Saturday 15 August 2009

Let there be light

We drove onto the Pacific plate from scary San Andreas to visit Point Reyes Lighthouse. It's perched on the furthest tip of the Point Reyes National Seashore, and has been keeping ships safe since 1870. Arriving there, it wasn't hard to see the dangers.

Despite the scorching day and blue sky further inland, this little coastal outcrop was shrouded in fog. You could see the ragged wisps of cloud blowing across as we walked up, and on top I had to hold on tightly to my England cricket hat to spare it from a watery grave several hundred feet below. This place claims to be the foggiest and windiest location on the west coast.

The lighthouse has panoramic views of the Pacific (as a lighthouse needs to, I suppose) and it's a prime point for whale watching. Amazingly we saw exactly the same number of whales as on our boat trip earlier in the year, but there were some elephant seals lazily drifting on the tide.



Here we are!



This way.


Given the foggy reputation of this place, we enjoyed quite a sunny day.



Quiet, secluded, near a beach...Hannah considers the benefits of interning as a lighthouse keeper.



Going back up is harder than coming down.


A seal slick!


The beach stretches away into fog. This area is pleasingly known as Drake's Bay.