In May 1998 I spent a week in SF area with three days in the city itself and 3 days in Monterey. I saw most of the lighthouses in the region. The following are the lighthouses I saw (from south to north) and my opinion:

Point Sur is an absolute must see but the tours were limited to Saturdays at that time...they allowed around 20 people to go on the tour and it was first come first serve. I would contact them as to when they operate the tours and plan to arrive 30 minutes beforehand.

Point Pinos is must see...its easy to find in Pacific Grove and has a nice museum. Good operating hours so you will likely find it open.

Pass on Santa Cruz...its was hard to find and was never really a true functional lighthouse. Its now a surfing museum so unless you are into surfing there is not much inside it of interest.

Pigeon Point is a must see...easy to locate on Hwy 1 and had decent operating hours (like 10 to 4)and frequent climbing tours of the tower.

Point Montara is a see if you have time.

Alcatraz is a must see...not only from the point of the lighthouse but from the other history of the island. A very nice audio tour is included. You have to make reservations ahead of time to get a place on the boat to the island..it is recommended you call a month ahead of time.

Point Bonita is one I saw from afar because the bridge to it was only open on certain days...call ahead of time to see what day this is. Its pretty easy to find just off the Golden Gate Bridge.

Point Reyes is a must see... I would suggest one day to see Point Bonita, Muir Woods (which is a fantastic park...it was my first introduction to the majestic redwood but there is no lighthouse) and Point Reyes. While you're there, the earthquake trail at Point Reyes is also worth doing.

Finally we come to Point Arena...let me preface this by saying that I was looking at a map and estimated the distance from SF to Point Arena was about 120 mile along Hwy 1. I said to myself..oh about 2 or 2 1/2 hours. WRONG!!! It took closer to 3 1/2 to 4 hours. Granted I was there after the "El Nino" winter and there were several sections of Hwy 1 closed with winding detours. There are other ways to get there using interstate north of SF and then crossing over to the coast which I would recommend if time is a factor. To be honest I was too stressed out about arriving before the lightouse closed (I made it with 10 minutes to spare) to appreciate the beauty of Hwy 1. In spite of all the hassel, Point Arena was definately worth the trip in the end. It is absolutely beautiful with stunning coastline and the tower is open for climbing tours. Plan on using a day to see it.

I hope this helps Dennis.

Doc John

[This message has been edited by DocJ44 (edited 12-18-99).]