Today was my last full day of getting to be with my daughter before returning to work from my maternity leave. To make the most of the day, we fulfilled an item on my bucket list: to get dessert at the Ritz-Carlton in Half Moon Bay. Before getting dessert, we walked along the public-access coastside trail, which can be accessed for free from the hotel.
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This was a return visit for me to Lands End, part of Golden Gate National Recreation Area. Last time I was here, I walked along the Coastal Trail to the Eagles Point Overlook and back. This time, my friends and I walked past Mile Rock Overlook to Mile Rock Beach and Lands End Point and back. Then we explored the ruins of the Sutro Baths and had lunch at the Cliff House.
Mori Point is part of Golden Gate National Recreation Area in the town of Pacifica, next to Sharp Park. It has a 0.5-mile handicapped-accessible trail to the bluffs overlooking the black sands of Sharp Park Beach but there are also more challenging trails the climb up to the peaks of the ridges that form Mori Point.
I've written about the Pillar Point Bluff and the Fitzgerald Marine Reserve before, but that blog post was mostly about the trails along the bluffs. We had the good luck to visit the Moss Beach marine reserve at low tide recently, and we were treated to anchovies, anemones, and harbor seals among other things!
One of my dear friends just had a milestone birthday, and she celebrated by throwing a weekend-long birthday extravaganza in beautiful Mendocino, CA. She and her extended family stayed at Spring Ranch in nearby Little River, which abuts part of the property now owned by Van Damme State Park. My husband and I stayed at the JD House in Mendocino, where we were within walking distance to both great food (such as at the Trillium Cafe) and picturesque Mendocino Headlands State Park. The lede photo shows the coastline from Mendocino Headlands State Park. See photos from the town of Mendocino (with its many water towers) after the jump.
Glass Beach is technically part of MacKerricher State Park, but it's actually easier to access the main beach from Noyo Heandlands Park in the city of Fort Bragg, CA. If you want to hike up to 10 miles (5 miles and back) then you can check out the new Coastal Trail, which also connects to additional trails in MacKerricher.
This one-mile stretch of beach near where the Carmel River empties into the ocean has a few nicknames. One is "Monastery Beach," for the Carmelite Monastery across the highway. The other is "Mortuary Beach," because so many people have died here.
The steeply sloping beach and a deep shore trough cause waves to break literally on the shore (rather than a dozen yards out like on most sandy beaches). The waves can knock unsuspecting visitors down and then, as they attempt to regain their feet, repeatedly knock them down again, dragging them into the ocean. (Source) The State Beach is very accessible to the public from CA Highway 1, but there is no trail other than to walk along the beach. If you do opt to walk along the beach, be careful; keep a safe distance from the water, and do not turn your back to the ocean. My husband and I recently had our 8th wedding anniversary, and to celebrate it we stayed at the Sanctuary Beach Resort in Marina, CA. This hotel is right on the beach in the Marina Dunes Natural Preserve and the property abuts Marina State Beach, just a few miles north of the city of Monterey. We had a particularly rainy anniversary weekend, but luckily the sun came out long enough for a hike along the state beach. The wind was pretty spectacular--you could easily see how these large dunes came to stand so tall!
Lands End is one of the many lovely parks that is incorporated into Golden Gate National Recreation Area. This national park is broken into smaller campuses that are all over the San Francisco Peninsula and Marin County. This out-and-back hike is about 3 miles (~1.5 miles each direction). You can start from the Lands End Parking lot (680 Point Lobos Ave, San Francisco, CA 94121). Jane Huber, the author of the blog Bay Area Hiker, has a really nice write-up of the hike here, and the department of tourism has a gorgeous photo spread here, along with some information about the nearby historic site of the Sutro Baths ruins. See a map and some more photos after the jump.
This was a return visit to Devil's Slide, a trail maintained by San Mateo County Parks. Another great trip!
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