A Serene Day Trip to Point Reyes
Point Reyes provides a glorious combination of serenity, activity, and wildlife. Spend a day hiking it’s hills or shucking it’s oysters for a true escape from the San Francisco speed.
Tomales Point Tule Elk Reserve
The hike begins at Pierce Point Ranch. It’s a sweet, cute old barn with a bunch of houses, all painted in white. You’ll find plenty of parking and a restroom available near the beach trailhead. The Tomales Point Trailhead is situated just behind the white buildings. It’s a moderate hike, 10 miles round-trip. We made it 3 miles in to the watering hole for the Elk, then turned around.
Best explained by the National Park Service at this link, the art of elk watching boils down to not being overly curious and having a long camera lens. Obviously I lacked one the day of this photoshoot. Sometimes you’ll get lucky and the Elk graze closer to the trail.
Where to Dine
Cafe Reyes makes the best pizza, dare I say, in the entire Bay Area. Wood-fired pizza dough made from scratch, using 00 flour and a crazy-good starter, with local Marin ingredients for topping. Because we’re pseudo-vegetarians we order our pizza sans-cheese with mushrooms and spicy peppers.
Where to Shuck Oysters
Saltwater Oyster Depot became my favorite this past year, after visiting for a girlfriend’s bachelorette party. You’ll enjoy regional wines, sustainable oysters, and surprisingly witty entrées.
Hog Island Oyster Farm is the best known stop for oysters in the area, so don’t show up and plan for an oyster picnic without a reservation. The menu offers a variety of cheeses and breads, the standard ingredients to a fancy picnic basket, but I recommend bringing your own food to dress the Oysters. As standard we bring along a butter, herb, and spice mixture, as well as our favorite local breads for dipping.
