Time running out for landmark old boat that became a California social media star

INVERNESS, Calif. (AP) - Time is apparently running out for California's “Inverness Shipwreck,” an old wooden boat that became an Instagram star as it rotted on a shoreline north of San Francisco.

Recent storms have made a shambles of the forlorn vessel named Point Reyes, which was already deteriorated from the over-attention of visitors to the Marin County coast, San Francisco Bay news media reported this week.

“The National Park Service is aware that additional damage occurred to the vessel as a result of the most recent storms and tides,” Point Reyes National Seashore officials said in a statement to the SFGATE news site. “While we recognize that this is a local landmark and destination, the NPS is evaluating options to remove it safely.”

The boat was built in the 1940s and was used for transportation and fishing before it was abandoned years ago, aground near the community of Inverness on a section of the Tomales Bay shoreline that is part of the Point Reyes National Seashore.

It then became a tourist draw and a darling of social media. Instagram alone has more than 5,500 images of the Point Reyes, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.

Now, the scene that caught the eyes of so many photographers is just about gone.

Jim Fox, chief of the local volunteer fire department, told the Chronicle that the boat is a dangerous nuisance.

"It’s much more dangerous than it used to be,” he said. “As the fire chief, I would just as soon people not come out because someone’s going to get hurt.”