58. Limantour Beach

Point Reyes National Seashore has countless magical components, and Limantour Beach is one of them. My good friend Kathy McKenzie Nichols and I visited on a day so sparkling clear that the Farallones on the horizon were sharp and large. This sandy beach stretches for miles along the Gulf of the Farallones and is completely tranquil and undeveloped. It’s very clean and, especially at this time of the year, lightly populated by beach-goers.

This video I took gives a good example of the mesmerizing character of the relentless waves coupled with the flock of Snowy Plovers motionless, waiting for food, and then moving as a wave themselves to escape the water and then return just as quickly for food below the sand. Because the Snowy Plovers are endangered, and dogs disturb their beach habitat, there are no dogs allowed on the beach.

This area is known for frequent spotting of California Harbor Seals because 20% of all of them do their breeding here in the Gulf of the Farallones. And, if you’re thinking of venturing into the water (on a warmer day), remember that this gulf is also home to the largest population of Great White Sharks in the world!

Limantour Beach is about a 20 minute drive from the Point Reyes Bear Valley Visitors Center. Be sure to pull over along the way at the high spots overlooking the Pacific so you can get an even better view of the Farallon Islands.

Where: Sir Francis Drake Boulevard to Limantour Spit Road (Follow the signs, it’s easy) (map)