Alamere Falls

Spring Break! A beautiful week filled with endless amounts of time to sleep in, relax, and enjoy a few days of much need time being away from campus. As predicted, I visited San Francisco again to spend a few days de-stressing thousands of miles away from St. Louis and the occasional stress bubble that is the WashU Danforth Campus.

Every time I visit, I look to do something new in and around the city, so this time Henry and I booked a rental car and traveled north to the Marin Headlands! We spent a full day exploring Muir Beach, Muir Beach Overlook, and hiking to Alamere Falls. ​

We drove to the Palomarin Trailhead and parked our car. From there, we began the 4 mile hike to the Falls. Along the way, we met an eccentric lady named Patty who was thrilled since it was her birthday as well as St. Patrick's Day. We also passed other enthusiastic hikers who gave us advice on when we should turn left to keep in the direction of the falls. ​

It was 2 hours later on the summit of a mountain that Henry and I realized that we had missed the hidden turn the hikers told us about. We took a good look at the land far below us and found the waterfall far away in the distance. We weren't upset that we had missed the turn, because without it, we wouldn't have been able to experience the breathtaking aerial views from the top of the trail. ​

When we finally got close to the waterfall, we had to face the final stretch to reach the beach. We had to cross the river that poured down 50 or 60 feet below. We stood about 20 feet from the ledge that dropped below and took each step barefoot through the current. Luckily it was only about 2 feet deep, but the chilly water was still just as shocking! ​

Once we crossed over to the other side, we now had to descend the 50-60 foot drop using a combined technique of sliding on our butts and slowly crawling down one foot at a time, being careful not to slip and fall. Eventually, we reached the bottom of the descent and landed firmly on the sand! ​

We found about 20 other hikers who had also made it to the bottom of the falls, including Patty, who took this great picture of us together.

Henry and I walked along the beach and explored the surrounding area for about 45 minutes before packing up our gear and starting the long journey back to the car. By the time we got back to the beginning of the trailhead, 5 hours had passed and we were looking forward to getting on the road!​ Overall, we had an amazing hike and an unforgettable experience that we'll always remember in the years to come.

#hiking #nature #SanFrancisco