Parking
Start at the Bayview Trailhead on Limantour Road. Its small gravel lot is on the north side of the road, about 4.4 miles from the Bear Valley Road junction, with space for roughly 20 vehicles.
Overview
About Inverness Ridge–Drakes View–Bayview Loop
Why go
- Soft pine-needle tread on the steep Drakes View stretch.
- Changes from ridge forest to scrub and riparian growth.
Heads up
- Drakes View drops steeply.
- Most of the route is wooded, with only a few viewpoints.
Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Point Reyes map
Full mapElevation197–1,033 ft
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Safety
4 active Point Reyes alerts
- ClosureOld Tocaloma/Platform Bridge closed to vehiclesDo not drive across the Old Tocaloma/Platform Bridge; it is closed to all vehicular traffic until further notice.Official details
- ClosurePalomarin Beach Trail closedPalomarin Beach Trail is closed to all visitors, employees, and residents until further notice; do not use the trail. - The trail is closed because unstable and failing sections have made it unsafe.Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Point Reyes Tour Guide
Your drive to Inverness Ridge–Drakes View–Bayview Loop, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Point Reyes National Seashore. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
Recorded for this area
The Cone with a Mouse Tail0:00 / 0:27
“On a walk along southern Inverness Ridge, look on the ground beneath the tall Douglas firs. Their cones have little three-pointed tabs sticking out between the scales.”
Plays on the road 0.2 mi from the trailhead in the Parkwolf Point Reyes Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- Sky Trailhead and Mount Wittenberg
- Laguna Trailhead and Coast Loop
- Muddy Hollow Trailhead
- Tomales Bay's Other Oyster
- 61 audio storiesacross Point Reyes’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Northern Elephant Seal, Grey Whale, Humpback Whale, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 65 trails, 41 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Trail guide
Hiking Inverness Ridge–Drakes View–Bayview Loop
The loopThis 4.
This 4.9-mile loop starts at Bayview Trailhead and links Inverness Ridge, Drakes View, and Bayview trails. The distance covers the full circuit back to the same lot; plan on roughly 2½ to 3 hours and about 1,040 feet of climbing. Most of the route is wooded, so choose it for a varied forest hike, not a string of ocean overlooks.
Take the steep section downhillHead up Inverness Ridge first, then descend Drakes View and close the loop on Bayview.
Head up Inverness Ridge first, then descend Drakes View and close the loop on Bayview. That direction saves the steepest part for the way down. The ridge path briefly breaks at a paved residential road: continue uphill for about 370 feet and look left for the dirt path. Its marker can be easy to miss. Under the Bishop pines, pine needles soften the Drakes View tread; lower down, the forest shifts into coastal scrub and wetter alder-lined ground.
A few views, not an ocean walkExpect long wooded stretches and only a few viewpoints.
Expect long wooded stretches and only a few viewpoints. The Inverness Ridge section has distant openings toward Drakes Beach and Chimney Rock, but the view is intermittent. The wider Bayview area burned in the October 1995 Vision Fire. The route is most interesting for the change between ridge forest, scrub, and riparian growth rather than a single dramatic vista.
Starting at BayviewUse the Bayview Trailhead on Limantour Road. Its small gravel lot holds about 20 vehicles, 4.
Use the Bayview Trailhead on Limantour Road. Its small gravel lot holds about 20 vehicles, 4.4 miles from the Bear Valley Road junction. The lot also has an interpretive exhibit. Pets aren't allowed on any route from this trailhead. The roughly 1,040 feet of climbing and steep descent make this a moderate outing, not a casual stroll.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Point Reyes
2,552 sightingsNorthern Elephant SealMost seen around 11 AMSighting map
127 sightingsGrey WhaleMost seen around noonSighting map
109 sightingsHumpback WhaleMost seen around 10 AMSighting map
29 sightingsSteller Sea LionMost seen around noonSighting map
203 sightingsCalifornia Sea LionMost seen around noonSighting map
352 sightingsHarbor SealMost seen around 7 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Point Reyes. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
