View Beaches in South of Half Moon Bay in a larger map
On a sunny Saturday morning, we decided to explore the beaches along the southern coast of Half Moon Bay. A little over an hour's drive took us to the first beach to the south of Half Moon Bay, San Gregorio State Beach.
San
Gregorio State Beach
What
- Beach
- Birds
More Info
- $8 car parking fee (applicable to all the state beaches along CA-1 S for that day)
- Restrooms
- Barbecue Pits
- Picnic tables
San Gregorio State Beach |
Although we thought that the $8 car parking fee was ridiculously high, we were glad that we could use the parking ticket for all the other state beaches as well. There are plenty of parking spaces available and the beach was mostly occupied by people who had come in big groups to enjoy a nice BBQ next to the beach. We also noticed over-excited kids playing with sand and water. As we walked to the beach, we noticed a cave next to it, overlooking the beach - a nice place to relax and read a book. There is a short, narrow trail that took us to the top of the cliff overlooking the beach and the rugged coastline on either side. The freezing weather made it uncomfortable for us to spend too much time here.
Pomponio State Beach
What
- Beach
- Birds
- Lagoon
More Info
- Restrooms
- Barbecue Pits
- Picnic tables
Pomponio State Beach |
Honestly, the Pomponio State Beach was not too different from the San Gregorio State Beach. The shallow lagoon serves as a good playtime for the kids. We spent a few minutes here and took off. It looked like every beach along this coast had barbecue pits for those interested to have a ducky lunch along the shores on a beautiful sunny day.
Pescadero
State Beach
What
- Beach
- 1 mile walking trail to Pebble Beach
More Info
- Restrooms
- Plenty of parking spaces
There are several places
along the cliff where there are short flights of stairs that take you down to the
beach. We walked towards the edge of the rocky, uneven cliffs (at a safe
distance) to see the beautiful ocean and the coastline. A paved
1-mile walking trail along the ocean took us to the Pebble Beach and as the
name sounds, the beach shore is typified by pebbles.
Bean Hollow
State Beach
What
- Beach
- 2 mile Arroyo de los Frijoles Trail
- Tide pools
- Shorebirds
- Harbor seals
- Beachcombing
- Small pebbles formed over a million years ago
More Info
- Restrooms
- Plenty of parking spaces
Bean Hollow State Beach at sunset |
Bean Hollow State Beach is perhaps one of our favorites amongst all the other beaches that we visited that day.
To
the right is a short stairway that lead us to the beach shore which has small pebbles that were formed more than a million years ago. The rock formation here looks very interesting and it is called Tafoni. They are formed by "cavernous weathering" process, which involves the interaction of winds and salt sprays in the rocks.
Tafoni Rock Formation |
The beach also features a 2-mile trail along the ocean with a detour that takes you to the tide pools. Unlike the visitors center in Natural Bridges State Beach that displays the time of the high tides and low tides, there is no visitor center in this beach to provide information about the tides.
A board at the beginning of the trail displayed pictures of the rich marine life that could be seen in these tide pools. As I am one of those folks who get excited by tide pools, I was looking forward to see them. Unfortunately, we could not walk
down to the rocks to see the tidepools because the pathway was too quaggy. However,
the trail itself was pretty nice; it was bedecked with wild flowers and the
walk along the ocean was refreshing.
There
are reefs offshore where you might be able to spot harbor seals and shore
birds. Though we did not catch sight of them, we still enjoyed the dramatic view
of the ocean waves crashing against the reefs.
Pigeon Point Lighthouse
What
- Pigeon Point lighthouse (tallest lighthouse in California)
- Whaler's Cove
- Fishing
- Prisoner's Rock
More Info
- Restrooms
- Plenty of parking spaces
Pigeon Point Lighthouse |
As we were driving further south from the Bean Hollow State Park, we caught the sight of the magnificent 115 foot lighthouse standing tall on the Pacific Coast. No wonder it is one of the most picturesque lighthouses. One can simply sit here for a long time and just watch this beautiful lighthouse with the fierce ocean waves in the background.
The
lighthouse got its name from Carrier Pigeon, a clipper ship that hit the rocky
surface and wrecked in 1853 near this headland.
In
December 2001, a portion of the exterior frame fell off from the lighthouse and since then it has
been closed to general public. The California State Park system has spearheaded
an effort to raise funds and repair the lighthouse; they estimate that it would
take seven to ten years to repair it after they receive sufficient
funding. We certainly do not want to lose the tallest lighthouse in the
California coast.
Whaler's Cove and Prisoner's Rock |
To one side of the lighthouse is the Whaler’s Cove, which appeared to be a popular fishing spot. The cove is also characterized by the Prisoner’s Rock, home to several shore birds. I found it interesting that the rock was named Prisoner’s Rock because fishermen get here during low tides for fishing and eventually get trapped here when the tides become high.
Any beach along this coast offers a gorgeous view of the sunset. We stopped at Bean Hollow State Beach to watch the sunset and went home after a tiring day.
Useful Resources
- San Gregorio State Beach - Official Website
- Pomponio State Beach - Official Website
- Pescadero State Beach - Official Website
- Bean Hollow State Beach - Official Website
- Pigeon Point Lighthouse - Official Website
Nearby Locations