- Restaurants |
- Nightlife |
- Shopping |
- Movies |
- All
Abbots Lagoon
Categories: Active Life Swimming Pools Active Life Beaches Swimming Pools, Beaches [Edit]
Point Reyes National SeashoreInverness, CA 94937
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
2 reviews for Abbots Lagoon
2 reviews in English
-
Review from Alec W.
Marin County, CA
3/6/2010 1 photo
If you like bird watching, beaches, headlands, great photo opportunities, a hike for the kids and do not mind the drive, this is the hike for you. This hike is very beautiful. It is also another one of those many "desolate" Point Reyes hikes I talk about that people are coming to more and more. The people themselves are fine and they mostly are friendly locals like myself. This hike combines the beach habitat with a healthy lagoon and headlands habitat. I would have given this hike five stars but when I hiked there, hoards of bugs attacked me. I can handle some bugs but swarms of them for half of the hike is another story. Without the bugs, this hike is magnificant so I would recommend it on a clear winter day or on a day with some fog in the summer (it may have more people then.)
Directions: From 101, go on Sir Francis Drake into West Marin until you reach Route 1. Go up it until Sir Francis Drake Blvd picks up again. After Inverness, Pierce Point Rd branches off to the right. Take it and soon, you will see the Abbots Lagoon parking lot to your left.
The hike: Begin by walking onto a flat trail surrounding by coastal scrub and grassland. This is the Point Reyes headlands and the terrain stays the same until the hike nears its end. Expect to see some cows grazing nearby. Along the way, there are observation signs describing the cultural and ecological history of the area. As long as the bugs do not visit, you should be happily snapping away with the camera. You will know the hike is ending soon once you hit the lagoon and the bridge. Immediately, you will enter an almost pristine dune habitat. Remember to walk on the designated trail because this habitat could easily fall apart with human disturbance.
Then you will reach the beach. The views from it are wonderful and you can see both up and down the coast. This is a fantastic place to watch seabirds because they are so numerous. Also, snowy plover nest here and they are an endangered species so let's hope their nests expand. Remember not to enter the roped off areas. The hike to the beach is a 3 mile round trip. When you are here, you will say, "So this is California 200 years ago." You can continue walking along the beach for more views and more relaxation. This is an out and back hike so you can turn around anytime you like.
There is an option of walking up to Kehoe Beach, walking to the road and then south along the road back to the Abbots Lagoon trailhead. It is more than 8 miles long and people tend to drive fast on Pierce Point Rd.
A few last words: Check the tide tables if you plan to take a long walk on the beach. Also, DO NOT turn your back on the ocean because people have vanished along this wild coastline with large rip currents. My friends tell me this is a great place for animal tracks. Also remember not to leave your trash here. I know it's just one can but if everyone said that too, would the beach and area look clean and pristine? I think not.Listed in: So You want to Hike Marin?, Marin Beaches
-
Review from Michelle S.
Oakland, CA
7/1/2009
I want to hate this place because it was where the now-famous former Mr. Urban Socialite kissed me for the first time last year, right by the ocean. But now I hate him. But it's not Pt. Reyes' fault that he sucks. It is the perfect place to do just that.
The hike is just challenging enough to work out a little so that you won't look totally fugly and disguisting when you're finished. The terrain is mixed, yet mostly sand. And, when you've had enough, you can take a break sitting by the ocean for a while. Which we did. And it was beautiful. I regret the relationship; I don't regret the hike.
So, rip off my dream and have your own "happily ever after" here.Listed in: Come Out and Play!
