You'll Never Find Your Gold on a Sandy Beach

... but you can find solitude.

And that's what we did when we went to Point Reyes two weeks ago. After our beautiful hike to Chimney Rock we felt a walk on the beach might be just the ticket. Drakes Beach is easily accessible and we thought it might be very crowded on this warm day, but to our surprise there weren't many people there. We were almost on our own here and pretty much had the beach all to ourselves.

It was so nice walking on the sand, listening to the waves and feeling the sun on our faces. I was looking for shells but mainly found empty crab shells as leftover from some seagull dinner, and even a jellyfish. We usually don't see too many jellies here.

We watched the sea playing with this - thing? I have no idea what it is, and if you know I would appreciate if you told me. There are quite a lot of these long marine plants (I assume) to be found on our beaches, they are lightweight and have some kind of seaweed attached to it.
Update: A friend told me on Facebook that it is Giant Sea Kelp. I actually should have known that...

Even here in this kind of protected bay a lot of driftwood has been washed ashore, and the ice plant is gently covering it.

Finally, we went to a beach further to the North, McClures Beach. Here you actually have to descend the cliffs through a canyon - it's about a 15 minutes walk and the reward is an almost empty beach. However, the weather has changed as it so often does on the coast in Northern California. Gone was the sun and the blue skies, somewhere above the marine layer that spread over the coast.

The walk along the beach was still beautiful, though.

Until we happened about this crab. The waves had washed it up, but strangely enough the seagulls that were close by weren't interested in it. We assumed that they don't like live crabs since they can't figure out how to avoid getting pinched by the claws. That poor crab was helplessly wiggling its legs and starting to blow bubbles. Another wave threw it further up on the sand. The "beast" was pretty big and I wondered how to grab it to save its life. Just when I had asked the Geek this question the crab got on its hind legs and stared at me.

Don't you think it's pleading with me to save it? So I grabbed it around its shell, running with it towards the waves and throwing it back into the ocean (and, of course, getting wet while doing that). It never turned up again, so I guess it made it - and I was happy about that.

After that heroic deed we had to climb back up the cliffs and into the fog.

*******

Where Solitude Meets the Ocean

Remember my post about the road to Cape Scott? So, here we are in the parking lot at the end of the 63 km long gravel road. We put on our hiking boots, take some water, our cameras and whatever else we need with us and walk 2.5 km through the rain forest to get to this deserted, empty and wide beach at San Josef Bay in the very north of Vancouver Island.

It's as if you have stepped into another world. Except for a few other people there is no one there, it is absolutely quiet with the exception of the wind and the sound of the relatively small waves crashing onshore. A tame Pacific, enclosed by the beautiful bay with its hilly forests.

The beach is not all sand - there are quite some plants that peek through as well as some driftwood.

please notice the flip flops...

Each of us enjoyed this heavenly place in his or her own way. Kaefer sat in the sand, drawing the bay and some little animal that she had discovered in the sand.

All of us at some point or other took pictures - each of us with their very own point of view. Kaefer was fascinated by the little waves, the Geek by some pattern in the sand and I just took pictures of both of them (beside all the other photos, of course).

I loved the solitude at this beach. You can actually camp here if you bring everything you need and are willing to carry it through the rain forest. There is a pit toilet here, but no drinking water; however, there is a waterfall at the far end of the beach which you can use if you bring a water filter. The Geek and I are already talking of coming here again and staying for two nights in our tent. There were just a few people camping here, it's not for everyone hauling all your stuff out here. The price is quietness and peacefulness amongst natural beauty.

If you want to know what the hike through the rain forest was like - that will be a future post.