Adventures: Hiking or Biking the Bear Valley Trail by Ann Marie Brown Point Reyes National Seashore I have a longstanding ritual I perform on top of Arch Rock, at the terminus of the Bear Valley Trail. I sit on the jagged bluff edge and wait until a sea lion swims by in the surf below, then I follow its bobbing, rolling progress through the kelp beds and surging waters as far as my eyes will allow. When the graceful pinniped disappears from sight, I wait for another, and then another. It’s remarkable how pleasantly an afternoon can pass this way. Bear Valley Trail is the most popular trail in Point Reyes, with good reason. Accessible to both mountain bikers and hikers and easy enough for children, the wide dirt road rolls through dense Douglas-fir forest, parallels two streams, and eventually winds its way to a spectacular ocean overlook at Arch Rock. From Bear Valley Visitor Center, the trail follows the path of fern-lined Bear Valley Creek. A highlight is spreading Divide Meadow, which marks the “divide” in this valley. From its grassy expanse, Bear Valley Creek flows north and Coast Creek flows south. Deer graze the meadow daily -- both native black-tail deer and an exotic, pure white deer, imported by ranchers in the 1930s. Nearing the sea, Bear Valley Trail leaves the forest and opens out to coastal chaparral. The path’s final dramatic steps traverse the top of Arch Rock’s precipitous, jade-green bluff. At low tide you can follow a spur trail down the cliff, then crawl through Arch Rock’s tunnel at the mouth of Coast Creek. That completed, the neighboring beaches are yours to explore. The Details Length: 8.2 miles out-and-back Difficulty: Easy Best Season: Spring and fall for the clearest weather, but be prepared for possible fog or wind in any month Highlights: Coastal overlook, beach visit during low tide Map: Point Reyes National Seashore map (free at Bear Valley Visitor Center) Trail Guide: 101 Great Hikes of the San Francisco Bay Area (Foghorn Outdoors) Park Information: (415) 464-5100 Website: www.nps.gov/pore Getting There: From San Rafael Transit Center, take Golden Gate Bus #65 to Bear Valley Visitor Center in Point Reyes. Bear Valley Trail begins by the visitor center.