Mount Tam and Point Reyes
A 140 km loop from Mount Tamalpais road
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Why this ride
Coastal sweepers and north-bay atmosphere. 140 km round from Kentfield - plan on about 2 h 42 of riding. The stops in between: Stinson Beach, Point Reyes Station and Tomales Bay view. The climb of the day is Mount Tamalpais road. It is a high-mountain day.
Roadbook
- Mount Tamalpais road
pass
Mount Tamalpais is the hill that every Bay Area rider eventually climbs, a long dark ridge across the Golden Gate that from the city looks like a sleeping woman on her back. The summit road starts in the town of Mill Valley and follows the Panoramic Highway through redwood and bay laurel, past the trailhead at Pantoll, to the Rock Spring and East Peak turn-offs. East Peak tops out at 2,571 feet, and from the car park a short walk takes you to the fire lookout and a view that takes in the city, the bay, the Pacific and, on the very best days, the Sierra Nevada.
The mountain has a quirky history. In 1896 a railway opened that wound up from Mill Valley to the summit in 281 curves, soon known as the crookedest railroad in the world, and visitors rode up to a tavern at the top. The line closed in the 1930s after a fire, but the Old Railroad Grade, a gentle fire road, follows its bed and is popular with walkers and mountain bikers. Since 1913 the Mountain Play has staged a musical each spring at a natural rock amphitheatre on the slope, drawing thousands of picnickers.
On a motorcycle, the roads here are a matter of patience and attention. They are narrow, shaded and twisty, with limited sight lines, steep drop-offs and cyclists in numbers, particularly at weekends. The surface suffers from damp and tree roots, and speed limits are low. Fog can fill the lower forest while the summit stays clear, and in winter, ice and fallen branches are possible. Mornings are lovely, with a clean light and few cars.
Fuel and food are in Mill Valley and Kentfield, where you will find bakeries, cafés and delis, and there is nothing on the mountain itself apart from a small snack stand at times in summer. Fill up before you climb, carry a layer, and leave time at the top for the view, since it is the reason the road exists.
- Stinson Beach
swim
Stinson Beach is where the Pacific finally gets its way with Marin. After the long curves of Highway 1 down from the ridge, the road drops to sea level and a pale crescent of sand runs out for about three miles, with a spit of dunes at one end and the steep green slope of the mountain at the other. The village behind it is tiny, a scatter of beach houses, a few cafes, a grocery and a bookshop, and it feels both sleepy and expensive, as seaside places near big cities often do.
The riding to get here is the real attraction. Highway 1 from the Mount Tam side snakes down in a long series of tight, blind bends, with a drop on the seaward side, and the fog can swallow it without warning. The surface is patchy, grit and sand collect in the corners, and slow RVs hold up the line, so settle into a rhythm rather than trying to push. North of the beach the road runs beside Bolinas Lagoon, a tidal bay where the San Andreas Fault passes through and where herons and egrets nest in the trees on a nearby ranch each spring. Bolinas, at the far end, is famous for its locals, who are said to take down road signs to discourage visitors, so you may need to read the map instead.
The swim is a different matter from what the name suggests. The Pacific here is cold all year, typically somewhere in the low teens Celsius, and the surf can be strong, with rip currents that lifeguards warn about. These waters are also part of the stretch of California coast where great white sharks feed, and while encounters are rare, many people simply wade and paddle. On a warm afternoon, though, the sand is soft and the dunes pleasant for lying in the sun with an ice cream.
Parking at the beach costs money and fills early on summer weekends. Fuel is not reliably available in the village, so top up in Mill Valley, about nine kilometres back over the hill. Bring layers, since a warm afternoon turns cold the minute the fog arrives.
- Point Reyes Station food
food
Point Reyes Station is a small, slightly rumpled ranch town at the head of Tomales Bay, and it serves as the pantry for one of the most beautiful parts of the California coast. Dairy herds graze the hills in every direction, and the town has grown into a centre of artisan cheese, organic produce and good bread. Cheesemakers sell from shopfronts along the main street, bakers draw queues on weekend mornings and oysters from the bay arrive on the tables of the local cafés. It is the best place for a meal on the route, and the food is better than a town of this size should offer.
The San Andreas Fault runs right under the head of the bay, and the land west of it, the whole Point Reyes peninsula, is moving northwest relative to the rest of California, at roughly the pace a fingernail grows. In the 1906 earthquake, a fence near Olema, a few kilometres south, was offset by about sixteen feet, and the Earthquake Trail at the Bear Valley visitor centre shows where. Tule elk, reintroduced in the 1970s, roam the northern part of the peninsula, and the coast beyond holds wide beaches, lighthouse cliffs and fog.
For a rider, the approach is the thing. The road from Fairfax winds through Samuel P. Taylor State Park, a redwood canyon, and then opens into the grassland of the valley, a lovely, tight and tree-shaded road that rewards a calm pace. Fog is common, and the pavement can be damp and strewn with leaves. Weekends bring traffic, with cyclists and sightseers who stop without warning. Coming from the north on Highway 1, the road follows the bay's edge, with views over the water, oyster shacks and a strong smell of mud and salt.
Fuel is scarce in this part of the world, so fill up in San Rafael, Novato or Petaluma before heading out. The town has a few small shops, a market and a handful of restaurants, and the busy hours come between eleven and two. Arrive early, bring layers and allow time to wander the main street with a cheese in one hand.
- Tomales Bay view
photo
Tomales Bay is a long, narrow finger of water that lies in a straight line for fifteen miles along the San Andreas Fault, so straight that it looks as if it has been ruled on the map. The east shore, where Highway 1 runs, gives you the long view over the water, with the Point Reyes peninsula rising on the far side as a low, dark rampart of firs and grassland. The water is calm and shallow compared with the open coast, and the light changes constantly, from pale silver in the morning to deep blue and gold at dusk.
The bay is famous for oysters, and a string of small farms along the shore raise them in racks and bags. You can stop at roadside tables near Marshall and eat them shucked on the spot, usually with a bottle of local white wine and a view of the tide. The shore is also a mecca for birds, with egrets, herons, pelicans and ducks working the mudflats, and harbour seals hauled out on sandbars. Kayakers paddle the quieter coves, and the bay has a long history as a fishing ground for Miwok people and later Portuguese and Italian fishermen.
Riding here is a pleasure of a mellow kind. The road bends along the shoreline, with gentle gradients, small climbs and short straights, and the views are almost constant. A few blind corners and parked cars at the oyster farms require attention, and weekend traffic can be slow. Fog rolls in from the sea in summer, sometimes thick enough to hide the water entirely, while autumn brings clear, still days. The wind picks up in the afternoon, and a layer is useful at any time of year.
Fuel is not available on this stretch, so plan from Petaluma, twenty-four kilometres east, or fill up before leaving the main highways. The villages of Marshall, Tomales and Point Reyes Station have places to eat and drink, though many are small and close early in the evening. Pull over at the signed turn-outs only, because the shoulders are narrow.
- Back to Mount
finish
Mount Tamalpais rises above the northern side of the Golden Gate like a sleeping giant, and the old story goes that its outline looks like a reclining woman, which gave local people the name of the Sleeping Lady. At 2,571 feet it is not a huge mountain, but it springs straight up from the bay and gives a sweeping view over the whole region, from the Farallon Islands to the Sierra on a clear day. For riders, it is one of the best short climbs in the Bay Area.
The nearest towns, Mill Valley, Kentfield and Larkspur, give a hint of the setting. They are leafy, wealthy communities tucked into the creek valleys on the mountain's skirts, with redwoods in the gardens and cafes where cyclists meet. Mill Valley has a good small main street, and the old Mountain Home Inn serves as a landmark on the way up. The mountain was once reached by a famous crooked railway, with a hundred-odd curves, which ran until the 1930s and helped build the area's outdoor culture.
The riding itself is tight and constantly changing. Panoramic Highway climbs out of Mill Valley in a series of narrow bends, with redwood shade and the occasional glimpse of the bay below, then runs along the ridge toward Stinson Beach and the ocean. The East Peak road is a short, steep spur to the top, where a fire lookout and a few trails offer a short stretch of walking. The surface is patchy, the road is narrow and cyclists are everywhere, so a relaxed pace is the right one. Fog can sit on the ridge even when the lower areas are clear, and it often brings damp, cool air.
Fuel and food are best found in Mill Valley and Larkspur before the climb, because there is nothing on the mountain beyond a few small cafes and trailhead parking areas. Weekends are busy and the best time for a quiet climb is a weekday morning.
If you arrive late, the sunset is the real reward. The light turns the fog gold and pink, and the city lights begin to flicker across the water, a view that makes the narrow road worthwhile.