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Day 1: Daycare was closed this week and we will attempt camping again! It’s redemption. Redemption from December when we finally decided to get out after being in lockdown, only to find our campsite closing just days before our arrival because of the rise in COVID cases. Redemption from March when the campsites opened back up, made it through the first day, only to have crazy storm pop up from nowhere and drenched everything we had inside and outside of the tent! It rained sideways that it seeped into the tent and wet our shoes and anything that was at the edges of the tent. Unfortunately, Y had crept up to the edge and he was drenched when he finally wiggled and woke us up in the morning. We had no choice but to pack up and go home. At least we weren’t far away from home. The third attempt was set at Marin Headlands. It's the place V and I have loved to run. We've been there many times but had never camped there. Bicentennial Campsite has only 3 sites at a great location. It's a must-check!
Today’s plan was just to get to the campsite during Y’s
nap and do a mini-hike to the Point Bonita Lighthouse. V seemed like he’d been packing for days but still managed to scramble until the last minute. We finally got out the door at 1pm and still managed to realize a few things we missed.
It was a nice day here on the Point Bonita trail. Windy but sunny and the Golden Gate Bridge (GGB) was fully in sight. The lighthouse was still closed for COVID but the trail leading to it was a nice half-mile walk with a view. We all enjoyed the walk. Y even ran up the uphill coming back. Snack on a bench was definitely a plus.
There are 3 campsites tucked away below the road. It’s a short walk from the car but a pain to haul coolers and whatnot vs having the car right in the site. The sites are nicely spread out with a sand bed to peg it down and a storage bin. It’s a rustic site with a port-a-potty to the side and no running water. We packed a bunch of bags with frozen water and used melted water to clean dishes. That’s all fine but the problem was
Y’s eating situation. We should’ve known that Y isn’t master at eating yet. The table is high and far which made it even harder to grab food with utensils. Things fell on the table and he tried to pick them up. His hands were all over the table which could never be really clean. Either a table cloth or even a high chair would have saved me some stress.
The sand there was fine and sticky. Y thought he was in one big sandbox. It didn’t help that my brilliant idea of bringing two surprise toys was a complete failure. A big thing of bubble wand was nothing but frustration for Y. He wanted to make his own bubbles but couldn’t blow hard enough. Y couldn’t kick the ball around because the place was surrounded by poison oak. Oh well, dig away son.
After dinner, V found a path that led to a spectacular view of the GGB. We had the sun to our back (no sunset) but soaked in the view before we turned into our home for the next two nights.
Day 2: I woke up at 5:45 am like clockwork. Pretty peaceful night.
No raccoon, no bug, not too cold, no Y waking up. It was 8am by the time we finished much-needed breakfast. The plan was to hit the trail toward Rodeo Beach but the mist was getting heavy. At the trailhead a couple-minute drive from the campsite, the mist had become a bit too much. The wind was also blowing hard and getting wet would’ve led us to misery as there was no sign of cloud breaking. After decades of living in the Bay Area, I just can’t seem to get myself to understand the June Gloom. We opted to drive out in search of the sun.
The sun finally cracked in Sausalito. But I didn’t know what to do there so we drove over to Fort Baker. Same story; misty and windy. We did a short walk to Battery Yates. This would’ve been a great GGB viewing spot. Today’s view wasn’t that bad either with fig covering just the top of the bridge. But it wasn’t really pleasant to be out and about, let alone to go deeper in the woods. I know Y wasn’t ready to be strapped in the car again but we managed to convince him.
Sausalito was still under the crack of the cloud. Y got to ride his balance bike on the little stretch to Sausalito Beach. It was a cute walk with yachts and boathouses. Y was so tired that he passed out on the way back. The unplanned nap took us to 1pm. Gobbled lunch in the mist and out we went again. We thought it would be cool to take Y on the GGB rather than continuously seeing it from afar. But! There is no foot access to the bridge from the north side. Google Maps just saved us $9. Plan B: Sausalito on the south side this time to stroll in a gusty wind.
It was still misting strong back at the campsite. Dinner today was a little better as we all got a hang of Y eating at the picnic table and I was desensitized about Y’s hand going between food and the table. We all sang はじまるよ on loop and went to sleep.
Day 3 Good morning 5:45 am. I was really hoping for dryness today but it couldn’t have been more opposite. The picnic table was too wet to even sit. We packed
a wet and sandy tent while trying to keep things dry and Y focused on helping rather than spreading that sticky dirt around. Hauling stuff back to the car was harder because of the uphill. While V and I coordinated all of that, I found one of the picnic tables up above was dry under the tree. So glad we didn’t have to wait much longer for breakfast.
After wrapping up, we hit the road at 9 am, which would’ve been the cut-off to head to Tiburon for the ferry departure at 10 am. Phew. Again, hoping for a crack in the cloud in Tiburon but no luck. At least visibility wasn’t bad below the cloud. 2-hr street parking wasn’t too hard to find. Shepherding Y along the short stretch to the ferry landing took us right at boarding time, phew, close call!
Ferry was more crowded than I thought mostly with families like us and a huge summer camp group. Y was pretty excited to be on a boat for the first time 😊. A short ride took us to Angel Island. I’ve run here a few times in my previous life. It’s not very big. One
big loop is about 10 miles which would come up short if V and I were running. With Y, on the other hand, it was a struggle to get through the smallest loop around the beach. We thought ahead and brought a balance bike but Y wasn’t feeling it at all. He dosed off on the way here way too early for his nap time. Perhaps tired from two nights of tent sleeping. It didn’t help that all of our shoes got wet from walking on wet grass. It didn’t bother V and I but Y wasn’t going to keep the wet socks and shoes. He had Crocs on and pebbles were getting in and they don’t exactly stay on well. We spent one hour shepherding Y while watching the time for our return boat. We couldn’t miss this one because we had to eat lunch and drive out for a much-needed nap! We had the return boat to ourselves. Cloudy but the herd of pelicans flew right by and it was a nice bite-size ride 😊. We stopped by a park for lunch and that was a wrap!
Not gonna lie, going camping with a 2-year-old is hectic,
especially since V and I can tough out a lot of things and keep things very very minimal. The weather didn’t exactly help us but we made the best of it. If the worst thing was Y eating some dirt, I’ll take it. Sharing outdoor and experiencing the fog, the mist, and the gusty wind was so worth it!
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