Secret Beach – Point Reyes

Part III of the Point Reyes photo adventure is Secret Beach, a hidden gem along the remote coastline of the southern district of Point Reyes National Seashore. This marvelous stretch of sand amid rugged cliffs and bluffs is only accessible at low tide (either negative or close to negative). One must walk through a small arch (the “door”) at the south end of Sculptured Beach. This arch is notable in itself with bountiful mussels clinging to its rocks and other sea creatures like anemones and sea stars. While the coastal trail travels in parallel above the beach, the steep cliffs and brush essentially preclude alternative access so be mindful of the tides and plan your entry and exit accordingly. Secret Beach is about one mile long and terminates at the cliffs of Point Resistance to the south. The highlight of the beach is a capacious amphitheater accessed by a narrow tunnel (the “blow hole”) just past the entrance to the beach. This remarkable and unique natural phenomenon is a nearly perfect spherical amphitheater with colossal vertical cliffs and curvature sculpted by erosive processes. The golden cliffs juxtaposed with the shaded floor of this natural bowl is striking. The entry to the amphitheater varies depending on the level of sand and can sometimes be a crawl, but on this day it was fairly wide. Several hawks circled above the bowl adding to its mystique. Other highlights of Secret Beach include a small waterfall bouncing off a cliff and an aesthetic arch extending from Point Resistance into the Ocean at the south end. A few of my favorite photos from Secret Beach and a short video clip of the amphitheater are below with a complete photo album here.

• Part I – Kelham Beach & Arch Rock
• Part II – Sculptured Beach

Complete album here.

Sculptured Beach – Point Reyes

Following up on the Kelham Beach & Arch Rock post, Part II of the Point Reyes photo adventure is aptly named Sculptured Beach, with its namesake rock formations providing ample opportunity for exploration, inspiration, and natural beauty. There are several arches and bountiful sea creatures clinging to the rocks including mussels, anemones, and starfish making this an excellent spot for tide pooling in low tide (photos in a later post). The immense golden bluffs above the beach have been chiseled by the erosive processes over the millenia creating a stunning background. Since this beach requires a hike to reach, it is rarely crowded.  Here are some photos from this trip to the Sculptured Beach with the complete album here.

Complete album here. 

Kelham Beach & Arch Rock – Point Reyes

As part of a day spent exploring some new spots in Point Reyes National Seashore, I enjoyed a gorgeous afternoon walk along Kelham Beach to Arch Rock and then beyond to an overlook of Wildcat Beach. Here are some of my favorite photos from this part of the day with the complete album here. More to come from Point Reyes, including Sculptured Beach, Secret Beach, and tidepooling!

Complete album here. 

Pfeiffer Beach

Magnificent and unspoiled Pfeiffer Beach has a little bit of everything: an expansive sandy beach, rugged bluffs, huge rock formations with “windows”, tide pooling in low tide, and my favorite aspect, unique purple patches of sand! Since the beach has a western aspect, the location makes for glorious sunsets, especially as a setting sun peeks through the “windows” in the dramatic rock formations. I could stay here for hours exploring the various parts of this beach and watching the waves crash into the rocks and through the arches. The purple sand is indeed purple to magenta and striking on a sunny day when contrasted with the blue ocean waters and surrounding rocks. The distinctive purple coloration is due to manganese garnet particles found in surrounding rocks, and it is most apparent toward the north end of the beach. Complete photo album here and more details below. Bring your camera!

Pfeiffer Beach is managed by the Forest Service and includes a fairly large parking area, but it often fills to capacity on warm summer afternoons in the weekend with no additional parking. The access road is virtually impossible to find unless you know where you’re going. The turnoff is inconspicuous, but it’s 1/4 mile to the north of the Big Sur Post Office and Bakery. The 2 mile one-lane road down Sycamore Canyon is windy and requires caution (15 mph speed limit), but the beach is well worth the efforts. The beach is fairly exposed along the coast so it can be windy and chilly so come prepared. This is also not a place to take a swim as there are severe currents, high and unpredictable surf, and cold Pacific Ocean water. I will definitely be returning to Pfeiffer Beach for further exploration and sunset viewing! Complete photo album here.

Jah Beach and Ship Rock

Just north of Bonny Doon is another unmarked beach known as Jah Beach. The setting of this beach is truly inspiring with towering cliffs and appropriately named Ship Rock thrusting from the sea in the narrow and rugged cove.  This beach also contains a steep descent to reach it’s sandy shores. In addition, there is a sea cave with outlet into an even smaller cove and views of a smaller rock next to Ship Rock that looks like a submarine. The aesthetic placement of the cliffs, rocks, and beach makes for some amazing photography opportunities. 

Panther Beach & Hole in the Wall

North of Santa Cruz near the outpost of Davenport is a stretch of rugged coastline with rocky cliffs, sea stacks, and unique marine terraces interspersed with golden sandy beaches.  Panther Beach and Hole in the Wall Beach are two of these stunning beaches. Both are located just south of Bonny Doon Road and accessed from the same point. The parking area is not marked along the road and very easy to pass. If you’re traveling from the south and you reach Bonny Doon Road and the parking for Bonny Doon Beach, you’ve driven too far. The parking area is actually an elongated gravel strip by the old railroad tracks that is often potholed. 

Once parked, the descent to the beach on foot can be tricky in flip flops as it’s steep and rocky in spots. The extra effort to get here is well worth the effort as Panther Beach is beautifully situated among the cliffs. At the south end of the beach is a rock formation with an arch, known as the Hole in the Wall, that leads to its namesake beach. The only way to access Hole in the Wall Beach is through this arch and one must be mindful of the tides as this entry point can become inaccessible in high tides. Hole in the Wall Beach is equally gorgeous with several sandy alcoves and a distinctive golden hue to the rock walls.  At the far south end of the beach is an impressive sea stack with a large area of rock terraces for exploration in low tides. Look for Jah Beach and Ship Rock in the next post. Here are some photos with the complete album here.

Complete album here.

Pigeon Point Sunset

Pigeon Point Light Station, built in 1871, is the tallest lighthouse on the West Coast of the United States standing 115 ft tall. It is located a few miles south of Pescadero on a rocky promontory with gorgeous views of the surrounding coastline and Pacific Ocean. The lighthouse is currently undergoing restoration to preserve this important heritage site. I have driven by Pigeon Point several times on the way to various trails in the area including fantastic running in nearby Butano State Park and Big Basin State Park via Waddell Beach. After a nice run, I stopped to enjoy a marvelous sunset on the cliffs near the lighthouse. Some of my favorite photos are below with more here.

Many more photos here. 

Sonoma Coast and Kortum Trail

A magnificent stretch of rugged coastline is protected by Sonoma Coast State Beach. The northern portion of the coast features a spectacular hike along the Kortum Trail. Highway 1 is never far away and there are numerous access points and parking lots along the trail, but the hike is situated right above the bluffs providing close views of this wild stretch of coastline that is otherwise not visible. The rugged rock formations and spectacular sandy beaches are breathtaking and make this one of my favorite stretches of California coastline. In all, you can piece together about 3.5 miles of easy trail (7 miles as an out-and-back). In particular, Furlong Beach, featured heavily below, is one of the most striking beaches I have seen. I will surely be back here to explore other portions of the Sonoma coastline. Here are some photos from two trips, one during the day and one for evening light, with the complete photo albums here and here.

Complete photo album here.

2011 Adventure Run Recap

2011 was another great year for adventure running with lots of trips to the High Sierra and a couple in the North Cascades of Washington State. It was great to venture into some of the most remote regions in both ranges and see terrain I have never seen. I’m already looking forward to adventures in 2012 but here are some photos and links to full reports from the adventures of this past year. See 2010 recap here.

1. Cone Peak “Sea to Sky” - January 29th: Second annual trip from the Big Sur Coast up to 5,155 ft Cone Peak with spectacular views and a redwood canyon. I’ve dreamed of doing this run when there is fresh snow atop Cone Peak so we’ll see if I can get lucky with timing this year. 
2. Winter Alta Peak – January 31st: Amazing views of the Great Western Divide on this snowshoe trip out of Wolverton in Sequoia National Park. 
3. Bear Creek Spire & Mount Dade – July 3rd: My second visit to this lovely basin with picturesque alpine lakes and rugged alpine beauty. 
4. Mount Sill – July 4th: My second time up 14,159 ft Mount Sill, known as the best viewpoint in the High Sierra. The route features a crossing of the Palisade Glacier, largest body of ice remaining in the Sierra Nevada, surrounded by the towering walls of Mount Sill, North Palisade and Thunderbolt Peak. 
5. Mount Lyell & Mount Maclure – July 9th: Improved my time by 65 minutes to 8:50 roundtrip for the climb of these two peaks that are the roof of Yosemite!  
6. The Whaleback & Big Wet Meadows – July 23rd:  A 50 mile adventure run up Cloud Canyon and Big Wet Meadows to climb Whaleback, one of the most remote spots in the High Sierra. Incredible! 
7. Primus, Austera & Eldorado – July 30th: Colin Abercrombie and I toured the Eldroado Ice Cap climbing Primus Peak, Austera Peak and Eldorado along the way. We started at 2 am and finished at 5:40 pm for a 15:40 day. It has been since 2005 that we explored the ice cap towards Austera so it was nice to return to this scenically stellar region and explore a new area beyond Austera to the North Klawatti Glacier and Primus Peak.
8. West McMillan Spire – August 1st: Awesome climb of this impressive summit in the Southern Pickets in a new FKT of 8:14 roundtrip.  
9. Northern Yosemite 50 Mile Loop – August 6th: An “instant classic” adventure run of a 50+ mile loop in the remote Northern Yosemite region beginning at Twin Lakes, and including five passes, the Benson Lake riviera and a summit of Volunteer Peak. I’ll definitely be returning to do this one again! 
10. Milestone & Midway – September 3rd: An adventure run to climb Milestone Mountain (13,641 ft) and Midway Mountain (13,666 ft) along the Great Western Divide, two of the most remote points in the High Sierra. Milestone Creek and Basin are exceptionally scenic with lovely alpine lakes and tarns, polished granite, and the towering peaks of the Great Western Divide.  
11. TRT-Flume Trail 27 Mile Loop – September 10th: Great 27+ mile loop in the northeast part of Lake Tahoe with nice trails and awesome views. 
12. Eagle Scout Peak & Kaweah Gap – September 25th: An adventure run to Eagle Scout Peak via Kaweah Gap in 9:38 roundtrip from Crescent Meadows. Eagle Scout Peak is located just south of Kaweah Gap along the Great Western Divide in a remote region of Sequoia National Park. The climb of the 12,000 ft peak entails over 45 miles roundtrip and 8,000+ ft of elevation gain. While it’s a long way just to Kaweah Gap along the High Sierra Trail (21 miles from Crescent Meadow), the scenery is phenomenal and well worth the effort. The sapphire blue of Hamilton Lakes and the towering granite walls of Angel Wings and the Valhallas are truly magnificent.  
13. Mount Dana – October 16th: A quick climb up this summit near Tioga Pass for early morning light on freshly snow covered peaks of the Yosemite high country. 
14. Vogelsang Peak – October 16th: The afternoon part after Mount Dana was a climb of Vogelsang, with great trails and nice views. 
15. Mount Conness via Young Lakes – October 23rd: Another spectacular fall day in the Sierras with an extremely scenic and pleasant climb of Mount Conness via Young Lakes. The route we took is one of the longer approaches to the mountain, but the views of Tuolumne Meadows and gorgeous Young Lakes along the way more than compensated. I did not have any expectations for Young Lakes but they turned out to be one of the highlights of the day and we spent considerable time at the main lower lake both on the trek in and on the way out. New snow on the surrounding cliffs of the Young Lakes cirque added to the beauty and this is a place I will definitely be returning to explore.
16. Mount McDuffie & Ladder Lake – October 30th: My favorite adventure run of the year, Ladder Lake along the way to Mount McDuffie is one of the most rugged and wild corners of the High Sierra that I have seen. While the ascent of Mount McDuffie might not be the most aesthetic, the summit provides a magnificent vantage of most of the Palisades, the Ionian Basin, and Le Conte Canyon

Point Reyes Scenes

A few of my favorite photos from a recent run at Point Reyes National Seashore. It has been a couple years since I did this particular route and it was just as good as I remembered it. Highlights include Mount Wittenberg, Woodward Valley, Sculptured Beach, Kelham Beach, Arch Rock, Wildcat Beach and Alamere Falls; essentially all the highlights of the southern portion of Point Reyes. From my experience, late fall and winter are particularly good times to visit during good weather stretches with excellent clarity and little in the way of marine fog. Simply put, Point Reyes is awesome! Complete photo album here.

Complete photo album here.