Point Reyes

Marin County, May 12, 2012:  We drove to Petaluma and then headed cross country toward Point Reyes National Seashore to visit the lighthouse (1870) on the point.  Amid cattle grazing in the hills, we came upon the The Cheese Factory of Rouge et Noir a/k/a Marin French Cheese, the oldest cheese manufacturer in the United States.  We stopped in to sample the cheese and ended upon buying ready-made sandwiches and sodas for an impromptu picnic overlooking their picturesque pond.  We had ham and brie and roast beef and brie, the latter on a wonderful seeded bread which we later tracked down to a Danish bakery in Santa Rosa.

 





 

The small town of Point Reyes Station was occupied by gangs of bicyclists and motorcyclists who cruise the byways along the shore and through the rural coastal valleys.

 

The national seashore is comprised of 13 working ranches with rolling pastures that have spectacular views of the Pacific.

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As one drives down the peninsula, the elevation increases.  At a small parking lot, there is a 4/10s of a mile uphill climb to the top of the promontory.  The pastures and promontory were filled with wildflower and wildlife.

Heracleum mantegazzianum a/k/a cow hogwood or cow parsley

California poppy

a thistle

 

Fog waxed and waned near the shore but the views were spectacular.

 Tule elk are among the species preserved at the seashore.

 

 

 

Monterez cypress

A raven

Ferns and lichen

 From the top of the point, 300 steps lead down to the lighthouse which sits on an outcropping.

Fresnel lens inside the lighthouse

The climb back