The San Andreas Fault bisects the Point Reyes peninsula from the California mainland.

The San Andreas Fault Zone is present at Point Reyes National Seashore and separates the Pacific plate from the slowing moving North American plate. The Pacific plate is estimated to creep northwestward about two inches a year but the most dramatic displacement of this fault occurred in 1906 when the Point Reyes Peninsula leapt 20 feet northwestward. The most accessible location within Point Reyes National Seashore to view the San Andreas Fault Zone is from the Earthquake Trail, located off of the parking lot at the Bear Valley Visitor Center.

To learn more about the 1906 Earthquake, the San Andreas Fault and Plate Tectonics, check out our 1906 Earthquake Centennial Resource Newsletter and the Point Reyes National Seashore Geologic Activity webpage.

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