Point Reyes is one of our favorite places to escape our work schedules and enjoy some time together. The days leading into this weekend away were especially hectic for both of us, and we took advantage of the time to relax and check out from our wired worlds.
We started our trip at the Point Reyes Youth Hostel and hiked along the Laguna Trail to the shores of the Pacific Ocean. Coast Camp, the home of our very first night in the backcountry together in 2001, was bustling with young families and giggling toddlers playing hide and seek. This camp seems ideal for introducing kids to backpacking since it’s a short walk with no elevation gain and right on the beach – perfect for sand castles and treasure hunts. We continued on the Coast Trail all the way to Arch Rock and then down the Bear Valley Trail. We were trying to maximize the length our hike to prepare for some upcoming trips.
Since we know Point Reyes well, we also wanted to explore some new trails. We tried Baldy trail for the first (and likely last) time as a route up to camp. It was completely overgrown with weeds, but we managed to whack our way through on up the side of Mt. Wittenberg to Sky Camp. Then we crashed. Matt and I hardly uttered ten words that afternoon between our nap schedules. We woke up for dinner just in time to enjoy a beautiful sunset and watch the fog slowly climb uphill.
The fog stayed overnight and provided a cool and quiet companion for our walk home Sunday morning. Along the way we stumbled on a grove of trees loaded with snoozing caterpillars in their cocoons. A closer look revealed thousands and thousands of these cocoons lined up in rows on the tree branches. Apparently we weren’t the only ones looking to Point Reyes for some down time and a little beauty rest.
This post is part of the SierraSoul Archive. The trip took place in August, 2007 (or thereabouts).