Point Reyes National Seashore
California
The craggy coast of Point Reyes National Seashore is situated just north of San Francisco, where the headlands of this beguiling peninsula juts out ten miles into the Pacific Ocean. The end result is an unusual proximity to the 20-mile-wide"highway" along which gray whales migrate, providing awesome vistas for this parade of mammalian giants particularly at Chimney Rock and the Point Reyes Lighthouse. And that's not all, you can also see the fun-loving antics of harbor seals, sea lions, and the sheer sloth of elephant seals.
Further inland, the coastal scrub and grasslands provide sanctuary for a rare herd of Tule elk that nearly disappeared by 1860. Now a healthy herd of 400 elk roams the 70,000 acres of pristine seashore. Hikers can roam the seashore as well: explore 147 miles of trails and sleep under the stars in one of the four designated backcountry camping areas.
The seashore acquired its name on January 6, 1603, when Spanish explorer, Don Sebastian Vizcaino, sailed north out of Monterey to explore the California coastline. After enduring a one-day stormy anchorage in Drakes Bay, Vizcaino sailed back out to sea, past the rocky headlands that he named La Punta de Los Reyes, on the same day as the Feast of the Three Kings.
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