Point Reyes National Seashore in California, October 2023

The quiet, pristine Point Reyes National Seashore is about 1.5 hours north of San Francisco. There are no RV campgrounds in the park, so we stayed at an RV Park in nearby Olema on Highway 1.

	It's a long drive to the end of the road that takes you into this nature preserve. This is the view of the 11 mile (18 km) long stretch of beach from the parking area, looking north towards Tomales Point.
	This skull of a female gray whale was found at Vandenburg Air Force Base in 1985, but is now displayed outside the gift shop near the stairs to the lighthouse.
	Me at the top of the long flight of stairs down to the lighthouse. We stayed at the top and watched the whales, and there were many to be seen from this vantage point. They were small whales, perhaps minkes.
	Me under the Cypress Tree Tunnel. At the end of this drive is the Historic KPH Maritime Radio Receiving Station which was built between 1929 and 1931 to help communicate across the Pacific Ocean. Unfortunately, it wasn't open when we were there.
	From the Chimney Rock Trail, the Pacific is on the left and Drake's Bay is on the right. On the beach below, seals bask in the sun.
	They look pretty comfortable, don't they?  Brad was able to zoom in on them from the bluffs.
	At the end of the Chimney Rock Trail, seals were roiling in the surf. It's hard to make out, but that black dot at the bottom right of middle of the photo is a seal poking his head out of the water. The waves were crashing through the hole in Chimney Rock.
	I have to say, though, that the most entertaining wildlife at Point Reyes were the elephant seals in Drake Bay. Only dominant males have the right to mate, although the sparring we witnessed didn't seem very serious. These may be young males practicing their skills. Read more about the Point Reyes elephant seals here.