The hook
Elk on the tip of a peninsula, ocean on one side and Tomales Bay on the other, and usually no one else on the trail.
01Why it's worth it
The largest tule elk herd in California lives out here, and you'll normally see them in the first mile. What makes the walk stick is the history under it. The elk were fenced onto the point in 1978 to keep them off the neighboring dairy ranches, and in the droughts that followed, hundreds died of thirst behind that fence, in sight of water they couldn't reach. It stayed up until 2024. The trail is flat grassland with no shade and it's often buried in fog, so this is about the animals and the setting more than any big view. Go in expecting weather and you'll probably come away with more than you planned.
02Skip the cliché
The Cypress Tree Tunnel and the Inverness shipwreck a few miles south pull crowds for one photo each. Neither earns the stop.
From the locals
Regulars go on weekdays, turn around at the first ridge instead of forcing the full nine miles, and treat the fog as the mood rather than a problem.