Category Archives: California Coast

California Coast, Campgrounds, Coastal Cliffs

Monterey Campgrounds

Monterey Bay Campgrounds

Monterey Beach Camping

The Monterey Bay of California is located south of the San Francisco peninsula, and north of the rugged Big Sur Central Coast. This is a popular region for tourism, coastal villages w/ shops and restaurants, parks and beaches, farms and farm stands.  With Santa Cruz mountains and redwoods as the backdrop, this coastline is also highly residential.

Camping along this coast is limited mostly to State Parks and few private RV park campgrounds. No primitive beach camping is allowed on State Beaches, no hike-in camp sites, no hidden cove tent sites, nor secret dirt roads with views over the Pacific. This is a very developed beach and bay, with the 4-lane freeway, main artery US Highway 101, bordering the entire shore.

If you are looking for free and a more rugged, scenic camp – head south to the Big Sur Coast, to find a dirt road camp on the ridge. The sweetest ocean view hike-in camp sites can be found to the north, in the Marin Headlands of Point Reyes, which can be found under Marin Camping.

blue links lead to State Park pages w/ camp reservations.camp

Monterey Area Campgrounds

(listed from south to north)

Monterey Pines RV Campground (Navy)

Monterey County Fairgrounds RV Park

Marina Dunes RV Park

Sunset State Beach State Parks
South Campground

Manresa State Beach State Parks
Uplands Campground

Seacliff RV Park

Seacliff State Beach Campground State Parks

New Brighton State Beach State Parks

Santa Vida RV Park, Santa Cruz, California

Costanoa Coastal Lodge & Campground, Pescadero

Pelican Point RV Park, Half Moon Bay

Half Moon State Beach State Parks
Francis Beach Campground

camping monterey

woods

seaside towns along coast at
Monterey Bay up to San Francisco –

(listed from south to north)

California Lodge, Groves, Redwoods, Sightseeing

Redwood San Francisco

Redwood Park San Francisco & Point Reyes

The closest redwood trees to the city of San Francisco are those of the Point Reyes Peninsula. Samuel P Taylor State Park, Mount Tamalpais State Park & the Muir Woods National Monument all have coastal redwood groves.

nearby redwood lodging can be found in –

San Francisco redwoods

If you are looking for the Redwood Forest near Santa Cruz & Highway 9 start here.

California Lodge, Coastal Cliffs, Groves, Redwoods, Sightseeing

Big Sur Redwoods

big sur cabinsBig Sur Redwood Cabins & Riverside Cabins Big Sur

Do you have visions of cabins perched on rugged cliffs, along the Central Coast? Well, sorry to say, there are none for rent. Those are all private homes.

Most vacation cottages are secluded & tucked back, deep inside a redwood forest canyon nearby. Campground cabins in Big Sur span from yurt rentals on the cliffs, to rustic one room rentals in the fern forest.

The Pfieffer Big Sur State Park has cabins available, several other coast resorts offer stream side cottages, plus Ventana has a luxury Campground inside a redwood grove.

see all Big Sur lodging

self guided redwoods tour on Big Sur back roads

Gorda Cottages

California Coast, Coastal Cliffs, Hiking, Sightseeing, Trailheads, Viewpoints

Torrey Pines Coastal Hiking

torrey pines hiking
Torrey Pines State Reserve is in San Diego County – just south of Del Mar CA. Easy access from I-5 & perfect for hikers seeking exercise – instead of sitting in traffic on the freeway. The point you see in the distance is La Jolla.

Ocean, cliffs, pines, beaches & sunny San Diego weather.
What could be better for an after work stroll?

There are numerous pine forest groves, with hiking trails leading down the cliffs to tide pools & beautiful beaches. You could easily spend a whole day exploring this coastal park. There is a Visitor Center, guided nature walks & paved parking lots. The lagoon region has a train track running through the valley east of it – and the tracks meet the coast nearby. The rocky beach to the north is very popular with surfers & there is even surfing contest held here annually. Plenty parking along this stretch too. If you wanna avoid the park fees, you can park along PCH (Pacific Coast Highway) & walk the beach to the south. The cliffs make for seclusion & many sunbathers love this area.

On occasion, if the conditions are right, the San Diego RED TIDE will appear, which can only be seen at night. The kelp beds glow with sparkles of green & blue light (not red) w/ the phytoplankton …..as the waves come crashing toward the shoreline. More info on red tides on Wikipedia

Del Mar CA

TORREY PINES TRAILS