Pt. Reyes loop has history and nature
When temperatures rise inland, it’s time to head to the coast. This 4.3-mile loop at
Point Reyes incorporates both history and nature as it passes the site of a World War II infantry camp, now an environmental education center.
Starting from the Laguna parking, just past the ranger house, turn left on Laguna Trail toward the Clem Miller Environmental Education Center. Clement Woodnutt Miller served in the U.S. Congress from 1959 until his untimely death in an airplane accident in October 1962. He wrote and introduced the bill that established the Point Reyes National Seashore in 1962, just 25 days before his death. The Clem Miller Environmental Education Center was named to honor his untiring efforts to create the national seashore. He is buried on a bluff overlooking the ocean.
The center was built at the site of a World War II Army camp. The Army leased land from Leland Murphy in 1940. Members of the United States 30th Infantry built barracks and installed gun emplacements in the hills overlooking Drakes Bay. The
30th Infantry was later sent to France, arriving five days after D-Day. When the war was over, Murphy sold the ranch to Robert Marshall who continued ranching until 1955. Marshall died in 1962, and his son sold the ranch to the National Park Service in 1971. The last of the Quonset huts was torn down in 1986.
This time of year, the area would usually be bustling with enthusiastic campers, but when I was there, I only saw a lone bobcat that looked at me as though I was trespassing. Continue on Laguna Trail through the meadow and uphill. Be sure to keep an eye out for some amazing wood rat dwellings.
Be sure to keep an eye out for some amazing wood rat dwellings. There is one on the left that is the largest I know of in Marin, so
I like to call it the “Taj Mahal.”
There is one on the left that is the largest I know of in Marin, so I like to call it the “Taj Mahal.”
Dusky-footed wood rat females nest on the ground, while males nest in trees. The females will hand the nest down to a daughter that will add to the nest, which may grow bigger with each generation. Inside the nests are separate chambers, used for storing food, a nursery for the young and sleeping. Wood rats have discovered that bay leaves deter insects, and use the leaves to repel fleas and other parasites. You are unlikely to see any of the wood rats, as they forage at night for seeds, leaves and fruits. Some of their favorites that you will see in the area are coffeeberry and poison oak.
At the only junction, turn left, go half a mile, cross the paved Limantour Road you drove in on and arrive at the Bayview parking area. Take Bayview Trail downhill 1.6 miles, and after the junction with Drakes View, stay on it for another half a mile to get to the Muddy Hollow Trailhead. This is the best section for nibbling your way along. I always feel a bit like a bear as I snack on thimbleberries, huckleberries, currants and blackberries along the trail. It is legal to collect up to 2 quarts a day, but I usually just pop a few in my mouth as I pass by. Of course, never eat any berry you are unsure of. The area also has red elderberries, which are toxic raw, and coffeeberries, which in their current unripe state are red. They are a strong laxative.
Take the paved road back to the parking lot, noting on the way the Point Reyes Hostel, which was the main ranch house decades ago.
Take Sir Francis Drake Boulvard to Olema and turn right on Highway 1. In about 100 yards, turn left turn on Bear Valley Road. Continue for approximately 1.3 miles, then turn left onto Limantour Road. Turn left at the sign for the hostel. Go past the hostel and turn right, going over a bridge, to park in the lot.