Review: Billingham Hadley Digital camera bag
Sunday, 28 February 2009:
Eager to take advantage of a break in a series of welcome storms, Sarah & I headed to Point Reyes, and after a tasty breakfast at the Pine Cone Diner, we decided to hike the Bull Point Trail, one of few trails we have not yet hiked in this area.
10’ish miles down the road to the lighthouse, we came to the trailhead and started hiking at 11:30 under partly overcast skies.
Bull Point Trail
Cows grazed contentedly all around us; unlike hikes we’ve done in grazing areas in the east bay, these bovines were completely unconcerned with our presence, slowly moving out of our way as we approached.
An “Oreo” cow (thanks to SFKnitter on Flickr for the name!)
Turkey Vultures circled overhead, as they usually do in this region, and sparrows, mostly Song, with a couple of Savannah, chirped and flitted about in the brush.
Bull Point Trail
The “trail,” really more of a double-track rancher’s road, was close to pancake-flat, and we quickly make our way toward the waters of Drake’s Bay. A Northern Harrier flew low over the brush, then out of view, and American Crows hung around the cows.
A handsome Say’s Phoebe perched briefly on a bush before putting some distance between itself and us, and a single Common Merganser mingled with the American Coots and Canada Geese in the waters of the bay, just barely discernible through our binoculars.
Before too long we arrived at the trail’s end, a small beach with a half-dozen American Wigeons, who were none too pleased at our arrival. In the waters, many Western Grebes, Ruddy Ducks, Scaups, and a few Bufflehead and Eared Grebes floated placidly.
Drake’s Bay at Bull Point
We walked along the short beach, just a few hundred yards long, enjoying the lapping waters of the bay, and the views of Drake’s Head to our left, and the south tip of Point Reyes to our right.
Sand Patterns
After taking in our fill of the pretty surroundings, we headed back towards the trailhead. Another couple of hikers arrived as we left – they would be the only people we’d see on this hike.
Drake’s Bay
Somewhat surprisingly, given the early bounty of wildflowers on the previous weekend’s hike, there was nearly nothing blooming here. A Rosy Sandcrocus here, a couple of early Blue-eyed Grass there, a lone Pale Flax. Only the California Blackberries and Beach Strawberries were really evident.
Mama cow
Cows grazed and nursed, then grazed some more, as is their wont. The animals here are all dairy, much of the milk produced going to the Clover company, at least according to the signs attached to the dozen or so working dairy farms on the point.
Green and blue hiking
The skies blued up a bit, providing for some nice blue-and-green landscaping.
Calf #6135
There were a good many calves, most skittish than their elders, and very cute.
Bull Point Trail
Finally, at 1:40, we arrived back at the car and headed out. We decided to take the scenic way back, heading north on Hwy 1, in search of somewhere to get chowder.
Yummy chowder indeed
In Marshall, we found our place, The Marshall Store, a funky little restaurant and snack shop selling raw, smoked, and BBQ oysters (harvested from the waters of the bay on which the restaurant sits), as well as clam chowder and a few other dishes.
3 down, 3 to go!
I love oysters and was more than happy to order a half dozen. They were easily the freshest, most tasty oysters I have ever had. Firm, yet yielding, briny and sharp. I could easily have eaten another dozen! Their clam chowder was also very good, and Sarah & I quite enjoyed sitting at a spindle on their deck, looking out over the waters of Tomales Bay.
Marshall Harbor
A Pacific Loon and several Western Gulls swam in the waters, the gull chasing the oyster shells thrown into the waters. A patchwork of sun-bleached shells on the shore and just into the water belied a tradition of shell-tossing going back quite some time.
The Marshall Store
We left, reluctantly, but happy to have found a new favorite place for oysters & chowder in the area, and enjoyed a pretty drive east to Petaluma before the considerably busier and less-pretty final leg home on Hwy 101.
A lovely day overall to be sure. Bull Point would not be, by any means, my first suggestion for hiking to someone new to the area, but it was pleasant, and secluded, and our post-hike meal in Marshall was highly satisfying indeed!
Hike Stats:
Distance: 4.3mi
Climbing: 557′ (seems high)
Hiking time: 1h 45m
Stopped time: 23m
| Birds seen: | Wildflowers seen: |
|---|---|
Location: Pt. Reyes - Outer Observation date: 2/28/09 Number of species: 25 Canada Goose - Branta canadensis 5 American Wigeon - Anas americana 8 Greater/Lesser Scaup - Aythya marila/affinis 10 Bufflehead - Bucephala albeola 6 + Common Merganser - Mergus merganser 1 Ruddy Duck - Oxyura jamaicensis 5 + Pacific Loon - Gavia pacifica 2 + Eared Grebe - Podiceps nigricollis 5 Western Grebe - Aechmophorus occidentalis 25 Double-crested Cormorant - Phalacrocorax auritus 15 Great Egret - Ardea alba 3 Turkey Vulture - Cathartes aura 15 + Northern Harrier - Circus cyaneus 2 + Red-shouldered Hawk - Buteo lineatus 1 Red-tailed Hawk - Buteo jamaicensis 1 American Kestrel - Falco sparverius 3 Killdeer - Charadrius vociferus 2 Mourning Dove - Zenaida macroura 3 + Say's Phoebe - Sayornis saya 2 American Crow - Corvus brachyrhynchos 7 + Savannah Sparrow - Passerculus sandwichensis 5 Song Sparrow - Melospiza melodia 1 White-crowned Sparrow - Zonotrichia leucophrys 2 + Red-winged Blackbird - Agelaius phoeniceus 1 Brewer's Blackbird - Euphagus cyanocephalus 40 + = year bird (58 to date) This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org) |
- California Blackberry - Beach Strawberry - Rosy Sandcrocus - Pale Flax - Blue-eyed Grass - Redmaids - Doves-foot Geranium - Aster sp. |
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The skies were fascinating that day 🙂 Very nice!
I’ve only been to Point Reyes once, and didn’t have the time (or so I thought) to do the hike, but it looks nice. The ‘trail’ doesn’t look muddy despite it still being within the rainy season.
I was wondering if you could help me. I’m going up to the Bear Valley area last weekend of March. I was planning on either x-country skiing or snoeshoeing or both up by Lake Alpine. I googled for trails and such and came across your blog’s archives… images were gone. It indicated your family has a cabin up there. Anyway, what I was wondering is, if you knew what type of birds I might run across up there? I’ve x-countried before, but back then I didn’t notice birds. I don’t remember any animals either except for the husky I brought along 🙂
Hi Red,
There are many hikes to do in the Point Reyes area (I’d recommend others for your first, as some of them are quite spectacular!).
What post was missing images? Any of them should be working. Anyways, yes, we do have a cabin about 30min down from Bear Valley. Around Bear Valley & Lake Alpine, you’re probably not going to see a lot of birds until after the snow melts (May/June). Expect Ravens & Mountain Chickadees for sure. I’ve seen Horned Larks (once) on nearby Mt. Reba, but it was later in the season. Grouse are possible, I think, and last year we had a family of White-headed Woodpeckers nesting in a tree near the cabin. Oh, and Red-breasted Nuthatches and if you’re lucky, Black-headed Grosbeaks. And Steller’s Jays, of course.
While you’re in the area, if you have the time (just takes an hour or two), DEFINITELY stop by Calaveras Big Trees State Park and hike the (under 2-mile) North Grove Trail – the Giant Sequoias are very cool, and there aren’t many places you can see them. Calaveras Big Trees is about 4 miles east of the town of Arnold (the last town of any size on Hwy 4 heading toward Bear Valley). We usually hike the North Grove on our way home.
Have a great time – I love the area!
Hi Adam,
This was the link I found looking for inspiration point & lake alpine that was missing pics. I guess it was an old blog, not wordpress. (my faulty memory)
http://www.adampaul.com/hiking/inspirationpoint1102.shtml
I was sort-of thinking birds would be sparse with all the snow, but didn’t know for sure. Thank you so much for the hints!
I will definitely stop by Big Trees. I walked there with a friend who had a broken foot a few years ago in lieu of skiing. I love going up there with my friends, but don’t love the skiing or snowboarding so much. There were so many picturesque sights and this was pre-digital camera even! Must have been 2002 or 2003.
Thanks again!
D’oh, yes, that’s an old hike report, and I haven’t updated most of those to reflect a photo gallery move I did (embarrassingly, this move was several years ago!).
You can see photos & reports from the greater Hwy 4 corridor at:
http://www.adampaul.com/hiking/hwy4.shtml
(scroll down for Inspiration Point, but I think it would be hard to get to this time of year, especially if you’re not familiar with the trail, as its turnoff isn’t well-marked even when there’s no snow!)
Hi Adam!
Another lovely looking hike. Just need to find some time to check these out!
And you are most welcome for the “Oreo cows” (SFKnitter is my Flickr name). We used to see a big herd of these while checking out the bluebonnets in Brenham, TX.
If you can, get out to Point Reyes in the next 4-6 weeks – it’s just getting to wildflower time, and the flowers there can be great!
Nice to match your blog comment name to your Flickr name – I was wondering who SFKnitter might be 🙂
Super set of photos…
Especially liked the “Drake’s Bay at Bull Point” and “Sand Patterns”…
I’ve never hiked out to Bull Point, but I certainly have noticed that cow before — now I know what the sub-species — Oreo…
Thanks, Donald!
Thanks, Adam, for the suggestion! It won’t be next week, as we are heading back to Bear Valley to do one last ski, but hopefully soon. We’ve been trying to explore someplace new at least once a month, and sometimes we even manage to do it. Point Reyes is definitely on our list.
Ooh I’m jealous. Sarah & I hope to get in one more XC ski weekend, but it’s hard this time of year, when spring is in the bay area and the flowers are blooming!
My decision tree is skiing or strawberries? Strawberries meaning from my favorite farmer’s market vendor, not from the stores. 🙂
The skiing was great–spring skiing with icy mornings and slushy afternoons. The birds were making a racket, and we even had a coyote sighting while skiing! There were also lots of lovely wildflowers along the highway.
Skiing _then_ strawberries, I say!
Glad the skiing was good! We’re planning on going up on April 18th, but Bear Valley XC expects to close on the 12th, so no skiing for us until December’ish, but there’s no shortage of things to do in the area, so that’s just fine.
I’m not surprised they plan to close so soon. I was delayed in my weekend plans so I got up there Saturday evening and then hit Big Trees on Sunday after leisurely hanging with my friends Sunday morning. 3 of my friends went XC on Saturday and had the same experience as Vivienne. Down a little lower at our cabin and Big Trees, there was less snow on the ground than mud – about 40/60.
It was so nice there I camped Sunday night. It was chilly, but not bad enough to need a tent.