see the lighthouse in person. So, we walk outside to the lighthouse overlook.
Point Reyes Lighthouse Overlook
As I walk outside, I look over the fence at the ocean. Some guys beside me say they spotted a whale, but all I see are the rough waves. Once Becky comes out, we walk around to the overlook.
There’s a locked fence to the 300 stairs that descend to the lighthouse. Though it wouldn’t be bad walking down, you’d have to walk back up. So, at least we don’t have to do that. And right next to it is the fenced overlook providing great views of the lighthouse and surrounding ocean.
While at the overlook, others say they spot whales right behind the lighthouse. So, Becky starts recording a video while I continue to look closer. If it was a calm day, I’m sure it would be easier to spot a whale. But I can’t see anything. However, Becky spots something breaching the water in her video. She swears it must be a whale, so I’m going with that…
We head back into the visitor center where I learn this is the windiest and foggiest place on the West Coast. It averages 200 foggy days per year, and 14 days a month with winds over 40 MPH. So, you would have to be really lucky to visit the lighthouse at all. Though the views are spectacular and the coyote was still there on the way back. We make it back to the parking lot by 2:15PM, and decide to use the restrooms here before our next stop. There is one more place we want to visit.
Sea Lion Overlook
Just down the road from the Point Reyes Lighthouse is the Sea Lion Overlook. There’s just a small pullover area to park, and from here you have to walk down to the overlook. And while walking down we are greeted with more amazing views.
But wait, what is that lying on the side there? It’s another deer and this time it looks like a young buck. I think we woke him up from a nap as he gets up and starts to move around.
But we came here to see sea lions, but where are they? As we walk to the bottom of the overlook, we can start to hear them. And though we saw lots of California seals at Pier 39 the other day, we hope to see some more.
As the deer walks down toward the shore, we spot the sea lions on some rocks below. There must be a dozen or so. And unlike at Pier 39, there are many with lighter coats. A sign here tells us they are Steller sea lions that often spotted here with the California sea lions. Just more amazing wildlife in Point Reyes. After the 10 minute stop, we head back to our car. And though it’s still early afternoon, we head back to San Francisco to make it in time for dinner.
Summary
Today we spent a half day in Point Reyes National Seashore. After stopping for brunch in Point Reyes Station, we entered the park and headed to the coast. We first went to the Chimney Rock area and walked to the Elephant Seal Overlook. And afterwards we walked to the historic lifeboat station before heading to the lighthouse. The walk to the lighthouse had amazing views, but unfortunately it was too windy to descend to the Point Reyes Lighthouse. Though we got great views of it from the Lighthouse Overlook. And then we went to the Sea Lion Overlook before leaving the park. The views here are absolutely amazing, but we didn’t expect the amount of diverse wildlife. We saw coyotes, deer, a sea otter, seals, sea lions and possibly a whale! What an amazing park!
If you want to see some videos of some of the amazing wildlife we saw, check out our Instagram @workingfamilytravels!