This Bay Area lighthouse hides behind a hand-carved tunnel, and the door only opens one Saturday a month
Most lighthouses make you climb stairs. Point Bonita makes you walk through a mountain first.
At the tip of the Marin Headlands, a 118-foot tunnel carved by hand through solid rock is the only way out to the light. Right now, the National Park Service unlocks its door for exactly three hours a month, and the next window is Saturday, October 17, from 12:30 to 3:30 p.m.
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Why a lighthouse needed its own tunnel
The first Point Bonita light went up in 1855, the third lighthouse built on the West Coast. The problem was where they put it: 306 feet above the water, right up in the fog that smothers this stretch of coast.
Ships couldn’t see it half the time, and out here that was a real problem. The Park Service counts more than 300 ships that ran aground near the Golden Gate during the Gold Rush years.
So in 1877, the light moved down to a rocky point 124 feet above the sea, and crews cut a tunnel through the rock to reach it. Walking through it today feels like stepping into a secret passage, cold stone on both sides and the Pacific booming somewhere up ahead.
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What you’ll actually see right now
Here’s the catch nobody puts on the postcard. The suspension bridge that crosses the final gap to the lighthouse is closed until further notice, so on open days you walk the trail, pass through the tunnel, and stop at a viewing platform looking straight across at the light.
Still worth the trip? Yes, and it isn’t close. That bridge has a claim all its own, since this is the only lighthouse in the United States reached solely by a suspension bridge, and seeing it strung over the surf is half the show.
The little white tower is still an active light maintained by the Coast Guard, and it was the last staffed lighthouse on the California coast. Rangers also run a 15-minute “light chat” at 12:15 p.m., right before the trail opens, if you want the backstory from someone who knows it cold.
The trail, by the numbers
This one’s short: 1.1 miles round trip with 196 feet of elevation gain, rated easy. The catch is that the trail drops toward the point first, so the climbing all happens on the way back to your car.
Along the way you’ll pass pillow basalt, the ruins of an old lifesaving station, and coves where harbor seals haul out on the rocks below. Bring binoculars, because whales and porpoises pass through these waters too.
The Park Service describes the path as steep and uneven with loose gravel, and the cliffs along the point can be unstable, so stay behind the railings. Pack a layer, since a sunny afternoon out here can turn cold, windy, and foggy fast, and leave the dog and the bike at home (neither is allowed on the trail).
We learned the schedule the hard way. We once walked the whole trail without checking first and hit a locked door at the tunnel, so take it from us and read our full Point Bonita Lighthouse trail guide before you go.
Turn it into a Marin Headlands afternoon
Since you’re planning around a three-hour window anyway, get there early. Hawk Hill, just up the road in the headlands, is where volunteers count migrating raptors every fall, and as many as 19 species can show up over the season.
The migration keeps going through November, and the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy says fog-free days between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. are prime time. That lines up almost perfectly with a late-morning hawk watch followed by the lighthouse at 12:30.
Parking at the Point Bonita trailhead is limited, so if it’s full, try the Battery Alexander lot a short walk away. Nearby Battery Wallace has picnic tables looking out at the Golden Gate Bridge, and we’ve rounded up more of the best Golden Gate Bridge viewpoints if you want to keep chasing the angle.
Still have daylight? Kirby Cove sits tucked below the headlands just west of the bridge, and our Golden Gate National Recreation Area guide has plenty more to fill a weekend.
The dates to put on your calendar
The remaining 2026 open days are October 17, November 21, and December 19, each from 12:30 to 3:30 p.m. The Park Service notes the tunnel and lighthouse open depending on weather and staffing, so check the official Point Bonita page the morning you head out.
Would you plan a whole Saturday around a three-hour peek through a nearly 150-year-old tunnel? We would. Tell us the Bay Area spot you think is worth building a day around.
Trip tips: grab a rental car to get out to the headlands, or lock in your hotel before the good rooms are gone.
Rules and fees change, so always confirm current requirements before you go.
