Historic B Ranch, Point Reyes Peninsula

      Experience coastal Marin history

      Unlikely as it may seem to visitors now, the village of Tomales was once an ocean port. The first European settler was an Irishman named John Keys who, beginning in 1850, built a house and store there. A line of warehouses later served the ships that carried butter, hogs, beef, and potatoes down Keys Creek to Tomales Bay and thence to San Francisco. Within 20 years the creek bed had silted in, and ships could sail no closer to Tomales than Ocean Roar at the mouth of Keys Creek. When the North Pacific Coast Railroad reached Tomales in 1875, linking the area to the rail-ferry wharf in Sausalito (and thus to San Francisco), transportation of farm produce was greatly improved.

      A number of 19th-century structures remain near the intersection of Main St. and Dillon Beach Rd. in Tomales. The Church of the Assumption, located just south of the present business section, was built in 1860 and restored after the 1906 earthquake. The Tomales Regional History Center at 26701 Hwy. One has exhibits about the area’s early residents, agricultural economy, and the North Pacific Coast Railroad. The museum is open on Saturday and Sunday, 1–4 PM. For information, call: 707-878-9443.

      The Jack Mason Museum of West Marin History in Inverness is housed in an 1893-vintage house known as The Gables, located at 15 Park Avenue. A small gallery features changing exhibits, such as historic photos of West Marin scenes and farming families. The gallery shares space with the Inverness Public Library; for open hours, call: 415-669-1288. For more information on the museum’s collections, which focus on the history of the Tomales Bay region between the hamlets of Ocean Roar and Dogtown, call: 415-669-1099.

      Point Reyes Station was originally a stop on the North Pacific Coast Railroad. The old depot now serves as the post office. Other buildings in town are named for their original functions: the Old Creamery Building, the Livery Stable, the Hay Barn. A children’s playground and public restrooms are on Mesa Rd. at Toby St. in Point Reyes Station. Well-known photographer Art Rogers, who has made celebrated portraits of local residents over nearly four decades, has a gallery in Point Reyes Station (call: 415-663-8345) and sometimes displays his work at the Jack Mason Museum in Inverness.

      Dine on local oysters

      Locally raised oysters are a Tomales Bay–area specialty and can be enjoyed at many local restaurants. In the hamlet of Marshall, Hog Island Oyster Company offers bayside picnic and barbecue facilities for shuckyour-own fare, as well as take-away oysters, Manila clams, and mussels. Picnic reservations are advised. Open daily, 9 AM–5 PM; call: 415-663-9218. Tomales Bay Oyster Company is on Hwy. One just north of Millerton Point. There are picnic and barbecue facilities overlooking Tomales Bay, and fresh oysters and shellfish are available to go. Open daily, 9 AM–5 PM; call: 415-663-1243.