Abbotts Lagoon is a special place where pastoral land, coastal scrub communities and inland bodies of water abruptly meet sand dunes, beach and sea. These adjacent systems bring together an extraordinary diversity of plants and wildlife in a relatively small space.

Dunes on the western edge of Abbotts Lagoon support several endangered plant species threatened by invasive, non-endemic plants

Abbotts Lagoon supports one of the most prolific spring wildflower displays in all of California

Winter storms sometimes breach this tenuous barrier; if so, accumulating sands will eventually seal off the opening

The initial approach through pastoral grasslands and coastal scrub

Point Reyes Beach, also known as 'The Great Beach'

A lagoon is a brackish-water lake separated from the ocean by a narrow strip of beach

April and May are peak wildflower season at Abbotts Lagoon

Coastal sand dunes are held together by the complex root systems of specially adapted plants

The unmaintained trail beyond Abbotts Lagoon leads to the north edge of Point Reyes Beach

The northern wing of Abbotts Lagoon

Coastal sand dunes protect inland ecosystems from wind and tidal surges

Tread lightly through the dunes and avoid trampling on vegetation

The threatened Western Snowy Plover nest in these protective dunes

Avoid disturbing plants and wildlife by walking through wide swathes of sands

Grebes, Coots and Caspian Terns are just some of the dozens of water fowl found at Abbotts Lagoon