Point Reyes

California desperately needs rain, but it’s so easy to appreciate the fact that we’re enjoying a wonderful spell of perfect weather in the middle of Janurary. All week it has been cloudless skies with temperatures in the high 60s to low 70s.

Of course I did not know this back in November when I reserved a campsite at Wildcat Backpack Camp at Point Reyes. It’s always a gamble to plan a backpacking trip in advance in winter, but this time the gamble paid off. I invited a group of friends to join me, some of them newbies to backpacking, and managed to look the hero by picking such a perfect weekend. The park was booked solid and the parking lots were full of dayhikers – everyone wanted to be out enjoying the perfect weather.

We met at the Bovine Bakery in Point Reyes Station (a must-visit place – try the goat cheese and spinach croissant) and then hit the trail around 10:30 am. It’s around 6.5 miles in to Wildcat Camp via the Glen Trail and we arrived in camp for a late lunch, followed by a hike down the beach to Alamere Falls. After the falls it was back to camp where we shared a 2.5 gallon keg of homebrew that David carried in for us. This means that I carried the rest of the gear, but it was worth it!