Bucklin Big Loop
Trail length: 7.8 miles, loop
Terrain: dense bishop pine forest, slope, riparian, oak, bay, fir
Restroom? No
Parking: parking lot at Bayview Trailhead
Kid-friendly? likely too long for most kids
Dates visited: 11/18/24, 11/10/25
Favorite plants on this trail: Marin Manzanita, Fly Agaric and Western Amethyst Laccaria (violet colored!) mushrooms, and Buckeye trees
Loop: Inverness Ridge, Bucklin, Muddy Hollow Road, Bayview
7.8 miles, loop
Start at the Bayview Trailhead
Follow the Inverness Ridge Trail to the paved road. Continue up the road a few minutes watching carefully for the dirt path on the left that continues the trail into the woods. (2.6 miles)
Turn left on the Bucklin Trail and hike to Muddy Hollow Road (2.3 miles)
Turn left on Muddy Hollow Road and hike to the Bayview Trail (0.8 miles)
Turn left on the Bayview Trail and hike uphill back to the trailhead (1.6 miles)
This is the best direction for the loop. It puts you going downhill for the steep and long Bucklin trail.
Starting on the Inverness Ridge Trail, it’s an easy hike on a wide path with views of Drakes Beach and Chimney Rock in the distance. The trail pauses at a paved residential road and then picks up again as a dirt trail on the left, 370 feet later. It’s easy to miss the trail marker which is placed about 20 feet from the paved road. Plants along the trail include Marin Manzanita (Arctostaphylos virgata), Evergreen Huckleberry (Vaccinium ovatum), Golden Chinquapin (Chrysolepis chrysophylla), California Aster (Corethrogyne filaginifolia) and Orange Bush Monkeyflower (Diplacus aurantiacus), and striking Checker Lily in the spring.
The Bucklin Trail descends for 2.3 miles. The top of the trail offers spectacular views of the ocean, headlands and forests. A bench offers a great lunch and rest stop. The trail is exposed in the beginning then heads into bishop pine and Douglas fir forest. As you get closer to the Muddy Hollow Trail, the trail alternates between forest and sections of drier coastal scrub with Coffeeberry (Frangula californica) and Trailing Blackberry (Rubus ursinus).
Hike less than a mile (0.8 miles) on the Muddy Hollow Trail. It’s a mostly exposed trail with coastal scrub plants and lovely views of the distant forest. Watch for brush rabbits and Tule elk.
At the beginning of the Bayview Trail, you pass through an enchanting old Buckeye grove and wetter riparian terrain with alders and other water-loving plants. From the creek area, hike uphill on the Bayview trail through bishop pines with some views toward the ridge and ocean. Watch for Dusky-footed Woodrat nests which are profuse in the area, often only a few feet from the trail. Read about these industrious and rather adorable rodents. The fall, when foliage is sparse, is a great time to spot woodrat nests.
Look for mushrooms along these trails in wet months, starting in November typically. Colorful highlights include
Redhead Russula (Russula rhodocephala), red and white spotted Fly Agaric (Amanita muscaria), and Western Amethyst Laccaria (Laccaria amethysteo-occidentalis), Western Yellow-veiled Amanita (Amanita augusta) and Golden Hair-Lichen (Teloschistes flavicans).
Photos are from November 2024 & 2025.
Volunteer Opportunity: PRNSA Field Institute
The Point Reyes National Seashore Association needs assistants for their Field Institute classes. You will spend a day training with PRNSA staff, then a couple of times a year you'll select the classes you'd like to help with. Shortly afterwards, you'll receive a confirmation of which ones you've been assigned. As a facilitator, you get to take the class for free. Normally, two facilitators help with every class. Duties include signing in class participants, making coffee (for indoor classes), talking briefly about PRNSA, and generally helping out as needed. I've been volunteering for about a year. It's a great experience to work with other facilitators and get to know the amazing field institute instructors.