Parking
Bear Valley Trailhead on Bear Valley Road, beside Bear Valley Visitor Center. Free gravel hiker parking for about 210 vehicles; paved visitor-center lots are nearby.
Overview
About Y Ranch Site via Bear Valley and Coast Trail
Why go
- A eucalyptus pair marks the historic dairy site above Drakes Bay.
- Creekside forest leads to a distinctive clifftop ranch-site marker.
Heads up
- Ten miles for an understated destination; the last stretch is rougher.
Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Point Reyes map
Full mapElevation94–357 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 Y Ranch Site via Bear Valley and Coast Trail, 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
Bear Valley Visitor Center0:00 / 0:32
“You're coming up on Bear Valley Visitor Center, a useful place to sort out your day before heading to the outer coast.”
Plays on the road 0.1 mi from the trailhead in the Parkwolf Point Reyes Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- The Horses That Still Work Here
- The Ocean's Hidden Food Supply
- The Beads That Traveled Inland
- A Tree Full of Acorns
- 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 Y Ranch Site via Bear Valley and Coast Trail
Is this your kind of walk?This is a 10-mile out-and-back from Bear Valley Trailhead to the old Y Ranch site above Drakes…
This is a 10-mile out-and-back from Bear Valley Trailhead to the old Y Ranch site above Drakes Bay. Follow Bear Valley Trail 4.1 miles to Coast Trail, then turn northwest for 0.9 mile to the trees; return the same way. The site is marked by a large eucalyptus and its younger neighbor, remnants of the old dairy landscape. Allow 4–5 hours. The draw is a long forest walk to a modest historic landmark above the bay.
Through Bear ValleyThe first 1.
The first 1.6 miles pass through Douglas-fir forest beside Bear Valley Creek to Divide Meadow, where there’s a vault toilet. The route continues through forest alongside Coast Creek. After the first three miles, the trail narrows and gets more uneven. It stays on a mild grade for much of the way, but the distance and rougher last stretch make this a moderate half-day. July through September often bring dense fog; it can be about 20°F cooler here than at Bear Valley.
Make it workStart at Bear Valley Trailhead.
Start at Bear Valley Trailhead. The free gravel lot holds about 210 vehicles, with paved visitor-center parking nearby. There are no facilities beyond Divide Meadow. Dogs are prohibited on the route; bicycles and other wheeled devices are prohibited once you enter Phillip Burton Wilderness at the Glen/Baldy junction.
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.
