Marin County, California

Every single summer when we want to get away from the hundred digits we head towards Marin County, Point Reyes, or San Francisco.

When it is one hundred degrees in Sacramento it will be anywhere from fifty nine to seventy five degrees in Marin County, California.

It can be windy so we always bring jackets and hats with us. We don’t mind the wind because we are trying to get away from all the heat.

When we moved to the United States thirty years ago, my dad brought with him a Russian hat. My parents kept it in a suitcase for years until one day my mom got rid of it.

I recently told my mom that I wish she had kept it because I’d proudly wear it. By chance she actually found a hat at a yard sale. This hat has sizing and words written in Russian.

Be proud of your heritage, who you are, and your family.

I lived in Rocklin, California most of my childhood and teen years.

There were only a handful of Slavic children who went to school with me.

Kids would say, “Irina, Irina, Irina, where did you get your name? Pack your bags and go to Ukraine. ” I never hid that I was someone I wasn’t. My heritage and culture was important to me.

I was proud of my family. How could I not be? My parents left their entire family and homeland so that my sisters and I could have a better future.

In high school I took childhood education and when my mama volunteered to be a chaperon, I held my mamas hand during our bus ride and at the zoo. When my Dad picked me up from high school while school was in session, I’d hug him. I was a teenager but family and my heritage has always been so important to me.

 

The Marshall Store

If you’d love to stop and have a bite to eat then you’ll want to stop by at The Marshall Store. I had the baked brie: brie cheese that was warm, roasted garlic, apple slices, and bread. It was so good. We actually want to make our own version of baked brie. This would be a perfect appetizer dish when camping.

They offer a variety of oyster options but we aren’t the biggest fans of oyster. You can also order from the deli menu.

You can choose to sit indoors or outdoors. The view of the bay is perfect way to enjoy great company, food, and the outdoors.

Prices are anywhere from $7 to $25. The portions are not big here.

Located at 19225 CA-1, Marshall, CA 94940.

Lowson’s Londing Campground

We love camping. Now that we have our “white school bus” we can easily stay overnight anywhere. This campground is great because you can walk to the beach.

Located at 137 Marine View Dr, Dillion Beach, CA 94929.

We get excited about cooking meals while camping because we are able to make new things. Also, who doesn’t like firepits, fresh air, and food?

For the first time ever, I tried making chicken in hay.

What you’ll need:

A small whole chicken

4 cups of butter

cheesecloth

8 fresh bay leaves

15 garlic cloves unpeeled

clean dry hay

salt and pepper

optional: mayo

You’ll need a Dutch oven.

First cover the bottom of the Dutch oven with hay. Set it aside

Season the chicken with salt and pepper. You could rub mayo all over it. Place garlic and bay leaves inside the chicken. As well as the top of the chicken.

In a saucepan add the butter and let it melt. Then take off the heat and place the cheesecloth into the butter. Wrap the chicken in the buttery cheesecloth and place inside the Dutch oven.

Cover the chicken with hay. Cover Dutch oven with a lid.

You should cook the chicken until the internal temperature reaches to 160 degrees.  1 1/2 to 2 hours is how long it should take.

Let chicken rest then remove from cheesecloth.

Point Reyes Bird Observatory

If your exploring Marin County, California then you want to make it your priority to stop here. We have been here before and we will make it a stop every time that we are in the area because it is a fascinating experience.

This is a place where ornithologists (a person who studies birds) band birds that are captured in the nets that are on the property. Once the nets are put up (9am), the ornithologist checks them every thirty minutes. When they are done they close the nets so that no other birds get caught. If a bird is found it is then weighed, a band is put on the bird, and other recordings are done. Then the bird is released into the wild.

This is all free. You can actually walk with the ornithologist and see if a bird is found in the net and then watch how they record the wing length, the prediction of how old the bird is, and other important information.

While we were there we saw two birds captured and studied. Mornings and summer time is the best chance of you actually seeing a bird. Even if no birds are found in the nets you can learn about the different tools that are used during the process.

Located at 999 Mesa Rd, Bolinas, CA 94924.

The Bay Area Discovery Museum

This is a hands on museum where children build, draw, climb, and are given the freedom to explore and let their imaginations go wild.

This place is fun for younger children. Our eight and ten year old children loved this place but our fourteen year old wasn’t interested in it.

You can see the golden gate bridge from the bay area discovery museum.

There are a number of indoor rooms that are spread out as well as an outdoor space. This is great because not all the children are in the same rooms. We were the only ones in some of the rooms.

There are seven exhibits and they rotate these exhibits periodically.

They are opened Sunday to Friday 9am until 5pm. On Saturday they are opened from 10am until 5pm.

Located at 557 McReynolds Rd, Sausalito, CA 94965.

Moore Road Pier Crabbing

On this pier which is located in Marin County, California, you’ll see the Golden Gate Bridge, Presidio, downtown San Francisco, Bay Bridge, Alcatraz, and Treasure Island.

Now you don’t need a fishing license if your fishing or crabbing off the pier. As soon as you step off the pier then you’ll need a license. You just need to check the limits : how many and which fish/crabs are allowed to be taken. We live less than an hour from this pier so we are blessed to come here as often as we would like. Tourists from all over the world stopped to see what we were trying to catch and what we actually caught. Many of them did not understand what we were saying but we smiled at each other and I’m sure they will always remember how people crabbed and fished off this pier.

You’ll also see seals here. One naughty seal kept stealing all of our crab bait. We were glad the seal came around when we were about to leave anyways.

411 Moore Rd, Sausalito, CA 94965.

A not so positive note: Not sure why but there is hardly any decent bathrooms in Marin County, California. Most of the bathrooms are portable bathrooms. The only decent bathrooms were at Bay Area Discovery Museum so if your traveling with little children bring seat covers with you and extra toilet paper would not hurt. Bring a potty chair if you have small children who are potty training or you decided to camp.

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