One week later, we were back: driving the winding road to the sea and digging our toes into the soft sands of the Lost Coast. Having discovered paradise, we couldn’t stay away. For this adventure, we had one specific destination in mind: the Punta Gorda Lighthouse!
From the moment we saw it on our Lost Coast Trail long run (and the moment I’d seen it again from Punta), I knew we’d have to come back and spend some quality time at the Punta Gorda Lighthouse. Truth be told, I was fixated on it: there was nowhere I wanted to go more.
For one thing, lighthouses are my favorite! This one was built in 1911, lit in 1912, and ceased operations in 1951. If you like lighthouses, I highly recommend reading the colorful history of the Punta Gorda Lighthouse on this terrific website.
When we’d seen Punta Gorda before, we’d been in such a hurry to beat the incoming tide that we’d gone right past. But we’d noticed an informational plaque beside it, and I knew from my research about the area that we could even go inside it! With a dedicated lighthouse run, we could spend all the time we wanted exploring and learning about this unique place.
What’s more, all the seals live at Punta Gorda Lighthouse! A newly established and growing colony of northern elephant seals tend to nap – and molt – on the beach in front of the lighthouse. Come in spring for the highest concentration of these magnificent marine mammals!
Our run took place on the last day of May in 2020, and it was magical. We arrived slightly after dawn and somehow had the beautiful black sand Mattole Beach all to ourselves again. The tide was low, making for smooth movement over wet, compacted sand at the shoreline. I was able to confirm my initial impression of this beach: yep, this is the best place in the world!
The best moment was when a sea lion popped a curious face out of the water only a couple of meters from the break. At first, it barked at us in surprise. But then it seemed to realize that we were no threat, and swam parallel to us in the water as we ran all the way across the beach!
Rounding Windy Point, Punta Gorda Lighthouse came into view. We ran towards it full of excitement! Once there, we donned our jackets and dropped our bags for a longer, exploratory stay.
My first mission was to investigate the lighthouse. A spiral staircase wound up to the second level, where the light was once situated. There was no railing, and I was hesitant to touch the stairs (because rust) or the walls (because guano). So I made my way up very slowly and carefully.
Emerging through a narrow opening onto an enclosed platform, I had incredible views of the Lost Coast! I could see the elephant seals, the Lost Coast Trail and Kent looking up at me (he’d opted to not climb). After revolving a few times to take in the view, I had the sudden delightful (and nerdy) thought that I was doing exactly what the bivalve lens once did!
Eventually, I was persuaded to descend (again slowly and carefully) and we made our way slightly further south for a closer look at the elephant seals. Admirers are meant to stay a football field away, but luckily, these are huge animals – so you can get a good look even at a distance.
We stood for a while admiring a group lounging on the beach. In the warm rays of the late morning sun, they were positively lazy! There was the odd scratch, position adjustment or grunt. We were curious about how they managed to haul their massive bodies out of the water and high onto the beach – but nobody moved.
At some point, we decided to wander slightly further down our old friend the Lost Coast Trail. As it turned out, our path was blocked by one elephant seal reposing right on the path! It lifted its head sleepily to regard us as we stopped suddenly in our tracks, only meters away!
As we lingered, we noticed another figure in the distance: a lone hiker, heading our way. We waved, and she approached us. As it turned out, she was a researcher from Humboldt State! We had so many questions and she was more than happy to talk seals with us.
So it turned out that we spent just as much time enjoying Punta Gorda Lighthouse and learning about its pinniped residents as we did running! After about an hour and a half, we were chilled and decided to head on back up the beach. If it hadn’t been for that, we might have stayed forever!
The return journey presented us with a bit of a challenge. The wind was whistling in full demonstration of why hikers typically typically choose to head south on the Lost Coast Trail. The sand had dried somewhat since we last ran on it, so in places we were sinking in up to our ankles! But it remained strikingly beautiful, all the way back.
I wholeheartedly recommend an expedition on the entire Lost Coast Trail. But equally, I recommend spending time at this lovely lighthouse. Head back to the King Range main page for more of my adventures, or check out the official BLM King Range site here. Happy hiking!
This is beautiful. Thanks for sharing!