The Historic U.S. Coast Guard Chimney Rock Boathouse.

Chimney Rock is located at the eastern spur of the Point Reyes Headlands. The Chimney Rock area is a popular destination for visitors wishing to view elephant seals, birds, and wildflowers. The 1.75-mile (2.8-km) round-trip Chimney Rock Trail leads along the ridge crest of a narrow peninsula, offering spectacular views of Drakes Bay and the coastline stretching to the southeast. The historic Chimney Rock Lifeboat Station offers a glimpse into the harrowing jobs of rescuing crew and passengers from ships that ran aground along this rugged coastline.

Come Prepared

• Print out the Chimney Rock Area map. (125 KB PDF)
• Fuel: The closest gas station is 20 miles (32 km) away in Point Reyes Station. Be sure you have sufficient fuel in your vehicle for a minimum 40-mile (64 km) round-trip drive, not including side trips to other points of interest within the National Seashore.
• Weather: Visitors may experience stiff winds, cool temperatures, fog, and/or rain at Chimney Rock; so dress appropriately. Wear layered clothing.
  National Weather Service Forecast for the Chimney Rock area
• Water: Bring a water bottle. There are no potable sources of water at Chimney Rock. The nearest potable source of water is a water bottle filling station/water fountain located near the east end of the green garages that are located approximately 100 yards (100 meters) before one arrives at the Lighthouse Visitor Center or a water fountain located in the courtyard of the Kenneth C. Patrick Visitor Center at Drakes Beach. Bottled water is not sold at Point Reyes National Seashore’s visitor centers or bookstores.
• Food: There are no food services west of Inverness, which is a thirty-five-minute drive from the Chimney Rock parking lot. Bring food from home or purchase food at one of the stores or restaurants in West Marin before heading out to Chimney Rock if it is close to mealtime.
• Restrooms: Restrooms are available at the Chimney Rock parking lot from 6 am to midnight. Be sure to use the restrooms before heading out on area trails.
• Phones: Cell phone reception is very minimal to nonexistent in the Chimney Rock area.

• Drones: Launching, landing, or operating a remotely operated aircraft (aka “remotely piloted aircraft,” “unmanned aircraft,” or “drone”) from or on lands and waters administered by the National Park Service within the boundaries of Point Reyes National Seashore is prohibited.

  If you observe drone use in Point Reyes National Seashore, please call park dispatch at 415-464-5170 or contact staff at the nearest Visitor Center as soon as possible. If you observe drone use in other National Park Service areas or if you find photographs or videos online or elsewhere that were illegally taken within National Park Service areas from drones, you can report the violation to the National Park Service tip line at 888-653-0009 or by email.

• Pets: Dogs may be walked in the parking lot and along Chimney Rock Road west of the parking lot (i.e., back toward Sir Francis Drake Boulevard); otherwise, dogs are prohibited. Please be aware that most visitors to Chimney Rock are away from their vehicle for an hour or longer. Please do not leave your dog unattended in your vehicle; leave your dog at home instead. This prohibition does not apply to working service dogs, which are allowed on trails and in public buildings. If you have a service dog, please inquire at a park visitor center for information before heading out to the Chimney Rock area. Visit our Pets page for more information about visiting Point Reyes National Seashore with your dog.

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Sir Francis Drake Boulevard passes through a number of ranches on its way to Chimney Rock and the Point Reyes Headlands.

The Drive

Chimney Rock is located at the eastern-most end of the Point Reyes Headlands. Drive west ~19 miles (~30 km) on Sir Francis Drake Boulevard. After passing through the “A” Ranch, turn left at the Y signed for Chimney Rock and follow Chimney Rock Road ~0.9 miles (~1.5 km) to the Chimney Rock parking lot. Chimney Rock Road is only about ten feet (3 meters) wide, but serves as a two-way road. Please observe the speed limit and look ahead to keep watch for oncoming traffic. If you do notice a vehicle heading your way, pull into the next turnout until the other vehicle has had a chance to pass.

Sir Francis Drake Boulevard is windy and slow-going, so allow forty-five minutes to drive the ~20 miles (~32 km) from the Bear Valley/Olema/Point Reyes Station area to the Chimney Rock parking lot (one hour and thirty minutes round-trip), not including any time you will spend in the area. Allow one hour and forty-five minutes for the drive (three hours and thirty minutes round-trip) from the Santa Rosa area, northwest San Francisco, or the northern East Bay. Many visitors spend at least an hour or two in the Chimney Rock area.
Directions to Chimney Rock from the Bear Valley Visitor Center.

RVs and Trailers

Recreational vehicles (RVs) and vehicles pulling trailers with a combined length in excess of 24 feet (7.3 meters) are prohibited on Chimney Rock Road. If you are traveling with a trailer or are driving an RV towing a passenger vehicle, consider unhitching at the bus/RV/trailer-only parking lot at Bear Valley and taking only the passenger vehicle for the drive out to the Chimney Rock area. Overnight parking/camping in RVs and trailers is prohibited throughout Point Reyes National Seashore.

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Parking

The parking lot at the Chimney Rock Trailhead can only accommodate twenty vehicles. As a result, parking space availability is very limited, particularly in the afternoon. Please observe all “No Parking” signs. Please refrain from parking along the shoulder of the road or off of the pavement. Doing so kills vegetation and increases erosion.

Parking Lot

Chimney Rock Parking Lot

• 
  
  20 total spaces
  

• 
  0 oversized spaces
  

• 
  37.995124821, -122.979734524
  

A small paved parking lot with space for 20 vehicles. Park here to hike the Chimney Rock Trail, walk to the Elephant Seal Overlook, or visit the Historic Point Reyes Lifeboat Station. A vault toilet is located at the southeast corner of the parking lot. The Chimney Rock Parking Lot is approximately 45 minutes by car from the Bear Valley Visitor Center via Sir Francis Drake Boulevard.

Parking Fee

No parking or entrance fees are charged at Point Reyes National Seashore.

Cost: $0.00

Closures & Seasonal Exceptions

Amenities

Accessible Lot
Yes
Number of ADA-designated spaces
1
Number of ADA van-accessible spaces
1
Number of ADA step-free spaces
0
Total number of spaces
20
Number of oversize vehicle spaces
0

Accessibility

The parking lot at Chimney Rock has one van accessible parking spot and is composed of asphalt. The path to the Elephant Seal Overlook involves a rather short but moderately steep descent along an asphalt driveway (which is degraded in places), and then a flat traverse along a rammed-earth 0.2 mile-long (0.3 kilometer) trail. Individuals in wheelchairs may need assistance with the descent and accent of the driveway.

Individuals with a Disabled Person parking placard or plate may drive their personal vehicle to the Lifeboat Station’s Boathouse parking area. Please drive slowly and carefully since this section of the one-lane access road doubles as the pedestrian path from the main Chimney Rock parking lot to the Boathouse. Volunteers sometimes staff the Boathouse on weekends and holidays from January through March. The Boathouse’s first floor and boat bay are wheelchair accessible. There is also an accessible restroom within the Boathouse. At other times, visitors may explore the Lifeboat Station grounds, where wayside exhibits provide information about the U.S. Lifesaving Service and U.S. Coast Guard history at Point Reyes.

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Stay on designated trails

The only official trails in the Chimney Rock area are shown in the map to the right.

Hiking along the bluff tops can be unsafe and is not recommended. Stay away from cliff edges. Loose soil and/or rock can give way suddenly and you may fall. Do not climb cliffs.

Visitors walking off of official trails and paths trample vegetation, which may lead to the death of the trampled plants. Over time, as more and more visitors use a route, it starts to look more and more like an official trail, and more and more visitors use it, resulting in a feedback loop that makes the “trail” look “official.” However, these “social paths” tend to exacerbate erosion and harm threatened and endangered species. These paths also can lead to locations where visitors may be more at risk to injury, endangering themselves and any potential rescuers.

Do not “hop” the fences to get a “better” photo or for any other reason. Fences and other barriers are there for your safety. The bluffs and cliffs in the Chimney Rock are prone to collapse with little warning. Stay well away from the bluff tops. Individuals who are found on the wrong side of fences will be cited for entering a closed area.

During the winter, hundreds of northern elephants seals can be seen from the Elephant Seal Overlook.

Elephant Seal Overlook

From the Chimney Rock parking lot, walk down the driveway 150 feet (~50 meters), bear left at the Y, and continue along the Fish Docks access road another 260 feet (~80 meters) to the trailhead for the Elephant Seal Overlook Trail. The relatively flat dirt trail leads 850 feet (~260 meters) northwest to the Elephant Seal Overlook. While it may be possible to view northern elephant seals from here on any given day of the year, December through March is the period during which visitors may view several hundred elephant seals hauled out at the southwest end of Drakes Beach as the seals return to give birth and to mate.

Please visit our Viewing Elephant Seals page for more information.

Chimney Rock Trail

This spectacular 1.75-mile (2.8 km) hike offers views of Drakes Bay and the Pacific Ocean and is renowned for great spring wildflowers. Rocky cliffs drop off steeply to the water, so there is no beach access. While it is possible to see a few whales any given day of the year, from March through May, dozens to hundreds of gray whales migrate north past Chimney Rock every day. Fog and wind can make this hike challenging. Start this hike from the southeast corner of the Chimney Rock parking lot.

Photo of a park employee standing over and pointing at a newly developed fissure along the Chimney Rock Trail on December 21, 2015.

Fissures Near the Chimney Rock Trail

Cracks were reported on a portion of the bluff near the Chimney Rock Trail on December 21, 2015. These fissures could indicate the possibility of a weakening cliff face in the area. The land may be unstable and a collapse or erosion could occur. Visitors are reminded to stay on designated trails.

Bluffs along the California coast are inherently unstable. They are prone to crumbling and sliding, especially in wet weather. It is very dangerous to climb or walk along the edge of cliffs. Be aware of falling rocks if walking near the base of a rock face.

View:
Close-up photograph of the fissure. (172 KB jpg)
Photograph of the area with the fissure from the southeast. (117 KB jpg)
Aerial photograph of the location of the fissure marked in yellow. (216 KB jpg)

The Historic U.S. Coast Guard Chimney Rock Boathouse.

Historic Lifeboat Station

Despite the efforts of the men and women who worked at the Point Reyes Lighthouse, which was constructed in 1870, ships continued to wreck on the rocks and beaches along the dangerous Point Reyes peninsula. In 1889, the U.S. Life-Saving Service opened a Life Saving Station on the Point Reyes Beach, the first of two built at Point Reyes. The U.S. Lifesaving Service was combined with the U.S. Revenue Cutter Service to form the U.S. Coast Guard in 1915. In 1927, the Coast Guard moved their operations moved from Point Reyes Beach to the protected waters at the southwest end of Drakes Beach near Chimney Rock. Eventually modern technologies eclipsed the need for the Lifeboat Station at Point Reyes. In 1969,the Point Reyes Lifeboat Station was closed and, shortly thereafter, was transferred to the National Park Service for preservation.
Visit our Lifeboat Station History at Point Reyes page for more information.

The Lifeboat Station buildings are visible from the Chimney Rock Trail and the station’s access road (which is open only to NPS and other authorized vehicles). Visitors may explore the Lifeboat Station grounds, where wayside exhibits provide information about the U.S. Lifesaving Service and U.S. Coast Guard history at Point Reyes.

Today, the Historic Lifeboat Station at Point Reyes National Seashore is primarily used as an educational facility for non-profit groups learning about the resources of the natural and cultural resources of Point Reyes. The Boathouse is sometimes open to the public from 11 am to 4 pm on weekends and federal holidays from January through March, if volunteer staff is available. The Boathouse contains the historic Coast Guard Motorized Lifeboat CG-36542 and has the last intact marine railway on the West Coast. Kids activities, a 10-minute video on elephant seals, and complimentary hot beverages (cocoa, tea, coffee) are available when the Boathouse is open, along with hands-on interactive activities allowing both children and adults to learn about seal and whale adaptations.

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Mission Rock Development in San Francisco has been under construction since last year, and prefabrication is an important part of building the project. The 28-acre mixed-use development, valued at $ 2.5 billion, is a public-private partnership between the Port of San Francisco, the San Francisco Giants and commercial real estate company Tishman Speyer.

Prefabricated building systems company Clark Pacific worked with owners and design firms like Henning Larsen, MVRDV, Studio Gang, and WORKac to come up with a prefabricated solution that also matched the aesthetics of the project, adding natural and iconic Californian scenes to the exterior.

Permission granted by the Port of San Francisco

Clark Pacific carried out the design work for free, with an agreement that the prefabrication contract would be awarded if the project’s design goals and budget can be met. It has since been awarded the project.

When Mission Rock is fully built in 2026 and is on the San Francisco waterfront and a bridge from the Giants’ Oracle Park, it will be up to 2.8 million square feet and include:

• 1,200 residential units, 40% of which will be affordable.
• Improvements in public access to the water.
• Resilience against a 66-inch sea level rise and adjustment features.
• 8 hectares of new parks and open spaces.
• Up to 1.4 million square meters of office space.
• More than 200,000 square meters of retail and manufacturing space.
• Refurbishment of the historic pier 48.

For example, elevated loading ramps have been designed so that they can be used as pedestrian paths when the water level rises.

Jim Lewis, director of sales at Clark Pacific, said the early collaboration style between the prefabrication team and the Mission Rock team was similar to the way the company operates at Apple’s “Spaceship” headquarters in Cupertino, California, and was necessary to a design to reach. Prefab house balance.

The challenge is to make these projects constructible and still aesthetically pleasing to the customer. A large team of engineers and designers plays a key role.

“We have integrators in various disciplines within Clark Pacific,” he said.

As part of this collaboration, Lewis said, the customer starts with a list of must-haves and then the team goes from there.

“And then we do a deep dive internally,” he said, “to see if we can change materials, change thicknesses, change a little detail, change the window profile … and then we work on it.”

Efficient and beautiful

Using prefabricated houses on such high profile projects should help expose the misconception that prefabricated houses are always useful, according to Lewis.

“It’s totally changing,” he said. “You can do iconic architecture and have it pre-fabricated. You just have to start early.”

The COVID-19 pandemic naturally presented a challenge to the process as many of the typical face-to-face presentations and meetings were virtual, he said. The gatherings, which were held in person, had to be carefully planned to comply with social distancing and other safety guidelines.

But when it comes to protecting against COVID-19, prefabrication also offers some advantages. If a significant portion of a project is prefabricated off-site, fewer on-site craftsmen are required.

Often, Lewis said, there is little control over who goes in and out of a project site. This is easier to control in a prefabricated “production bubble”.

“It’s a game changer,” he said.

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Hennin Larsen was commissioned to design Building G as part of the Mission Rock project. Photo credit: Henning Larsen A / S.

Building G is the northernmost building in the Mission Rock master plan. Photo credit: Henning Larsen A / S.

Mission Rock is expected to be completed by 2026. Photo credit: Henning Larsen A / S.

Mission Rock is a mixed-use waterfront project developed by the San Francisco Giants baseball team, real estate company Tishman Speyer, and the Port of San Francisco in San Francisco, USA.

The mixed-use project, spread over 11 hectares, will create a meeting place for the residents of San Francisco in the neighborhood and in the community. This includes residential, commercial and retail space as well as parks and open spaces.

The planning phase of the project began in 2007 and lasted ten years. Construction on the mixed-use estate began in 2020 and is expected to be completed in 2026.

The project aims to create a new open space for public use, provide affordable housing and create new jobs for residents. It will also redevelop Pier 48, a historic former sea shed in the city.

Mission Rock location and details

Mission Rock is under construction at Seawall Lot 337 and Pier 48 on land in McCovey Cove Harbor by Oracle Park in San Francisco, California.

The project will strengthen public space by creating 32,000 m² of new public parks and open spaces. There will also be around 1,000 to 1,600 new rental units, one to 1.4 million square meters of commercial space and 250,000 square meters for restaurants and retail outlets.

Mission Rock’s buildings will be surrounded by public spaces that will be seamlessly connected to the planned China Basin Park near Oracle Park.

Mission Rock is developed in phases and consists of four buildings consisting of two residential and two commercial buildings, known as Building A, Building B, Building F, and Building G. Other components of the project are a 20,000 m² China Basin Park and a building for retail and restaurant areas.

Mission Rock’s Building One design and details

The architecture firm MVRDV is building the 23-story, 240-foot building A in Mission Rock. The building’s design encompasses a topography influenced by California landscapes, creating a mix of low and tall buildings that are critical to a number of public spaces, around the landscape from China Basin Park, through the building, into the building expand center of the master plan of the project.

Building A is in a prime location next to the ‘Handshake Plaza’, which serves as the entrance to Mission Rock via 3rd Street Bridge. The undulating balconies extend to the west facades of the building, while the numerous overhangs on each floor create lively terraces.

The 395,000 m² building will include several apartments and approximately 58,000 m² of office space, including retail space on the ground floor and a private lobby area. Building A was designed with a holistic, sustainable strategy aimed at achieving LEED Gold certification (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design).

The exterior of the building will incorporate green in various components including the canyon, residential balconies and on the roofs of the project’s platform level.

Building B details

Building B is an eight-story office building with a topography inspired by the natural surroundings of San Francisco. It will provide a lively work area with access to terraces.

Over a gross area of ​​300,000 square feet, the building will unfold a series of layers that create a sense of topography and spaces that become terraces. The horizontal layers are connected vertically by several carved gardens that serve as outdoor meeting rooms for employees.

Building G.

The northernmost building in the Mission Rock master plan, Building G, is a 13-story building influenced by the striped basalt columns of the Devils Postpile National Monument in eastern California.

The tower will be in the form of a detailed rock wall with a mass of stacked blocks and vertical scissors highlighted by green terraces and a textured natural facade at street level.

It will rise from a mesa on the fifth floor and feature sheltered roof terraces that will offer views of the San Francisco skyline and regional attractions such as the San Francisco Giants’ Oracle Park Stadium and the Bay Bridge.

Building F.

Building F, a residential tower, is to become a central social center and a meeting point for the community in the neighborhood.

The 23-storey building with 255 residential units will have a base that is intended to reinterpret the typical tower pedestal and the steps and lead to a mesa-like room with planted terraces and seating.

The residents can follow the activities in the main public square from the terraces. Shops and cafes will be set up on the ground floor, while the mesa will provide amenities for residents of the entire neighborhood.

China Basin Park

China Basin Park is a proposed waterfront park in the Mission Rock project. It will be surrounded by 3rd Street, the Bay, McCovey Cove, and the Mission Rock neighborhood. The park is to become a regional travel destination and offer a new cultural and recreational center.

The park’s topography will include a number of urban landscape areas, including a lawn overlooking the Bay Bridge, tide shelves, a central plaza with a restaurant pavilion, and a seashell beach.

Contractors involved in the Mission Rock project

Building A was designed by MVRDV with the support of lead architect Perry Architects and landscape architect GLS Architecture. Magnusson Klemencic Associates was hired to provide structural engineering for Building A while PAE Engineers was hired to provide mechanical, electrical and plumbing work.

WORKac designed Building B, Adamson Associates and YA Studio, while Studio Gang designed Building F and SCAPE designed the China Basin Park. The Danish architectural office Henning Larsen received an order for the design of the G.

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