The Point Reyes Lighthouse
(Schedule of Visiting at the end of the page)

The path going up is short.  But we’ll  work up a sweat on the way back.  There are 308 steps leading down to the lighthouse! There are signs everywhere screaming at us not to venture onto the cliffs.  HAZARDOUS!  KEEP OFF!  

But look how beautiful it is — the ocean is blue and no fog to hinder the view.  We practically run down the stairs.  

There’s a hush at the bottom.  People are walking quietly around, sitting on wooden benches having sandwiches, speaking softly to one another, looking through the telescope.  Everyone is polite and considerate. see 

See the Photo Album for more lighthouse pictures

Yet there’s a romance, too.   So cozy, so secluded, the perfect place to get in touch with life’s higher meaning and thoughts we don’t normally have time to acknowledge.  

We take deep breaths; the cold wind feels right now.  It flushes away the daily reality and draws the power from the ocean to us.  How can I hold onto this feeling, I think. 

Our mini escape is over; time to haul back up those steps.  Landings with benches have been placed every few steps for those of us who can’t do it all at once.  We’re hoping we can.  Surely our daily trek up 16 flights of stairs to our apartment in the Mile High City will pay rewards.  Nope, can’t do it. 

On the landing we meet another couple about our age and ask them our  trip question, "What makes a trip memorable for you?"   They are from Philadelphia and their getaway to California has been pure eye candy.  Unlike some couples, they have the same answer. 

 (They don’t say anything about the bovines).  

Dub makes it all the way up to the top from here, but I have to rest again. I notice the Philadelphia couple make it up too.  I’m not happy about that.  Philadelphia is practically at sea level! Back in the car, we check the map because we don’t want to miss Johnson’s Drakes Bay Oyster Farm.

Schedule of Visiting
The lighthouse is closed on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. On other days, it opens at 10 a.m. and closes at 4:30 p.m. although the rest of the lighthouse station remains open until 5 p.m.

Information on weather at the lighthouse
415 669-1534.

Directions
To reach the Point Reyes Lighthouse from Highway 1, head west on Bear Valley Road from Olema or west on Sir Francis Drake Boulevard from Point Reyes Station. In Point Reyes Station, the turnoff from Highway 1 is located at the Green Bridge on the south end of town. The driving time from Point Reyes Station or Olema is about 40 minutes.

TIPS
Whenever possible, visit the Point Reyes Lighthouse on weekdays to avoid weekend crowds.

There are more than 300 stairs between the observation platform at the lighthouse station and the actual lighthouse below. Walking back up again is equivalent to walking up the stairs of a 30-story building.

Back on the road...