Point Reyes National Seashore

Around 150 miles of trails cross-cross the rolling hills and meadows of Point Reyes though the main attraction is the 60 mile shoreline, which is easily accessible by car in several places and all is explorable on foot. There are three distinct parts of the coast - the section alongside the calm waters of Tomales Bay has a few small beaches though the majority of the land is quite densely wooded, the trees extending right to the edge of the sea. The long, straight, northwest-facing shore (Point Reyes Beach) has the most sand and the highest surf, though also suffers from the worst weather, with strong winds, cool temperatures and thick fog often present. More interesting is the southwest coast, as here the land is a little less wind-swept and the shoreline varies between sandy beaches, rocky terraces, promontories, cliffs, lagoons and dunes.