Bear Valley Loop - Point Reyes - California, United States

Story: Fourth of July weekend and the crowds were out. But I immediately veered off to head up Mt. Wittenberg and lost nearly everyone. Only saw the occassional hiker after that. Great July weather -- which is to say foggy -- and perfect for a hike. Point Reyes always offers great sites and a lot of options. In this case I took Mt. Wittenberg to Sky Trail to Coast Trail and back up the very popular (i.e. crowded) Bear Valley Trail.

Saw two deer at close range and one beautiful quail protecting her newly hatched chicks. Also saw a lot of Springtime wildflowers.

Tips: There are a lot of options when hiking in Point Reyes. If you wanted to extend this one to about 14 miles you could take the Woodward Way trail which dumps out further North up the coast. If you don't mind crowds, check out Arch Rock which intersects the Bear Valley Trail at the ocean.

As always, bring layers in the Springtime -- you'll be hot on the way up, cold on the way down.

Tags: Olema, Inverness Park

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