Registration for Fall I and II begins Tuesday July 30, 2019 at 9 a.m.

Register separately for each session.

EC | Meandering in Marin: Natural History and Hiking

If you enjoy getting exercise, socializing with a congenial group, and learning about birds, owers, butterflies, and mushrooms, come join the Meanderers. The instructor will send field trip itineraries to enrolled students before the first class. Participants should be comfortable hiking 4-6 miles with an elevation gain of up to 1000' at a pace of about 45 minutes per mile.

4114 | Dreskin | OFF | TBA
7 Mondays 9:45am-1:45pm | Aug 26-Oct 14 $189 (FF $8) | ESCOM $161 (FF $8)

4115 | Dreskin | OFF | TBA
6 Mondays 9:45am-1:45pm | Oct 28-Dec 2 $155 (FF $3) | ESCOM $130 (FF $3)

4116 | Dreskin | OFF | TBA
7 Tuesdays 9:45am-1:45pm | Aug 27-Oct 8 $189 (FF $8) | ESCOM $161 (FF $8)

4117 | Dreskin | OFF | TBA
6 Tuesdays 9:45am-1:45pm | Oct 29-Dec 3 $155 (FF $3) | ESCOM $130 (FF $3)

Click here to download full schedule of classes

Tomales Bay State Park Final Exam Hike 7/23/19

This coming week we go to Tomales Bay State Park for our final exam hike. We'll take the Johnson/Jepson Loop.

Here's Wendy's description of the outing: "We sometimes see the endangered California Harebells and this is the only hike where we always see Deer Ferns. One of the most scenic picnic tables in Marin for our Final Exam!" 

Bring something to share for our gourmet potluck lunch, and utensils, plate, and cup.

(Click here to view photos from past hikes in Tomales Bay State Park).

Directions to the trailhead: Take Sir Francis Drake Boulevard. Turn right at Olema and make an immediate left onto Bear Valley Road. (Stop at the Bear Valley Visitor Center to use the restrooms as there are none at the trailhead).

Continue until you pick up Sir Francis Drake Boulevard. Go through Inverness and over the ridge. At the "Y" where the road veers left to Drake's Beach and the Lighthouse go straight. This puts you on Pierce Point Road.

Just BEFORE the right turn that takes you down to Heart's Desire Beach there is a dirt parking lot on the right. If you don't know it you may need to go to the road to Heart's Desire and then turn around. We'll take the Jepson/Johnson loop.

Driving time one hour from College of Marin. Outhouse en route and restrooms at lunch spot. Carpool leaves St. Rita at 8:55 am.

Weather forecast: As of Wednesday, July 17, the National Weather Service forecast for the hike was mostly sunny with a high near 59. (Click here for an updated forecast).

More on this hike: "G14 Johnstone - Jepson Trails" in the Martins' book, Hiking Marin, shows the area in which we'll be hiking. The trails are also shown on page 4 of the Tomales Bay State Park brochure. The Google Earth image below shows this part of the state park. (Click on the image to open a larger version in your Web browser).

Bolinas Ridge Down Randall Trail 7/16/19

  

This week we move south and east of Point Reyes National Seashore to take one of our hikes in the GGNRA.

This hike is slightly longer than our usual at 7.4 miles, but lots of downhill with ripe huckleberries to snack on along the way. We usually find naturalized orchid Hellebore on this hike, and in 2013 the fog drip provided some surprise chanterelles. While Wendy can't promise those, lots of ripe huckleberries and some ripe salal berries are a pretty sure bet.  (Click here for a recap of our hike in August of 2008).

CALL WENDY AT 457-3949 OR EMAIL bdreskin@comcast.net if you are coming! The fee is $22. 

Directions to trailhead: We’ll meet at 9:20 on Highway 1 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.) You will pass Five Brooks on your right and go about three more miles. If you are traveling north on Highway 1, it is about 3 miles north of Dogtown. Carpool leaves St. Rita at 8:40.

Click here for a Google Maps map that shows the Randall Trail trailhead. Click where the Randall Trail crosses Highway 1, and then click on the teardrop icon to get directions and driving time from your location.

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.

No restrooms at either the Randall Trail or Bolinas Ridge trailheads.  Stop at the Bear Valley Visitor Center or at Five Brooks if you need to “use the facilities.”

Driving time from the College of Marin is about 40 minutes. Carpool leaves St. Rita's at 8:40 a.m.

Weather forecast: As of Thursday, July 11th, the National Weather Service forecast for the hike was mostly sunny with a high near 74. (Click here for an updated forecast).

More on this hike:  None of my 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 Point Reyes National Seashore park map shown below.



Click here to view and print a copy of the map. Use the plus-sign button under the drop-down arrow button to enlarge the map for easier reading If you have Adobe Acrobat Reader on your computer you can print the document. Once you see the document on the "Google Docs" Web site, click on the "Actions" down arrow and then on "Download" to download the document to your computer).

Palomarin, Point Reyes National Seashore 7/9/19

We continue our summer hikes this coming week with a trip to Point Reyes National Seashore, this time beginning at the far southern end of the park at the Palomarin trailhead near Bolinas. Remember,  Cost for the hike is $22.

Here's Wendy's description of this outing: "This hike is not a loop, but has incredible ocean views making it well worth the drive! We should see Bee Plant, Seep-Spring Monkey Flower, Salmonberries as well as butterflies and dragonflies. Lunch at Bass Lake." (Click here for a recap of our July 2010 hike. Click here for an album of photos from that hike.)

Directions to the trailhead: Take Sir Francis Drake Boulevard west to Olema. Turn left (south) onto Highway 1. Pass Five Brooks and Dogtown, and take the unmarked right turn (onto Horseshoe Hill Road which merges with the Olema-Bolinas Road) towards the town of Bolinas. (If you find yourself going along the shore of Bolinas Lagoon, you've driven too far south and missed the turn.) Turn right on Mesa Road (which eventually becomes a dirt road) and follow it to the Palomarin trailhead parking lot. this is a long dirt road so don't wash your car the day before. The dirt road can be bumpy.

Click here for a Google Map that shows the parking lot at the trailhead. Click on the teardrop icon to get driving directions and time from your location.

Carpool leaves St. Rita at 8:40 a.m.

If you're coming from southern Marin you may prefer to take Highway 1 north, turning left just past the end of the lagoon onto the unmarked road into the town of Bolinas, then right on to Mesa Road to get to the trailhead.

Toilets at the trailhead. If you can't wait, use the porta-potties at Five Brooks, a right turn off Highway 1 for those coming south from Olema. For those heading north from southern Marin, turn left off the highway into Muir Beach or at the ocean overlook just to the north.

Weather forecast:  As of Wednesday, July 3rd, the National Weather Service forecast for the hike was partly sunny, with a high near 65. (Click here for an updated forecast).

More on this hike: The "F17 Coast Trail to Wildcat Camp" hike in the Martin's book, Hiking Marin, is 11 miles long, but shows the route that we'll take up to Bass Lake, 2.7 miles from the trailhead. (The 8.5 mile "Alamere Falls and Double Point Overlook" hike in Tracy Salcedo-Chourre's Exploring Point Reyes National Seashore and Golden Gate National Recreation Area says the distance to the north shore of the lake is 2.9 miles, while the park's South District Hiking Map pegs it at 2.8 miles).  We’ll retrace our steps back to the trailhead after lunch so our total hiking distance will be around 5.5-6.0 miles.