Alamere Falls Loop(edit)

We arrived at dawn to the Five Brooks Trailhead at Pt. Reyes National Seashore ready for a long day hike. Our destination was what we dub the Salamander Trail, a loop from the interior valley to the coast lakes along the rugged Marin County coastline. We were not disappointed as early morning during a rain shower is the perfect time to see newts. They prefer the leeward side of the coastal Fir forest, and really like crossing the trails for some reason. The section of trail out of Five Brooks is one of the prime viewing areas with lots newts around Mud Lake on the Lake Ranch Trail. We've seen them in the past swimming in Bass Lake on the Coast Trail as well. Interestingly, newts are toxic to everything except garter snakes, which have developed an immunity to their neurotoxin, which might explain why they cavalierly take their time out in the open. In all we tallied 38 salamander sightings, far outnumbering people on the morning. We chanced upon another 8 banana slugs for good measure. For the first 2/3 of the trip we didn't see another soul. Only as we came back toward the trailhead did more people appear on the trails. Our route took us from Five Brooks, to the Olema Valley Trail, then Bolema Trail, the aforementioned Lake Ranch Trail, then along the Coast Trail to the Old Out Trail, Alamea Trail, Stewart Trail, Greenpicker Trail, with a final stretch on the Stewart Trail. Makes me tired just typing it. We did over 15 miles in 6 hours with about 3,000' of elevation gain. By the time we reached the Station House Cafe in Pt.Reyes Station we were famished, having only a small pack of trail mix before starting out on the hike. Another beautiful sojourn in the Seashore.