Tubbs
Island,
San Pablo Bay National Wildlife Refuge,
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service,
Sonoma County
In brief:
This easy 8 mile hike requires a long, dull, out and back slog on levee roads,
but the reward is sublime bird watching and serenity on paths at the bay's edge.
Getting there:
From US 101 in Marin County, exit CA 37. Drive about 7.5 miles east on CA 37,
to the junction with 121. Continue east on CA 37 about 0.7 mile more, then turn
right into the preserve (there is no refuge sign, but the entrance is just after
a flurry of "no parking" signs along the side of the road). Note: there
is no access to the refuge from westbound CA 37. If you're approaching that direction,
you'll need to turn around at the CA 121 junction and enter from the eastbound
lane of CA 37.
Trailhead details:
Small paved lot. No parking or entrance fees. No designated handicapped parking,
and poor wheelchair access. No drinking water or restrooms. Maps at an information
signboard 2.5 miles into the refuge. There is no direct public transportation
to this trailhead. Note that hunting is permitted in parts of this refuge, from
September to February.
Gas, food, and lodging:
Gas, restaurants, stores, and pay phones back in Novato. No camping.
Distance, category, and difficulty:
This 8 mile partial loop hike is easy, but long. Trails are flat.
Rules:
Trails are open to hikers and cyclists during daylight hours. Dogs are not permitted,
except to accompany hunters during hunting season.
The Official Story:
Park office at Mare Island 707-562-3000
Map Choices:
• Use AAA's San Francisco Bay Region map to get there.
• Map
from the Bay Trail website
Tubbs
Island in a nutshell -- a printable, text-only guide to the featured hike.
View
photos from this hike.
Tubbs Island, part of the San Pablo Bay National 
Wildlife
Refuge, is home to an astounding assortment of wildlife. Throughout 13,000 acres
of salt marsh, mudflats, freshwater wetlands, and uplands, you might see jackrabbits,
hawks, pelicans, ducks, avocets, swifts, egrets, stilts, and endangered creatures
like the clapper rail and salt marsh harvest mouse. These year-round residents
are joined in autumn by migratory ducks and shorebirds, and the raptor population
swells to include falcons, kestrels, kites, and northern harriers. Larger mammals
roam the marsh as well, but you will probably only see their footprints. Although
there are a few farms on the outskirts of the refuge, and Highway 37 is rarely
out of earshot, Tubbs Island feels very remote.
Hiker "El Rayo" suggested this Tubbs Island
visit, and you might well consider his warning about conditions during the wet
months: "pick your day carefully -- mud, mud, mud." It's best to wait
a few days after winter and spring rains before visiting. Although autumn and
early winter 
are
the best seasons for birdwatching, this is also hunting season at San Pablo Bay
National Wildlife Refuge. I like summer, when unlike practically every other landscape
in the bay area the marsh is still green, and trails are cooled by breezes blowing
off the bay.
Begin at the gated fire road. The wide trail,
open to hikers and cyclists, runs along a levee, then curves left and descends
a few feet to an information signboard and picnic table. Bordered on the right
by a tall levee blocking any views west, the trail heads south through a mixture
of invasive thistles, coyote brush, dock, and fennel. In August dry strawberry
blond mustard plants rustle in the wind. You might see empty shotgun shells littered
on the ground. The trail sweeps right, all the while keeping a level pace. In
adjacent farmland to the left look for jackrabbits (and hawks) when the fields
are shorn in summer. 
One
stretch of trail hosts a bonanza of nightshade. Another turn, this time to the
left, angles the route south again. The levee's scrim drops a bit to nearly head-level,
and there are some views into the marsh on the right. Look for pickleweed, gumplant,
and New Zealand spinach. At 2.59 miles, you'll reach a junction and information
signboard, just before a little protected bay, on the left. White pelicans are
commonly spotted on the water, or flying overhead in airshow formation. Continue
straight to a signed junction at 2.64 miles, then stay to the left on Bay
Trail.
On my visit there were jackrabbits running up and
down the trail, and egrets and great blue herons wading through the marsh on the
right. At 2.96 miles, you'll reach an unsigned T junction with a closed trail.
Turn right to remain on Bay Trail.
Clinging to the
shoreline, the trail winds through fennel, wild radish, yellow star thistle, and
mustard. When the skies are clear, there are views across San Pablo Bay to all
the substantial mountains of eastern Marin County. You'll likely see some shorebirds
and egrets picking through the mudflats on the left. In summer butterflies and
dragonflies float through the air. Gradually the trail turns north, running parallel
to a watery channel on the right popular with egrets and great blue herons. Coyote
brush lines the trail. Mosquitoes can be a problem on still summer days. At 4.61
miles, an unsigned path heads east across the marsh. Continue straight/left,
now on Wingspan Way.
Ducks float on a broad waterway to the right, and
avocets and stilts plod through muddy puddles on the left. If it's a race day
at Sears Point you may be able to hear the action, along with car traffic from
Highway 37. On this trail in August, a hawk suddenly flew off from a spot along
the trail, less than 20 feet away. When I got to the area, I peered into the pickleweed
and saw a dismembered freshly-killed rabbit. I had interrupted lunch! No doubt
the vultures would be by, happy with any leftovers. At 5.35 miles, you'll reach
a previously encountered junction. Turn left and retrace your steps back to
the trailhead.
Total distance: 8.05 miles
Last hiked: Tuesday, August 13, 2002
Go to Bay Area Hiker Home page
Wildlife
Refuge, is home to an astounding assortment of wildlife. Throughout 13,000 acres
of salt marsh, mudflats, freshwater wetlands, and uplands, you might see jackrabbits,
hawks, pelicans, ducks, avocets, swifts, egrets, stilts, and endangered creatures
like the clapper rail and salt marsh harvest mouse. These year-round residents
are joined in autumn by migratory ducks and shorebirds, and the raptor population
swells to include falcons, kestrels, kites, and northern harriers. Larger mammals
roam the marsh as well, but you will probably only see their footprints. Although
there are a few farms on the outskirts of the refuge, and Highway 37 is rarely
out of earshot, Tubbs Island feels very remote.
are
the best seasons for birdwatching, this is also hunting season at San Pablo Bay
National Wildlife Refuge. I like summer, when unlike practically every other landscape
in the bay area the marsh is still green, and trails are cooled by breezes blowing
off the bay. 
One
stretch of trail hosts a bonanza of nightshade. Another turn, this time to the
left, angles the route south again. The levee's scrim drops a bit to nearly head-level,
and there are some views into the marsh on the right. Look for pickleweed, gumplant,
and New Zealand spinach. At 2.59 miles, you'll reach a junction and information
signboard, just before a little protected bay, on the left. White pelicans are
commonly spotted on the water, or flying overhead in airshow formation. Continue
straight to a signed junction at 2.64 miles, then stay to the left on Bay
Trail.
shoreline, the trail winds through fennel, wild radish, yellow star thistle, and
mustard. When the skies are clear, there are views across San Pablo Bay to all
the substantial mountains of eastern Marin County. You'll likely see some shorebirds
and egrets picking through the mudflats on the left. In summer butterflies and
dragonflies float through the air. Gradually the trail turns north, running parallel
to a watery channel on the right popular with egrets and great blue herons. Coyote
brush lines the trail. Mosquitoes can be a problem on still summer days. At 4.61
miles, an unsigned path heads east across the marsh. Continue straight/left,
now on Wingspan Way. 