As summer begins we move west in Marin to take one of our hikes in the GGNRA. Slightly longer than usual at 5.3 miles, but lots of downhill. (
Click here for a recap of our last summer hike in August of 2008).
CALL WENDY AT 457-3949 OR EMAIL bdreskin@comcast.net if you are coming!
Directions to trailhead: We’ll meet on Route One at the bottom of Randall Trail which is about 3 miles north of Dogtown and about 3 miles south of Five Brooks. (The Point Reyes National Seashore says to allow 15 minutes for the drive from the Bear Valley Visitor Center, and that it is just under 6 miles from the intersection of Highway 1 and Sir Francis Drake at Olema south to the Randall trailhead).
Park in one of the large dirt pullouts on either side of the road. The Park Service notes that the sign for the Randall Trail is aligned parallel to Highway 1 on the east side of the road and can easily be missed). From the Randall trailhead we’ll carpool up the Bolinas-Fairfax Road to Ridgecrest Boulevard and hike along Bolinas Ridge Fire Road and then down the Randall Trail to Highway 1.
Weather forecast: As of Tuesday evening, May 18, the National Weather Service forecast for the hike was partly cloudy, a slight chance of rain, with a high near 59. (
Click here for an updated forecast).
More on this hike: None of Dick Jordan's hiking books describe this hike, but you can find the Fairfax-Bolinas Road, Bolinas Ridge Fire Road, and the Randall Trail in the bottom right-hand section of the park map shown below in this post on the "Meandering" blog. (Use the plus-sign button under the drop-down arrow button to enlarge the map for easier reading):
(
Click here to view and print a copy of the map. If you have Adobe Acrobat Reader on your computer you can print the document. Once you see the document on the "Scribd" Web site, click on the "Download" icon and then on the "PDF" icon to open the document on your computer).
This week we return to Point Reyes National Seashore to do a loop hike from the Muddy Hollow Trailhead.
Mother Nature's bipolar disorder continued this week as she tried to decide whether it was Spring or still Winter. Rain fell as we drove toward the trailhead and we were bundled up in our cold weather gear when we met at the Rock Spring.
Photos taken by Walt Drucker, Theresa Fisher and Dick Jordan during this week’s Rock Spring hike are now on-line.
Bolinas Ridge provides opportunities for long-distance hiking with views west over the Pacific Ocean. Each year we usually hike north from the intersection of the Bolinas-Fairfax Road and Ridgecrest to the Randall trail and then descend to the Olema Valley. This time we hiked south and and then retraced our steps to the starting point.
for a recap of last year's May 12th walk). Here's Wendy's outline for the hike: “We could see coral roots (a native orchid), Mount Tamalpais jewel flower, and golden banners on this mostly shady loop hike.
Although Dick Jordan can only type poorly using his left hand, he has purchased voice dictation software that should allow him to continue to write the blog as long as he can make it to the hikes!
Dick Jordan fell on the trail during yesterday’s Ridgecrest hike. The good news: He didn’t break any bones. The bad news is that he has “Gamekeeper’s Thumb” (aka “Skier’s Thumb”) and will have to wear a cast for six weeks. Hopefully, he’ll still be able to make next week’s hike.
The bad news: Fog predicted to extend inland in the morning, followed by sunshine (and no shade) the rest of the day.
Photos shot by Theresa Fisher and Dick Jordan during last week's West Ridgecrest hike are now on-line. View them on the blog or click here for the on-line album.
On this hike (not a loop) we’ll explore a section of the Coastal Trail with views of Stinson Beach and Bolinas Lagoon. When Ridgecrest Boulevard opened as a toll road in the 1920s it was proclaimed California’s “Most Scenic Drive.” It’s even better hiking! 
“California State Parks and the GreenInfo Network are announcing a web portal that makes it dramatically easier for the public to search for any kind of open-space and recreational lands in the Golden State. No matter where you happen to be and no matter what other part of the state you want to search, this new web site shows you everything from federal wilderness areas to neighborhood tot lots.”
The last (hopefully) of this Winter’s storms was blowing through the Bay Area as we drove to the trailhead at Muir Beach for this week’s hike around and above Green Gulch Farm. But despite the foreboding weather forecast most of us gathered for our weekly pre-hike confab in the mud of the parking lot.
the drizzly rain and Vetch and Thimbleberry growing along the Middle Green Gulch Trail.
