One of the most beautiful day trips you could take from San Francisco is to Point Reyes National Seashore. But if you have enough time to spare, I highly recommend to stay a night or two. My flight back to Texas was not until 5pm, therefore, I had enough time to do something in the morning. I was interested to see the Cypress Tree Tunnel ever since I saw it on Instagram. My cousin suggested we can stop there on our way to Point Reyes, then go to the Lighthouse, hoping we can get a glimpse of the whales.


The Cypress Tree tunnel is a row of Monterey Cypress trees that forms a tree tunnel. I expected it to be a long tunnel but it was actually pretty short. Nevertheless, it was still remarkable and awe-inspiring. There were several photographers capturing the beauty of the place especially with the morning rays but I was surprised to find hardly any crowd at all.


After taking several pictures (although I couldn’t really capture the beauty of the tree tunnel through photos since I only use iPhone for photography…maybe someday I’ll use one of those professional cameras lol), we proceeded to the Lighthouse.


But we were met by a ranger and informed us the only access to the Lighthouse is by taking the shuttle bus. The month of March was the best month for whale watching and the Lighthouse offers the best place to do so. We opted not to see the whales at this time since I was concerned with the timing, worried we may not have enough time to travel back to San Francisco to catch my flight.


Point Reyes National Seashore includes coastal beaches and hilly lands. At different vantage points, the view could look as if you’re in Switzerland or New Zealand (depends on your interpretation). We spent a good portion exploring Drakes Beach.



For hiking, you can start from Bear Valley Trail, starting from the visitor’s center (you may do this before or after Drakes Beach and Cypress Tree Tunnel). Across the parking lot at the Visitor’s Center is the Earthquake Trail that runs directly over the San Andreas Fault. I was hoping there won’t be an earthquake that day. 😜


We left the area in the early afternoon, giving us enough time for the Bay Area traffic and also to grab lunch. A half a day was not enough to explore everything there is to see, but the good news is there is always a next time.