 © Rishi
VIEW PHOTO GALLERY
State Park Location Maps:
(click here to zoom and navigate local map)
(click here to zoom and navigate regional map)
View TOPO Maps!
Get directions to this park:
State Park Photo Gallery:
volunteer positions open
 © Rishi
VIEW PHOTO GALLERY
State Park Link:
Tomales Bay State Park
Nearby Parks:
Point Reyes National Seashore
Samuel P Taylor State Park
Samuel P Taylor State Park Office
Mount Tamalpais State Park
|
| State Park Contact Information: |
 |
Tomales Bay State Park
7665 Redwood Blvd, Suite 150
Novato, California 94945
Phone: 415-893-1580
|
Area Accommodations
|
| Adopt-A-Park Contacts: |
|
Photography: add your photos
|
|
| State Park Overview: |
| The Coast Miwok people were the first to inhabit the coastal area of sheltered coves, beaches, tidal marshes, and forest of Bishop pines now known as Tomales Bay State Park, forty miles north of the Golden Gate Bridge.
Sir Francis Drake was the first explorer to land in this area in 1579, followed by the Spanish in 1595. Russian and German scientists explored the area in the early 1800s.
In the 1940s real estate developers began to purchase large areas of beachfront land, prompting local residents and conservation groups to save this area as a park. In 1952, Tomales Bay State Park was formally dedicated and opened to the public. |
| Reviews By Park Visitors: |
| Be the 1st to Review Tomales Bay State Park. You can rate it, post a comment on it, or do both. |
| |
| Trails: |
| Johnstone Trail
From Heart?s Desire Beach to Jepson Memorial Grove is 3 miles round tripwith 300-foot elevation gain; to Shell Beach is 8 miles round tripTwo lovely trails, named for a professor and a planner, explore Tomales Bay State Park. Jepson Trail honors Botanist Willis Jepson, founder of the School of Forestry at the University of California, Berkeley, and author of the authoritative Manual of the Flowering Plants of California. Conservationist Bruce Johnstone, Marin County planner, and his wife, Elsie, worked hard to preserve Tomales Bay and place part of it in a state park. Johnstone Trail leads bayside from Heart?s Desire Beach to Shell Beach.
Bay area walkers have a little secret: When fog smothers Pt. Reyes and San Francisco Bay, try heading for Tomales Bay State Park. The park has a microclimate, and often has sunny days and pleasant temperatures when other neighboring coastal locales are damp and cold.
Directions to trailhead: From the town of Inverness, follow Sir Francis Drake Boulevard to Pierce Point Road. Turn right and drive a half mile to the entrance to Tomales Bay State Park. Follow signs to the large parking lot at Heart?s Desire Beach.
The hike: Near the trailhead are some interpretive displays that tell of clams and Bishop pine. Signed Johnstone Trail departs from the south end of Heart?s Desire Beach and immediately climbs into a moss-draped forest of oak, bay, madrone, and wax myrtle.
A half mile of travel brings you to Pebble Beach. At a trail junction, a short side trail goes straight down to Pebble Beach, but Johnstone Trail swings southwest and begins switchbacking up forested slopes. Some wetter areas of the coastal slope are dotted with ferns. The trail crosses a paved road and soon junctions.
To continue to Shell Beach, you?ll bear left with the Johnstone Trail. The trail detours around some private property, and contours over the coastal slope at an elevation of about 500 feet. Some strategically placed benches allow walkers to savor the fine bay views afforded by the Johnstone Trail. The path leads through Bishop pine and a lush understory of salal and huckleberry bushes. After a few miles, the trail descends through madrone and oak forest to Shell Beach.
Walkers content with looping back to Heart?s Desire Beach via Jepson Trail will continue straight at the above-mentioned junction. Bishop pine, along with its similar-looking piney cousins, the Monterey and knobcone, are known as fire pines, because they require the heat of fire to crack open their cones and release their seeds. Bishop pines are slow to propagate and are relatively rare in coastal California. (Another nice stand of Bishop pine is located in Monta?e Oro State Park in San Luis Obispo County.) The surest way to distinguish a Bishop pine from its look-alike, the Monterey pine, is by counting the needles: Monterey pines have three needles to a bunch, Bishop pines have two needles to a cluster. |
| |
| |
| Area Accommodations |
| B&Bs / Inns | | Carriage House Bed & Breakfast - Architect designed, spacious, romantic, private, suites & room in beautiful, tranquil garden setting at Point Reyes National Seashore. 1 hour from San Francisco and wine country. Fireplace, kitchen | | San Anselmo Inn - A European-style inn with warm hospitality located in the charming village of San Anselmo with easy access to San Francisco, the Sonoma and Napa wine countries and Pt. Reyes National Seashore. | | Thistle Dew Inn - The Thistle Dew Inn is only steps to the historic Sonoma Plaza. Lovely gardens and fountains make your stay peaceful and relaxing. Full breafasts every day. | | Hidden Oak Inn - The Hidden Oak Inn is a tastefully restored California Craftsman Bungalow built in 1914, located 1 block from Sonoma?s historic Plaza. | | Glenelly Inn & Cottages - The Glenelly has 8 traditional b& b rooms and 2 newly constructed garden cottages, all with private entrances & baths, full gourmet breakfast. Lovely views and gardens enhance your stay. | | Village Inn & Restaurant - Delightful, historic 11-room Country Inn recently restored to yesteryear's charm. Spectacular views of Russian River & Redwoods. Specialty dinner restaurant, full bar & award winning wine list. | |  | Aurora Park Cottages - Calistoga, CA
More than a B&B - Aurora Park Cottages is your private vacation retreat at the top of Napa Valley. Located in a country setting in beautiful Calistoga - the spa capital of California. FREE CHAMPAGNE AND CHOCOLATES! Please tell us you found us on www.stateparks.com and we'll have some chilled champagne and chocolates awaiting your arrival at Aurora Park Cottages.
Web Site: http://www.aurorapark.com |
|
|
| |
| | Advertise your park related business
on stateparks.com
...vacation cabin, weekend getaway, log cabin rental, romantic cottage, vacation home, resort, hotel, motel, bed and breakfast, country inn, campground, RV park, horseback riding stable, canoe livery, river rafting, outfitting, sporting goods store, guide service, RV rental, etc read more.... |
|
| Related Links: |
| Point Reyes National Seashore Official Extended Home Page - Programs Classes | Hiking | Biking | Camping | Kayaking | Wildlife Viewing | Self-Guiding Activities Junior Ranger. Camping at Point Reyes National Seashore. Point Reyes National Seashore offers... | | Bay Area Hiker: Tomales Bay State Park - Tomales Bay State Park California State Parks, Marin County Getting there: From Highway 101 in Marin County, exit Sir Francis ... a suggested hike. Tomales Bay State Park in a nutshell -- a ... | | Bay Area Hiker: Tomales Bay State Park - Tomales Bay State Park Featured hike Mile: 0.0: Begin at the parking lot at the end of the park road. Either walk back along the road, or if you're parked in the lower section, look for a shortcut ... | | San Francisco Weekends, Tomales Bay State Park, California Tomales Bay, Inverness Coast, K - ... walking (over ridges) or visit mid-week. Kayaking is super fine here too! Bay Area Backroads Tomales Bay State Park Official Site Home | Lodge | Activities | Destinations | Trip-Ease | Site Map | ... | | TOMALES BAY STATE PARK - TOMALES BAY STATE PARK (A compilation of collections and sightings by B. T. Shervanick, with additions by J. T. Howell and Marin C.N.P.S.) Marin County El. 0 - 560 ft. BOTANICAL NAME COMMON NAME ... |
| Area Attractions: |
| The community of Inverness and the Point Reyes National Seashore are near the park. |
| Area Campgrounds | | |
| Directions: |
| The park is 40 miles north of San Francisco, adjacent to Point Reyes National Seashore. Eight miles from Highway One on the west side of the bay and four miles north of Inverness on Pierce Point Road. Address:
Star Route
Inverness, CA 94937 |
|
|
| |
|
USA
