Hikepost_008 - Over the ocean and through the woods

This Thursday I wanted to go on a nice hike to the beach in Point Reyes so that's exactly what I did. I won't try to shoehorn this into any kind of narrative or story; enjoy some nice photos of the California coast in the springtime.

inside of a bus, passing another bus, on a road through coastal mountains

I hiked through the forest, up on the shelf above the coast, and finally down to Sculptured Beach. I made up my route as I went along, and got lucky that I happened to reach the beach during low-ish tide when some of the upper tidepools were exposed. I saw sea anemones (still so wild to me that I can see sea creatures on a hike, as someone who grew up hundreds of miles from the ocean), and something I've been wanting to see in person for a while: the alien-pod-looking egg case of a skate.

Another fortuitous bit of timing: I passed an older couple on the trail through the forest. They had a scope set up on a tripod, trained high up in a Coast Douglas-fir. "Would you like to see an osprey?"

I looked into the scope, and saw a massive nest made of large sticks, covered in bits of lichen. The head of an adult osprey was peeking out - white with brown flecks, alert gold eyes, and a very sharp beak.

The wildflowers were going to town; the forest was full of buttercups and forget-me-nots (whose name I couldn't remember and had to look up just now), and the open hills were covered in lupine, sticky monkey flower, and morning glories.

The forest

trees and an understory completely full of ferns

a fern over my hand, showing the small, intricate fronds

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The water was vibrating from a million water striders walking around

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The fern in the front with the branched fronds is apparently a northern maidenhair fern. This one must be a garden escapee; they're native to New England

Coastal Trail

hill covered in purple lupine and orange sticky monkey flower

a lupine bush and a thin dirt path overlooking the coast

pale pink morning glories and purple lupine

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scrub-covered hillside, full of burned trees — This part of Point Reyes was involved in an absolutely devastating wildfire a couple of decades ago, started accidentally by people camping where they weren't supposed to. Some areas were worse hit than others. I've watched the burn areas gradually recover over the past few years.

blackened tree in front of a bright green hillside

Sculptured Beach

rocky cliffside that's been sculpted by erosion

jagged stone cliffs on the beach, with plants growing on parts of them

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shimmering blue-green sea anemones in a tidepool — I believe these are Giant Green Anemones. I read a story once about a guy who's been feeding the same anemone here for decades. They can live to at least 100.

snails and other creatures in a tide pool

black h-shaped leathery looking object on the sand. it has frilly looking bits on the sides, and 4 points — This is the egg case of a skate, which is similar to a ray (although rays give live birth). They're nicknamed "mermaid's purses"This is the egg case of a skate, which is similar to a ray (although rays give live birth). They're nicknamed "mermaid's purses"

me petting a donkey, with another one approaching — When I go hiking via Inverness Park, I always pass these people's two burros. This time, I stared at them, willing them to come say hi. They did, and I got to pet their cute fuzzy heads.

bus through the countryside at golden hour