California Coastal Commission - California Coastal Access Guide [Lingua Inglese]

CALIFORNIA COASTAL ACCESS GUIDE

SEVENTH EDITION

Dedication

Dedicated to the memory of Peter M. Douglas ( 19422012 ), tireless champion of public coastal access, for his bold leadership in protecting Californias coast.

California Coastal Commission

C OMMISSIONERS

Steve Kinsey, Chair Jana Zimmer, Vice Chair

Dayna Bochco

Gregory Cox

Dr. Robert Garcia

Carole Groom

Erik Howell

Martha McClure

Wendy Mitchell

Mary K. Shallenberger

Effie Turnbull-Sanders

Mark Vargas

A LTERNATE C OMMISSIONERS

Terry Bowman

Olga Diaz

Jeff Ducios

Belinda Faustinos

Sarah Glade Gurney

Steve Kram

Maricela Morales

Randy Pestor

Dr. Paul Song

E X O FFICIO M EMBERS

John Laird / Janelle Beland

Jennifer Lucchesi / Cy Oggins

Brian P. Kelly / Dale Jones

February 2014

CALIFORNIA COASTAL ACCESS GUIDE

SEVENTH EDITION

S TATE OF C ALIFORNIA

Edmund G. Brown, Jr., Governor

C ALIFORNIA C OASTAL C OMMISSION

Charles Lester, Ph.D., J.D., Executive Director

Susan Hansch, Chief Deputy Director

Steve Scholl, Editor & Principal Writer

Erin Caughman, Designer & Co-Editor

Jonathan Van Coops, Mapping & GIS Program Manager

Gregory M. Benoit, Principal Cartographer

John Dixon, Ph.D., Staff Ecologist

Jonna Engel, Ph.D., Staff Ecologist

Lesley Ewing, P.E., Ph.D., Coastal Engineer

Mark Johnsson, Ph.D., Staff Geologist

Jo Ginsberg, Consulting Editor

Linda Locklin, Coastal Access Program Manager

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA PRESS

University of California Press, one of the most distinguished university presses in the United States, enriches lives around the world by advancing scholarship in the humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences. Its activities are supported by the UC Press Foundation and by philanthropic contributions from individuals and institutions. For more information, visit www.ucpress.edu.

University of California Press

Oakland, California

2014 by the State of California, California Coastal Commission.

All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in articles and reviews. For information, write to the Executive Director, California Coastal Commission, 45 Fremont Street, Suite 2000, San Francisco, California 94105.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

California coastal access guide / State of California, California Coastal

Commission.Seventh edition, revised.

pages cm

Steve Scholl, Editor & Principal Writer.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 978-0-520-27817-2 (Paper : alk. paper)

ISBN 978-0-520-95935-4 (e-book)

1. Pacific Coast (Calif.)Guidebooks. 2. Recreation areasCaliforniaGuidebooks. 3. ParksCaliforniaGuidebooks. 4. CaliforniaGuidebooks. I. California Coastal Commission.

F868.P33C35 2014

917.94045309146dc23

2014008950

Printed in China.

19 18 17 16 15 14

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

The paper in this publication meets the minimum requirements of ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992 (R 1997) (Permanence of Paper).

Cover image: Treasure Island Park and Beach, Orange County

Photograph: Steve Scholl

Contents

access n., liberty to approach

INTRODUCTION

Pacific Manor Beach, Pacifica, San Mateo County

The California Coastal Access Guide appeared in 1981. The first edition described 721 beaches, paths, and accessways along the states 1,271-mile-long coast. Preparation of the guide was carried out by the California Coastal Commission in response to the Legislatures direction to inventory and map all of the states public coastal accessways.

This seventh edition of the California Coastal Access Guide has been revised, reformatted, and updated. Included here are descriptions of more than 1,150 points at which the public can gain access to the coast of California. Along with beaches and access paths are interpretive centers, boating facilities, nature preserves, maritime museums, and other coast-related facilities that serve visitors.

Continuing their work to increase opportunities for legal, safe access to the shoreline are the California Coastal Commission, State Coastal Conservancy, San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission, State Parks Department, local governments, and nonprofit land trusts. Each has a role to play in expanding opportunities for residents and visitors to enjoy and learn about Californias magnificent coast. This book is offered with the knowledge that a wide appreciation for the coast among Californians plays an important role in the protection of coastal resources.

More than a quarter of the California coastline, some 295 miles of shore, is encompassed within the state park system. Parks managed by federal, county, and city entities include many more miles of coast. The state of California owns all tidelands, submerged lands, and the beds of inland navigable waters, holding them for public trust uses that include fishing, navigation, commerce, nature preserves, swimming, boating, and walking. Tidelands consist of the area on a beach or rocky coastline that is between the mean high tide line and the mean low tide line. The California Constitution guarantees the publics right of access to tidelands. The state of California (or other managing agency), however, may place restrictions on the time, place, and manner of use of tidelands.

Private property exists along the California coast in many locations, inland of the tidelands. The public generally does not have a right to cross private property without permission to get to tidelands, although easements and deed restrictions allow public use of some private shoreline properties. When using tidelands, members of the public should exercise caution when there is a potential for encroaching on private land. Land owners similarly should be cautious in questioning the publics right to be on areas of the beach covered by public rights.

Keep in Mind

Additional information on public rights on certain beaches is available on the Access Program pages of the California Coastal Commissions website at www.coastal.ca.gov.

This guide describes selected activities that might enhance a visit to the coast, with emphasis on active pursuits, learning opportunities, and perhaps unexpected activities. Introductory pages in each county chapter describe additional activities that are well suited to that locale. Separating the chapters are feature that provide additional suggestions of things to do. Coastal access sites mentioned in the county introductions and in feature articles are marked in boldface type; consult the index to find more information on each site. Use the index also to search for lighthouses, boat launches, fishing piers, and sites for other activities.