Saturday, July 9th - Tomales Point Hike
Greetings from the Red Leader,
SECOND DAY HIKE - 2005
Saturday, July 9th we arrived at A Whale Of A Deli in Point Reyes station about 6:30 am. We didn't see any hiker's cars. I fully expected to be the last one there. After a bit Donn and Inge drove in, followed by Jenine Wilson (87). Soon more cars arrived and we met our newest members, Anita Rajan, Pugal Kumarasamy and Adrienne Dimayuga. We were wondering if anyone else would show when Travis Swafford arrived. 7:00 had come and gone and we were getting ready to leave for the trail head when Gigi Henderson and Scott Tse walked out of the alley from behind the Deli. They had been 'stealth parked' behind the Deli, waiting there and wondering where everyone was. With eleven of us together at last, we caravaned west on Sir Francis Drake, through Inverness and on to the trail head at Upper Pierce Ranch. This hike was to be from Upper Pierce Ranch to Tomales Point, and back.
After a quick rest stop we got out maps and compasses and set the magnetic declination for the Tomales Quad. Then it was off into the fog. We stopped at Windy Gap for some map reading drill. It was so foggy that the compasses were only used for orientating our maps. We spent some time discussing contours and landforms. Then we trudged up into the fog again, north over the hill. The Tulle Elk were hanging at the pond south of Lower Pierce Ranch. The fog was still with us and the elk looked like ghosts. They soon moved away from us and disappeared. We proceeded down the hill to Lower Pierce Ranch and a short pack break.
It was just past noon when we arrived at Tomales Point. We cast about for comfortable spots to sit and had a very enjoyable lunch. Inge had brought a bright blue and white, checked tablecloth. She and Donn didn't have to sit in the dirt. There was no champagne this time but boxes of Cracker Jack were distributed. About the time we were ready to head back the fog rose enough that we could just make out some points on the east shore of Tomales Bay. Maps and compasses appeared and we began to practice taking compass sights. The height of land we were sighting was looming out of the fog and we were unable to tell where it was on the map. Since we knew where we were, we transferred the bearing onto our maps and determined that the point went right through a tiny 40' contour circle on the east shore. If the point had been a few feet lower it would have been between contours and would not have shown on the map.
For the return trip the fog had dissipated. Beneath overcast skies we had fleeting views of Tomales Bay and the Pacific Ocean. It was windy at Windy Gap and three Park Rangers were there, lecturing on the Tule Elk. Several of the group stopped to listen and ask questions. Soon we were back at Upper Pierce and on our way to a fine dinner at the Station House Cafe. The food there was as good as I remembered. And generous members shared their bread pudding dessert.
Red Leader out