Mount Aix

Mount Adams, Goat Rocks, and Mount St. Helens behind Nelson Ridge

12 miles round trip, 4400 feet elevation gain
Difficulty: Strenuous
Access: Bumpy dirt road to trailhead, Northwest Forest Pass may be required (but probably not)

The Cascades of southern Washington State hide a giant: Mount Aix, a high peak that caps the wild, rocky ridges of the William Douglas Wilderness Area. Mount Aix is the tallest peak in the southern Washington Cascades outside the three volcanoes (Rainier, St. Helens, Adams) and the Goat Rocks. Its height gives hikers that reach its summit commanding views of the range. This is a rarely-trod corner of Washington State where hikers can find far more quiet than at nearby Mount Rainier National Park or the highway corridors near Seattle and Portland. The hike to the summit is a demanding, relentless climb but ends with a spectacular walk along Nelson Ridge with the option of a fun but slightly exposed Class III scramble to the top. I enjoyed this hike immensely during my fall visit, when I also got to catch beautiful fall colors on nearby western larches.

I hiked Mount Aix on a sunny late October weekend. From the Puget Sound area, I took Highway 410 east and south from Enumclaw to Cayuse Pass in Mount Rainier National Park; at the junction with Highway 123 at Cayuse Pass, I stuck to the left to stay on Highway 410, crossing Chinook Pass and then descending into the valley of the American River. I turned right onto Bumping River Road, following it past Goose Prairie and Bumping Lake. Past Bumping Lake, the road became NF-1800, a dirt road; I followed it for 2.5 miles and then headed left at the junction with NF-1808, an even bumpier dirt road that led a final 1.5 miles to the trailhead, marking by a small sign for Mount Aix. There's a small turnoff to the left here but I simply parked next to NF-1808; there's no bathroom or sign indicating a Northwest Forest Pass is required, even though we were on National Forest land.

I followed the trail heading east from the trailhead, which headed into the forest and immediately began a steady but moderate climb for the first 0.25 miles to reach the foot of Nelson Ridge and enter the William O. Douglas Wilderness. Here, the terrain steepened substantially and the trail headed to the south (right) as it began a steep and relentless uphill that would make up most of the hike. Through this ascent, the trail stuck fairly close to a creek as it made innumerable switchbacks. A few breaks in the trees yielded views of nearby western larches, which were showing up bright color in late October; this otherwise the climb was a bit monotonous at times as it ascended constantly through the drier forests characteristic of the eastern Cascades. There were no larches directly along the trail.

Larches along the ascent

At 2.5 miles the trail left the creek and began switchbacking into more open slopes, coming to the first views at 3.3 miles from the trailhead. One of the rocky summits of Nelson Ridge, a major north-south ridge in the William Douglas Wilderness, rose ahead. 

Nelson Ridge

More notably, the open slopes brought view of Mount Rainier to the west. Nelson Ridge and Mount Aix provide a less common perspective on Rainier: viewed from the east, the three major summits of Rainier- Columbia Crest, Point Success, and Liberty Cap- could be seen at the same time. Little Tahoma was visible but instead of standing out to the side of the larger Tahoma, it blended into the rock and glaciers of Rainier's eastern face. This was a lovely angle from which I could nearly see the full lengths of the Nisqually, Cowlitz, Ingraham, Emmons, and Winthrop Glaciers, all of which are among Rainier's most impressive glaciers. Disappointment Cleaver cut through the glaciers down the center of the mountain. This was a good angle from which to study the entirety of the Disappointment Cleaver climbing route up Rainier (which I had just completed a few months prior).

First views of Mount Rainier

As the trail continued to make broad switchbacks while ascending Nelson Ridge, trees thinned even further and soon the widening views soon also encompassed Bumping Lake and the western larch forests near the reservoir. While Rainier and the surrounding peaks would still be visible later from Mount Aix, views of the Bumping River valley were only to be had during this stretch of the ascent.

Bumping Lake

After 4.7 miles of hiking from the trailhead and 3500 feet of elevation gain, I arrived at an intersection with the Nelson Ridge Trail just slightly below a saddle on the crest of Nelson Ridge. Here, I took the right fork, which kept me on track for Mount Aix. The trail paralleled Nelson Ridge as I headed south, continuing to ascend until the trail made a sharp left turn as it wrapped around a small summit on the ridge. At this point, I decided to visit this small side summit and left the main trail by turning to the left and ascending up the slopes of loose rock through a hundred additional feet of elevation gain to the local high point. While this is not a requisite detour for the hike to Mount Aix, this small summit provided fantastic views of mountain to the north and south along the dramatic spine of Nelson Ridge, with Mount Adams and Mount St. Helens visible to the south on either side of the ridge. Mount Aix, the sharp peak that was my destination for the day and the tallest peak in the area, rose steeply to the east: I thought that this summit gave the most impressive view of Aix.

Mount Aix from a summit on Nelson Ridge

I returned to the main trail and followed it east as it began heading towards Mount Aix, taking the high ridge connecting Nelson Ridge to Aix. The trail lost 160 feet in a brief descent from Nelson Ridge to a saddle; after passing the saddle, the trail followed the top of the rocky ridge directly in a thrilling stretch with views in all directions. 

Mount Rainier and Nelson Ridge from the ridge out to Mount Aix

The trail gained 300 feet from the saddle as it came to an unmarked junction one mile past the previous junction with the Nelson Ridge Trail. There are two routes to the top of Mount Aix from this trail: the first is a steep, Class III scramble route that departed to the left of the main trail here, while the other is a longer route on trail that circled around the east side of the summit before reaching the top. I chose to ascend via the scramble route and returned via the trail; you can cut off a half mile round trip from this hike by taking the scramble route both ways or add a half mile if you skip the scramble altogether. This unmarked scramble route left from the main trail and made a very steep ascent up the rocky slopes of Mount Aix, requiring a few exposed scrambling moves towards the very top as it ascended 300 feet in just a tenth of a mile up through a rocky gully. This was the most challenging and arguably the most fun stretch of the hike and ended at the summit.

Looking back down the scramble route

From the 7766-foot summit of Mount Aix, I had a magnificent view of the peaks of the William Douglas Wilderness as well as of the great peaks of the Cascades to both the north and the south. The surrounding rocky peaks included the north-south crest of Nelson Ridge, which ended at Bismarck Peak to the south. Forests of golden western larches filled the Hindoo Creek valley to the south as well as the two cirques to the north of Mount Aix.

Aix's prominence meant that the view farther afield seemed to encompass all of the southern and central Cascades. Every inch of skyline to the west was filled with a peak. All five Washington State volcanoes were visible, although Baker and Glacier Peak were both very far away and very faint. Fifes Peak, the Goat Rocks, and the Tatoosh Range were notable mountains at a medium distance, while farther afield the view included Mount Si, Kaleetan Peak, Snoqualmie Mountain, Summit Chief, Mount Daniel, Mount Maude, Mount Stuart, and just about any other peak you can think of between here and US Highway 2. To the east, the rocky ridge of Mount Aix faded out and forested plateaus stretched east towards Yakima, which in turn faded into the bare desert ridges that rise above Yakima Canyon. A layer of haze blocked the view out into the Columbia Plateau.

Mount Rainier and Nelson Ridge

Mount Adams and Goat Rocks

Snoqualmie Pass peaks and Mount Stuart on the horizon

These mountains were a favorite haunt of a young William O. Douglas, for whom this wilderness area in Gifford Pinchot and Wenatchee National Forests is named. Douglas grew up in nearby Yakima and wandered these mountains before he left this wilderness for the world of law, becoming the youngest justice in the history of the Supreme Court when he was nominated by Franklin Roosevelt and confirmed by Congress in 1940. He went on to become the longest serving justice in the history of the Court.

After soaking in the views for over an hour and enjoying the summit by myself, I started my return. Rather than descending the scramble route that I had come up, I chose to follow the proper trail down. The trail followed the east ridge of Mount Aix after an initial descent onto the mountain's north slopes. A steep descent down talus slopes brought me down to a small permanent snowfield that remains on the north side of Mount Aix. Here, the trail skirted the moraine of this snowfield; it must have once been a glacier and indeed it's of a size such that a similar snowfield in a more southerly state might be called a glacier. After passing the snowfield, the trail crossed over the the east ridge of Mount Aix and then followed the ridge down to join back up with the Mount Aix Trail, 0.3 miles after leaving the summit. Here, I took the right fork to head west back towards the trailhead. After another 0.3 miles of traversing the loose rock on the south slopes of Mount Aix on a narrow trail, I returned to the spot where I had previously departed the trail to start the summit scramble. Returning via the trail added an additional half mile of hiking relative to simply coming back down on the scramble, but it was substantially easier hiking. From there, I made my way back for the final 5.7 miles, making a small ascent to reach Nelson Ridge and then pushing myself through the lengthy and knee-busting descent to reach my car by sunset. 

Snowfield along the Mount Aix summit trail

Washington State has plenty of beautiful hiking destinations and it is tempting to write off Mount Aix as just another hike. Visitors and novice hikers will find more rewarding experiences at the national parks, in the North Cascades, or at easier hikes closer to the Puget Sound; however, hikers looking for wide-open views and solitude will find that Mount Aix is a good antidote to the increasingly over-crowded nature experiences around Mount Rainier or even the Goat Rocks. 

Soda Lake (California)

Temblor Range rises over Soda Lake

1 mile round trip, no elevation gain
Difficulty: Easy
Access: Decent unpaved road to trailhead, no entrance fee required

Soda Lake is a seasonal, endorheic, alkali lake with spectacular wildflower displays each spring at the heart of Carrizo Plain National Monument in California's Coast Ranges. This short hike is one of the very few established trails in Carrizo Plain National Monument and leads from the park's main road to a stretch of boardwalk along the lakeshore. Visitors in winter and spring are likely to find water in Soda Lake but this body of water dries up completely during most summers. Similarly, the greenery of the Plain, the Temblor Range, and the Caliente Range in spring fades to browned grass by May each year. Carrizo Plain remains an undervisited and beautiful landscape; while few casual visitors come to this national monument, Soda Lake is probably the most frequented trail in the park. Experienced hikers visiting Carrizo Plain are highly recommened to explore off-trail destinations like the Temblor Range, but casual visitors can get a taste of this wonderous landscape on this short hike to Soda Lake.

While there are almost no paved roads in Carrizo Plain National Monument, the trail to Soda Lake is reached by the few paved miles of road in the park. Despite being part way between the two largest metropolises of the West Coast and just over an hour off I-5, Carrizo Plain National Monument is one of the least known and visited federally preserved parks in the state of California. Established during the Clinton Era under the Antiquities Act and overseen by the Bureau of Land Management, this national monument preserves a dry grassland- at 5 inches of annual precipitation, a desert, really- sandwiched between the Caliente and Temblor Ranges. Despite being just miles from San Luis Obispo and the ocean, rainfall in the Carrizo Plain never reaches the sea, instead flowing into the endorheic Soda Lake at the heart of the plain. This great grassland today is a last refuge for many species which in the past wandered the Central Valley and other parts of coastal Central California; this is the only land wild and big enough for them to call home now.

To reach the trailhead for Soda Lake from I-5, I exited onto Highway 58 heading west and followed it past Buttonwillow and McKittrick and across the Temblor Range. Coming out onto Carrizo Plain on the western side of the Temblor Range, I immediately took the left turn for Seven Mile Road, an unpaved road that I followed to the southwest across the floor of Carrizo Plain. I followed Seven Mile Road for just under 7 miles until it ended at a T-intersection with the paved Soda Lake Road; here, I turned left and followed Soda Lake Road south into Carrizo Plain National Monument for two miles. Immediately after passing a turnoff on the right for the Soda Lake Overlook, I turned into an unmarked pulloff on the left side of the road where a clear path lead towards Soda Lake in the distance: this was the trailhead. There was no signage and no toilet at this trailhead but the trail to Soda Lake was obvious.

From the trailhead, a straight and clear path cut across the saltbrush plain towards the lakeshore. The trail was completely flat as I walked across this wild and remarkable landscape. During my late March trip, the floor of the plain was carpeted with blooming yellow daisies and the slopes of the Caliente and Temblor Ranges in the distance were streaked with yellow blooming flowers. This was an absolutely extraordinary wildflower display and one that I recommend everyone to come experience.

Caliente Range and Carrizo Plain wildflowers

After following the flat, wide trail for a third of a mile, I arrived at the shores of Soda Lake. In March, the lake was still full of water, but summer visitors are likely to encounter a dried-up lakebed here. The lake is refreshed each year by winter rains but shrinks during the summer dry season. As the lakeshore retreats, sparkling alkali flats emerge, laden with salt and minerals washed down from the surrounding mountains. Summer visitors will see a vast field of salt rather than any body of water here.

Glistening alkali flats along the shore of Soda Lake

The trail continued on a boardwalk that followed the lakeshore to the south for 1/6 of a mile. This boardwalk provided views of the surrounding fields of wildflowers and across the glistening surface of Soda Lake to the flower-coated slopes of the Temblor Range. While both the Temblor Range and the Caliente Range are parts of the California Coast Ranges, they're of geologically distant origins: the plain itself is split by the San Andreas Fault and the Temblor Range lies on the Northern American Plate while the Caliente Range is part of the Pacific Plate.

Temblor Range and Soda Lake

This is one of the few formal trails within Carrizo Plain National Monument. However, there's far more to experience in this wild and largely untouched landscape. Soda Lake Overlook- a set of two hills rising directly above the trailhead of the Soda Lake Trail- was accessible by a short drive and uphill walk and provided a sweeping view over Soda Lake and the great, flat, flower-filled plain.

Soda Lake and Carrizo Plain

After finishing my hike and checking out nearby Soda Lake Overlook, I continued south on Soda Lake Road along the western side of Carrizo Plain; this is the main road of the park, although it does become unpaved shortly after leaving Soda Lake. I encountered some incredible flower fields on my way down Soda Lake Road and found many beautiful off-trail views in the foothills of the Caliente Range. It's not useful to provide specific directions for exploring Carrizo Plain and its impressive wildflower blooms: visitors should just plan around the wildflowers and schedule a day or more to drive and wander through the region's trailless wilds.

Carrizo Plain

Wildflowers blooming at Carrizo Plain

Point Mendocino

Sea cave at the Mendocino Headlands State Park

2 miles loop, 50 feet elevation gain
Difficulty: Easy
Access: Paved road to trailhead, no entrance fee required

Just outside the town of Mendocino on the North Coast of California, the Pacific Ocean crashes against the dramatic headlands that mark the edge of the North American continent. Point Mendocino is within a stone's throw of the art galleries, restaurants, and inns of Mendocino but is still a wild, raw landscape where visitors can observe the land meet the sea. Preserved in a state park, the headlands are criss-crossed by a network of hiking trails. The headlands' proximity to Mendocino means that hikers won't have to drive anywhere to start their hike after having brunch in town. This is one of many beautiful spots along the Mendocino Coast, but the idyllic views of the New England-like town of Mendocino recommend this hike a bit above others along this stretch of coast.

I visited the Mendocino Headlands during an October trip to the Mendocino Coast with Anna. The trail literally starts in town: park along the western stretches of Main Street in Mendocino for easiest access to the hike. There are two trailheads from which to access Point Mendocino: the first is from a large parking lot off of Little Lake Street just outside of town, while the other trailhead is on Main Street itself. From Main Street, you can hike the trail along the coastal headlands out to the other trailhead and back, or you can walk along streets in the town to reach the Little Lake Street trailhead and then follow the Point Mendocino Trail back to the Main Street trailhead for a loop. We did the loop, so I'll describe that here.

To reach the trailhead on Little Lake Street from Main Street, we walked four blocks north on Hesser Street up to Little Lake Street, making a brief detour along the way to check out the Temple of Kwan Tai. The Temple of Kwan Tai- dedicated to the deified Chinese historial figure Guan Yu- is one of the few surviving Chinese temples in California from the 1850s and is a reminder of the important role that early Chinese immigrants played in building modern California, not only in San Francisco but in rural communities all over the state. Once we reached Little Lake Street, we turned left and followed the street west for about a fifth of a mile, where the road made a turn to the right. Here, we followed a gravel road on the left to the Point Mendocino Trailhead and started following the trail that traced the edge of the coastal bluffs. 

Coastal views kicked off right away: we started the hike with the only northerly views, which encompassed nearby Goat Island as well as the Point Cabrillo Light Station further to the north.

Looking north along the rocky Mendocino Coast to the Point Cabrillo Light Station

As the trail wrapped around the bluffs of Point Mendocino, gradually heading south and east, the views transitioned to the coast to the south. The extremely rocky coast here was very dramatic and we enjoyed the frequent explosions of saltwater surf as the waves crashed on jagged islets.

View south along the Mendocino Coast

The trail stuck closely to the coastal bluffs, hugging the curves of the coast through headlands and coves. There were multiple unmarked trail junctions with the other social paths in the area; at each, we took whichever fork kept us closer to the coast, within reason. Flat throughout, the trail mainly passed through the grassy coastal prairies common on the Mendocino Coast. However, in some areas, the green and red blades of the succulent ice plant coated the ground. Ice plants are extremely common on the California coast and their yellow and pink flowers are both beautiful and distinctive; however, the plant is not native to the state. 

Ice plants growing on the Mendocino Headlands

Midway through the hike, as the trail wrapped around a cove in between two headlands, a sea cave came into view. This particular cave had effectively become a tunnel, connecting to the sea on two ends.

Sea cave at the Mendocino Headlands

In total, the trail visited three separate headlands over the course of hugging the coast for one mile, with the most protruberant of these headlands- what I assume must be Point Mendocino itself- coming last. As this hike was so close to town, we did see a good number of other hikers out, especially as sunset approached; however, there was enough coast here to spread out and the hike never felt crowded. The proximity of the town did not make the wild surf and rugged coast seem any less wild or rugged.

Mendocino Coast

Surf pounds the Mendocino Coast

As we wrapped around the final headland, we came to a massive sinkhole. Set slightly back from the coastal bluffs, this sinkhole connected through to a deep sea cave underneath, with seawater and waves washing in from the sea. A trail wrapped around the entire rim of the sinkhole and a wooden fence prevented visitors from getting too close to the edge. I actually found this sinkhole more impressive than the better known Devil's Punchbowl in Russian Gulch State Park; even though it was smaller, it was thrilling to see waves wash through the cave below us.

Sinkhole

As we hiked onward from the sinkhole, there were more views of the town of Mendocino, which sits atop coastal bluffs above Portuguese Beach. The town takes its name from a Spanish name for the region, bestowed when California was under Spanish control. The redwood lumber industry birthed the immigrant settlements along the North Coast, including the town of Mendocino: the area was originally populated by the Pomo people but the discovery of redwood forests along the coast led to the construction of a lumber mill that fueled the growth of the current town. Settlers during that period included many transplants from New England and southern China, who were then responsible for the town's New England-style architecture and the Temple of Kwan Tai. Once the old-growth redwoods were gone, the lumber industry when bust, but the town of Mendocino recovered in the latter half of the 20th century by redefining itself as an artists' colony and attracting tourists to its charming seaside location.

The town of Mendocino and Portuguese Beach

From the sinkhole, we followed the wide main trail to its end, leaving the coastal bluffs behind. The trail ended by joining up with Main Street on the western edge of town. This was an enjoyable hike to enjoy the natural scenery near Mendocino's charming streets; don't leave town without doing this walk. 

Navarro Point

Mendocino Coast north of Navarro Point

0.7 miles round trip, 100 feet elevation gain
Difficulty: Easy
Access: Paved road to trailhead, no entrance fee required

This short hike visits a magnificent headland along California's Mendocino Coast and is a lovely brief stop along the state's famed coastal Highway 1. Just north of the mouth of the Navarro River, Navarro Point is one of the higher headlands along the Mendocino Coast and is the first stop along the coast many travelers will encounter if arriving in the Mendocino area by Highway 128. This short and easy hike descends across a prairie to stunning coastal views and a chance to spot harbor seals and other ocean life.

I hiked down to Navarro Point during a trip to the Mendocino Coast with Anna. The hike is about a three hour drive from San Francisco via US 101 and CA Highway 128; it is 10 miles south of the town of Mendocino off Highway 1 and 20 miles south of Fort Bragg. The turnoff is not marked for Navarro Point: instead, there are just signs for a Coastal View (no RVs). When driving north on Highway 1, the trailhead is at the first such sign after passing the junction with Highway 128; when driving south, look for the Coastal View sign 10 miles after leaving the town of Mendocino. There is a turnoff here where a short road leads to a small parking lot, where there is a sign announcing that you are at the Navarro Point Preserve and Scenic Trail.

There are a variety of paths that one can explore at the Navarro Point Preserve: three trails depart from the trailhead, linking together in a short network of trails which can be combined to hike a number of different loops up to just over a mile long. The best coastal views, however, come from the trail that makes a beeline from the parking lot across the open grasslands towards the ocean. This trail reaches the coast in just 0.15 miles and then provides the option to walk all the way out to the tip of a headland that has amazing views. We did a round-trip hike on that shortest leg.

View across the prairie at Navarro Point

Leaving the parking lot on the middle of the three trails, we cut across the prairies that define much of the coastal landscape in Mendocino County and descended towards the ocean. We quickly reached the top of coastal bluffs with northerly views that included a hole-in-the-rock sea stack. Continuing out to the headland, we soon had views of the coast to the south as well, which initially focused just on a small bay to the south but soon included the mountainous coast south from here towards Point Arena. The trail crossed a narrow isthmus that's likely to collapse away in the coming years and ended at the tip of the headland, which delivered stunning views down both sides of the coast and felt very much like the edge of the Earth.

Navarro Point

Looking north along the Mendocino Coast

View back from the tip of the headland

A couple of harbor seals were lounging on the rocks to the south of the headland, all of them making loudly barking to the others. Sea palms dotted the surf-battered rocks. Upwelling of nutrient-rich water from the depths of the Pacific offshore here make for extremely productive ecosystems along the California Coast, supporting massive kelps forests and plankton populations that in turn sustain fish and marine mammal populations. In winter, gray whales can be spotted off the coast here.

Harbor seals lounging

This is a short but worthwhile walk: although this particular hike is perhaps not worth a long drive from the San Francisco Bay Area or any other major city, Navarro Point is a good spot to include in any trip to the Mendocino Coast, with scenery just as impressive- if not more so- as the headlands near Mendocino and Fort Bragg.

Ten Mile Dunes

Ten Mile Dunes on the Mendocino Coast

3.5 miles loop, 300 feet elevation gain
Difficulty: Easy-moderate, some basic route-finding necessary

Access: Paved road to trailhead, no entrance fee required

The Ten Mile Dunes are the largest sand dunes on the Northern California coast but receive little attention. These coastal sand dunes reach about a hundred feet in height and the interior of the dunefield is quiet despite being just miles north of the popular coastal retreat of Fort Bragg. There are no established trails leading through the dunefield, which, despite its name, is only about five miles in length from north to south and just under a mile from east to west at its widest point. However, the open landscape of dunes makes navigation through the dunes quite straightforward. The hike described here makes a loop through the most impressive dunes at Ten Mile Dunes and returns to the trailhead with a walk along MacKerricher Beach. Hikers will appreciate that these dunes do not allow motorized recreation but sand dune aficionados may find these dunes small in comparison to better known dunes along the Oregon Coast or at Colorado's Great Sand Dunes.

Due to the trailless terrain of the dunes, you can make whatever type of hike you want here. I'll described a loop that travels clockwise through the most impressive dunes: this route starts off by traveling near the eastern end of the dunefield where the dunes are the tallest and then cuts across the dunes to the coast, where it follows the beach back north to the Ten Mile River and then the trailhead. You don't need to follow the route that I describe here: once on the dunes, you can go where you wish. 

I visited the Ten Mile Dunes during a trip to the Mendocino Coast. The trailhead is just north of Fort Bragg: from the town, I followed Highway 1 north for 8 miles and then parked in a small lot on the left (west) side of the road. The trailhead parking lot- which is mainly used as an access point for MacKerricher Beach- is only marked from the main road from a sign that read "Coastal Access" and the parking area came just before Highway 1 crossed a bridge over the Ten Mile River.

From the parking area, I followed a trail that paralleled Highway 1 while heading to the northwest. This path paralleled Highway 1 until reaching the start of the Ten Mile River Bridge, at which point the trail broke off to the left and began to descend towards the beach. The trail was quite brushy at points here and soon the surface of the trail transitioned to sand. Just over 100 meters after leaving the bridge, the path came to an unmarked split: the more obvious path led to the right, descending down to a more established road trace that ran next to the Ten Mile River. Another trail split off to the left, making a bit of an uphill climb into sandy terrain. I took the left fork here to head up into the dunes.

The trail ended as I entered the dunefield; footprints led off in all directions. It was initially difficult to see far through the dunes from a low point on the side of the dunefield, but the easiest way to reach the high dunes on the eastern edge of the field was to head uphill while keeping the treeline just to my left. Hiking through the dunes was very much a choose your own adventure: there are no established paths, just open sand to wander through. As with most dunes, it's easiest to ascend on the gentler windward slopes of the dunes and to follow the crests of dunes rather than to tackle the steep leeward slopes. 

The foredunes still had many grasses and other vegetation mixed in but the backdunes were largely barren, just an undulating landscape of sand. The dunes here were quiet and felt quite remote, but in reality were only meters away from Highway 1, separated by a line of trees. The farther I wandered, the fewer footprints I saw. Views of the intensely blue Pacific, Laguna Point in MacKerricher State Park to the south, and the Lost Coast to the north opened up as I climbed onto the crest of some of the highest backdunes. 

Sand dunes and the Pacific

Sand, Pacific, Lost Coast

For the most part, the dunes were only about 50 feet high from crest to trough, although the highest backdunes reach over a hundred feet in elevation above sea level. Though not huge, the dunes were still a striking landscape and made for fun exploration. I made my way south through the dunes until a line of trees started to close off the dunefield to the south; at this point, I turned to the right and began heading west to exit the heart of the dunes.

Sand dunes

Ten Mile Dunes

As I hiked across the dunes towards the coast, the dunes became progressively smaller and had more vegetation. Grasses held some of the coastal foredunes in place, unlike the more mobile backdunes. Somewhere along the way here, I crossed the MacKerricher Haul Road, which runs from Ten Mile River south to Fort Bragg and was once used to transport logs during the heyday of lumber corporations in the area. The segment of the haul road through the dunes has since been buried in sand and I passed it without noticing.

Grassy sand dunes

After a circuituous walk through the maze of dunes, I arrived at the foredunes closest to the beach. From these dunes, I had views back to the expanse of sand that I had hiked through. The forested hills of the California Coast Range rose in the distance, an abrupt ecological transition from the mini-Sahara that I had hiked through.

Gazing back over the Ten Mile Dunes

Arriving at the beach, I turned right and followed the beach north for a mile and a half to return to the trailhead. I saw no other hikers in the dunefield but did pass a couple of visitors walking along the beach here. This stretch of MacKerricher Beach was fairly quiet and I enjoyed my walk through the wet sand, observing washed up kelp, crab shells, and sand dollars. The view of the Lost Coast to the north from this beach was quite impressive; north of the Ten Mile River, the flatter and gentler seaside landscape near Mendocino transitions to mountains rising from the coast, which culminate in the longest roadless stretch of the California Coast where the impressive King Range rises 4000 feet directly from the waters of the Pacific. The Lost Coast includes the westernmost point in California, Cape Mendocino, which marks the geological transition from the transform boundary of the San Andreas Fault to the convergent boundary of the Cascadia subduction zone.

MacKerricher Beach and the Lost Coast

I followed MacKerricher Beach north until reaching its end at Inglenook Fen, an estuary where the Ten Mile River meets the ocean. From here, I finished up my loop hike by following the shore of the fen inland (to the southeast) through some low sand dunes until joining up with the road trace of the MacKerricher Haul Road. After following the haul road briefly, I hopped onto an unmarked but obvious sandy path that led off to the right, heading back uphill to the trailhead parking area along Highway 1.

Inglenook Fen, the estuary of the Ten Mile River

This was an enjoyable hike to visit a set of sizeable of sand dunes on the Northern California coast. Many visitors to the Mendocino Coast may be looking more for redwoods, New England-style coastal villages, and seastacks rising over beaches filled with sea glass, but the Ten Mile Dunes are a chance for a slightly different experience on this famed stretch of coast.

Point Cabrillo Lighthouse

Point Cabrillo Lighthouse

2 miles loop, 150 feet elevation gain

Difficulty: Easy
Access: Paved road to trailhead, no entrace fee required

Point Cabrillo Lighthouse rises on a headland above the Pacific along California's Mendocino Coast just miles away from the area's two main towns, Mendocino and Fort Bragg. The lighthouse is accessible via a short and easy hike that crosses coastal prairies, visits headlands with eroded sea caves, and stops by the historic lighthouse that once guided ships along the foggy, treacherous California Coast.

I visited the lighthouse during a trip to the Mendocino Coast with Anna. Point Cabrillo Lighthouse is a 10-15 minute drive from both Mendocino and Fort Bragg. From Fort Bragg, reach the lighthouse by following Highway 1 south for 5 miles and then turning right onto Point Cabrillo Drive; follow Point Cabrillo Drive uphill from Caspar Beach for 1.5 miles and then turn right into the signed parking lot for the Point Cabrillo Light Station State Historic Park. There was a small lot and ample overflow parking. Visitors with disabled parking permits and visitors staying at the overnight rental units here can skip the hike completely and continue driving from the main parking lot to a second parking lot right beside the lightkeepers' houses and the lighthouse.

We left the parking lot on the North Trail, which departed from the northwest corner of the parking lot and headed due west. This wide gravel trail took us across the coastal grasslands between the parking lot and the lighthouse. The trail descended and narrowed as it went along, passing by a few scattered trees but mostly staying out in grasslands; we ignored a trail the branched off to the right and led north to Frolic Cove, instead continuing due west along the North Trail so that we would quickly reach the coast. After three-quarters of a mile of hiking through grassland from the trailhead, we arrived at the coast, where colorful cliffs rose above the foggy Pacific. Far-off views were restricted due to the thick fog along the coast but we were still able to enjoy this scene of Pacific surf crashing onto rocks of Point Cabrillo.

Headlands at Point Cabrillo

After reaching the coast, we followed the coastline south to Point Cabrillo Lighthouse. While there was a well-established road trace that led directly south to the lighthouse over the grasslands, we followed the social paths that hugged the coastline, delivering constant views on the walk over. Walking out to the end of the headland just north of the lighthouse, we found particularly nice views of both the lighthouse itself to the south and a number of deep sea caves carved into the coastal bluffs in the cove to the north. Low, rolling booms resounded when waves washed into the cove and pushed into the caves.

Point Cabrillo Lighthouse

Sea caves at Point Cabrillo

Continuing south, we reached the protruding headland with the lighthouse. The lighthouse is open 11 AM to 4 PM every day but the inside of the lighthouse was closed during our visit due to Covid-19 rules. Instead, we could only admire the outside of this 1909 structure, which had a rotating Fresnel lens that sent a pulse of light across the ocean every few seconds. The lighthouse helped guide maritime traffic here during the early 20th century, when ships carrying passengers and redwood logs from the forests of Mendocino and Humboldt Counties plied the rough waters of the Pacific Coast. Frequent shipwrecks along the coast- which include the wreck of the Frolic just north of this State Historic Park- made lighthouses a necessary and life-saving development at the time. 

The lighthouse and the headland that it sits on are both named after Spanish explorer Juan Cabrillo. Cabrillo led the first European reconnaisance of the California coast but somehow managed to miss the Golden Gate and thus did not discover San Francisco Bay, the most notable feature along the entire length of the state's coast. Consigned for centuries to relative obscurity, Cabrillo's reputation was revived during the 20th century push to recognize and remember European explorers of non-British descent. Cabrillo's legacy in California is still celebrated to some extent today, but it's important to also remember how Cabrillo, the man, participated in brutal enslavement of native peoples in Central America for gold mining and how Cabrillo's journey to California ultimately spelled the beginning of the end for native cultures all along the California coast, from the Chumash to the Ohlone and the Pomo.

Point Cabrillo Lighthouse

We walked around the headland that the lighthouse was on and found a secluded, stagnant cove just to the south of the lighthouse, where narrows between cliffs of two different headlands prevented waves from washing into a calm saltwater pool. Looking down, we spotted numerous jellyfish hanging out in the seawater below. Marine life is abundant along the Mendocino Coast due to upwellings of nutrient-rich, cold water from the depths of the ocean, which power a robust food chain here. On clear days in the winter, Point Cabrillo is a good spot to watch for migrating gray whales offshore.

Jellyfish in a cove

From the lighthouse, we returned to the trailhead by following the road that led out to the lighthouse. This road passed by the Head Lightkeeper's and the Assistant Lightkeeper's Houses, both of which were well-built and had large yards that at one point were likely gardens in which the lightkeepers would've grown their food along with their lighthouse-tending duties. These two houses and the cottages behind them are now available to rent as lodging for anyone who wants to stay at the Point Cabrillo Lighthouse; the road leading out here is restricted to guests only.

Lightkeeper's houses

We followed the road for two-thirds of a mile to return to the parking lot. The road picked up about 150 feet of elevation gain along the way, although the ascent was fairly gentle and the hike as a whole was quite easy. There were a number of educational, kid-friendly placards along the road that taught interesting facts about the gray whales that can often be seen along this coast during the winter.

Overall, this was a nice hike; the lighthouse was cute but in our opinion is not among the most scenic of California's lighthouses. If you're spending a few days on the Mendocino Coast this is a worthwhile stop but if time is short you might find it a better use of your time on other coastal hikes.