Bull Point, Point Reyes National Seashore

Leaders: Ann Elliott & Delynne Cullen

Please sign up for this field trip on Meetup beginning July 1.   Limit: 20

Cirsium quercetorum
Brownie thistle

Trip description: As June turns into July and most of the county dries up, we head to cooler, wetter Bull Point on Point Reyes. What looks to most like just another cow pasture turns into a haven for summer plants, several of them rare.  Some plants we hope to encounter include the fragrant and rare Pt. Reyes horkelia (Horkelia marinensis), large-flowered linanthus (Leptosiphon grandoflorus), white bog Orchid (Platanthera dilatata), marsh harebell (Eastwoodiella californica), coast lily (Lilium maritimum), leopard lily (Lilium pardalinum), and Point Reyes checker bloom (Sidalcea calycosa ssp. rhizomata) – the perennial subspecies, rare and known only from a few swampy areas of the coastline. Habitats range from freshwater marsh to coastal dunes. We will wander a bit, so it is hard to tell distance, but less than 3 miles. There is almost no elevation change. We will often be off trail and on uneven, sometimes boggy terrain. Expect wet feet.

See the Bull Point plant list

Directions:    Meet at the Bull Point Trail in Point Reyes National Seashore.

From Larkspur, take Hwy 101 north to the exit for Sir Francis Drake Blvd west 20.4 miles to Olema. Turn right onto Hwy 1 and go 2 miles. Turn left onto Sir Francis Drake Blvd.   From other locations, get to the corner of  Hwy 1 and Sir Francis Drake Blvd. just out of Point Reyes Station.

All: Proceed west and north on Sir Francis Drake for 11.7 miles toward the Lighthouse. Bull Point Trail is on the left (just before the North Beach turnoff) and is not well marked.

Bring: Water, snacks/lunch; hiking poles will be helpful but not necessary. It can be chilly early on before warming up, so layers are good.

Rain cancels.   Email Ann with any questions.  Text for day-of-trip questions/issues: Ann 530-521-4402

If you have not yet done so, please sign the Waiver for Marin Chapter 2025.

Sidalcea calycosa
Point Reyes checkerbloom

Leptosiphon grandiflorus