SUNDAY DRIVE

Petaluma River

What you’ll see: Black Point is your launch point to the Petaluma River and miles of waterways and wetlands in the North Bay, the Napa-Sonoma Marsh and the San Pablo Bay Wildlife Area. No boat? Black Point and the mouth of the Petaluma River have picnic sites with water views, plus good access for shorefishing and birdwatching.

Location: The 2-acre site is on the Petaluma River near its entrance to San Pablo Bay, below the Highway 37 bridge.

Boat: By kayak or powerboat, you can venture upstream and quickly find solitude and excellent long-distance views and bird sightings. When the wind is down, stand-up paddleboards, canoes, just about anything, can provide the same.

Tidal timing: For the mouth of the Petaluma River, add 1 hour, 22 minutes to the tide charts for San Francisco. On Sunday, a high tide of 5.6 feet arrives at 6:20 p.m. at the Golden Gate. That means Sunday evening out of Black Point up the Petaluma River would make a great sunset paddle, with the top of the tide at 7:42 p.m.

Magic carpet ride: Time your trip to allow an incoming tide to ease your way upstream into the Petaluma River. Let the tide top out, have a picnic on your boat, then return on an outgoing tide.

Beware the low tides: Boat and fish out of Black Point during incoming tides, high tides and start of outgoing tides. Do not boat on low tides. If you venture into the tidal sloughs of the wildlife area during a minus low tide, you can get stuck in the mud for hours (until the high tide returns).

Fish: The mouth of the river is one of the better spots for fishing from both shoreline and boats. The best bet through the summer is to use bait, such as grass shrimp (or live shiner perch) for striped bass and fish at the top of the tide and the start of the outgoing tide. Loch Lomond Live Bait, San Rafael, (415) 456-0321.

Birdwatching: Bird watching is exceptional year-round for shorebirds. The San Pablo Bay Wildlife Area covers 11,000 acres from the mouth of the river to Gallinas Creek, best accessed by boat, of course.

Facilities: Restrooms, boat launch with dock, fish-cleaning station.

Dogs: Leashed dogs are permitted (6-foot leash limit), and dog owners must clean up and remove waste. Cost: $5 per vehicle.

Free days: Entry, boat launching and parking are free (at all Marin County parks) on the first Saturday of the month: Aug. 5, Sept. 2, Oct. 7, Nov. 4, Dec. 2.

Contacts: Black Point Boat Launch, Marin County Parks (415) 499-6387, www.marincountyparks.org; San Pablo Bay Wildlife Area, Department of Fish and Game, (707) 944-5500, www.dfg.ca.gov; kayak rentals, Clavey Paddlesports, Petaluma, (707) 766-8070, www.clavey.com/rentals.