Welcome back to National Parks & other public lands with T! If you are seeing this on Twitter or Facebook, please visit the blog to see all of the photos and read the story by clicking the link.
The Point Reyes Lighthouse is in the westernmost section of Point Reyes National Seashore. There, you will find a visitor center with displays on the light’s history as well as the whales and other marine life that can be seen from the observation deck. My cousin and I were lucky enough to see Gray Whales migrating past the lighthouse one visit, many years ago.
As of this writing, the lighthouse, which was built in 1870, was closed for an extensive restoration which began in August of 2018. This section of the park was scheduled to reopen in December 2019, but if you are planning a visit, it’s best to check the NPS website. Or call… there have been two occasions when we showed up and found the lighthouse closed without announcement on the site.
To get from the parking lot to the visitor center, you must walk up a steep half-mile path. Then, to get to the lighthouse, you must descend 308 scary, steep steps. This is the equivalent of 25 stories, so remember, you will have to climb back up and there are no restrooms down below. We were glad to have made the trip as we spent some time speaking with the ranger inside the lighthouse and looking at the exhibits there.
Point Reyes Posts:
- Point Reyes National Seashore
- Point Reyes Lighthouse
- Tomales Point Trail
Location: 27000 Sir Francis Drake Blvd, Inverness, CA 94937
Designation: National Seashore
Date established/designated: September 13, 1962
Date of my visit: August 15, 2012
I love lighthouses!
I don’t think we went down all those stairs – just admired the view from above. I was surprised to learn all that beautiful ice plant isn’t native. I wonder if they plan to leave it anyway?
Perhaps not native, but perfectly adapted to the climate in Northern California…it’s everywhere out there
Beautiful
Thanks 😊
WOW! Looks unreal
Thanks 😊
I’ve had Point Reyes on my list to see for a long time and it’s only two hours from where I live. Maybe once the weather clears I’ll get out there.
It’s a lovely park. Hope the weather clears soon
Definitely take the stairs! Beautiful photos T!
Thanks 😊
Very scenic and serene.
I can sit out on the bluffs watching the ocean and sea life for hours. –Curt
Me too 😊
I grew up nearby in Sonoma County and don’t remember ever visiting this site. I look forward to it sometime in the future!
I’m pretty sure it’s not all that close to Sonoma. I have vague memories of going to Mendocino afterwards one trip. Hope you get there 😊
It would have been within an hour of Santa Rosa, where I grew up. We went to the area frequently, but I don’t remember the lighthouse. I hope to get there, too!
Hi there, I have some trouble in trying to ‘like’ your posts, and when trying to post a comment. I hit the icons but they don’t connect. Regards Vivienne (Artistry). Love reading them all.
I’ve noticed the same thing on other WordPress blogs. If I try to click through from an email, I’m not logged in and can’t like. Liking from within the reader is fine, but I have to specifically click through the word bubble to comment, can’t do it from the bottom of the post.weird
Love this beautiful place on earth even though we’re really never seen much of it. The one day we set aside to visit, think fog blanketed the area making it almost impossible to see anything, let alone all those stairs!!! Thx for posting!
Thanks for reading and commenting 😊
I love this place! It is quite a long walk down to it!
It sure is!