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Montara State Beach
Rating Details »
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
28 reviews for Montara State Beach
I can't believe I have lived in the SF/Peninsula ALL my life & never knew about this beach!!
Came here Saturday and had such a great time ;)
I could not believe how freakin' CLEAN the sand was. Now I can talk forever about the sand! It was 100% better & different from Ocean Beach (sand there is like dirt), the sand was thick, didn't get stuck in between my toes or on my doggies paws, easy to clean up on my way back, just all around the PERFECT sand to walk in lol.
The beach was surprisingly empty, I seen only a few people, and it was great to feel like I had the place to myself. It was very relaxing, especially being so clean I could not get enough nor could I believe how great it was! I also felt soo lucky to have seen a Starfish that washed up on the shore :) pretty pretty ahhh love this beach! & pet friendly?? Perfect.
One word to sum it up: A M A Z I N G
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I have been in San Francisco visiting a friend and I visited Half Moon Bay, this place is absolutely gorgeous! I came here today and was inspired to write some poems! I wish all of my fellow Yelpers could be here to see the amazing views of the Pacific Ocean! I hope you all enjoy!
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The Darkest Street in the Neighborhood
The darkest street in the neighborhood
has one house that is always lit.
Even on the darkest nights
Every night the street is silent
Every night the street is still
Every night all the houses are dark
Every night there is no light, until..
Side by Side
They walk in the dark
As they near the end of the road
Right next to the park,
A young couple enters a house
The light that shines from each of them
Is the same light that shines off of them
and when they enter the house
All the lights come alive.
It is not that the lights turn on
as they walk inside, but when
the light that shines outside the house
is the same light that shines within
Even when there is a black out
The couple walks inside the house
They close the door and
The lights come alive
From the light within
------
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I posted this awhile ago but I would like to remind visitors of these important rules.
1. A Mother and daughter recently drowned at this beach, it has extremely dangerous surf and rip currents, don't go near the water unless you are an experienced surfer. Keep back from the surfline.
2. PACK YOUR TRASH, this beach remains clean because locals pick up after careless visitors, please please please don't leave litter on the beach. Also NO BEACH FIRES, it leaves a disgusting mess on the beach.
3. This is a State beach, DOGS ON LEASH! Please pick up after your dog, no one want dog poo on the beach. The leash law exists for a reason, wildlife is hassled by dogs you also run the risk of seeing your pet drown in the heavy surf.
4. Please don't carve your name in the cliff walls, this is a beautiful slice of nature, not an inner city slum.
Sorry to preach but this beach is so beautiful and by observing these simple rules we can keep it that way for all to enjoy.
1 Previous Review: Show all »
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10/24/2007
I am extremely lucky to be a short walk from this beach as I live in Montara. All I'm going to ask… Read more »
Four stars for: easy to find, stunning views, clean beach, lovely sand, leashed dogs allowed, not TOO crowded (still plenty of visitors though). It's a nice wide beach and we saw people playing ball or flying kites.
Minus one star for: unsafe to swim, steep access trail/stairs, dirrrrrrty bathrooms, limited parking.
THIS PLACE SUCKS !!!!
- Its dirty
- The parking sucks
- Its hard to find
- Its nothing special
- Not worth spending a day at
- And hopefully by now you're convinced that you don't need to visit it because everything I said above are TOTAL LIES !! MU HA HA HA HA
MY beach!
Jk, we can share.. I guess.
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Montara State Beach is still one of my favorite beaches in the world!
If there's another Indian Summer during this so-called "winter", you'll know where to find me ;)
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1 Previous Review: Show all »
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10/11/2007
It can't be easy being the most beautiful beach on the Pacific Coast, but Montara sure succeeds on… Read more »
Beautiful beach.. We visited quite a few times last year and each time was perfect. We even watched whales for a few hours! Bring a small BBQ grill, some beer and even your dog.. definitely a nice place to relax away from the city.
Parking is usually packed and the walk down to the beach is scary since the stairs don't look to secure but it's well worth the trip! Another thing is the bathroom... still haven't found it!!!
This place is so amazing! My bf always says it has a micro climate...and after going there a few times, I've started to agree.
It is so open, close to the city, and just a great strip of land that makes me happy.
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If you've driven past Linda Mar, you're well aware the beach is over populated and a bit dirty. Little would you know just a couple miles south on 1 is this hidden little gem: Montara. It's is never crowded, people are never mean or rude, and dogs are welcome. And did I mention it's beautiful?
- Free parking
- not crowded
- cliffs around
- clean!!!
just recently discovered this beach when driving south from san fran on pch (hwy 1). gorgeous, check out http://www.montarabeac.../.
there are some gotchas
- strong rip tides
- stairs to descend to the beach which should be navigated carefully
- usually cold water as is the case for most sf bay area beaches.
for us the beauty of the beach overcomes the obstacles and pulls us there frequently!
As good as it gets in Northern California, yeah!! Absolutely love the beach! It reminds me of the beaches I used to go to back in Hawaii. Light color of sand although it's not white... is still made from cracked seashells... I truly had fun.. and time to reminisce also had lots of sun on a warm weekend. This would be the place I would go whenever I am homesick!
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the photos say it all. go if you know what's good for you.
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My friend and I each own beaches. Did you know?
This is my best friend from high school's beach. (Mine is in Big Sur.) Now she lives in L.A. She's there for her gallery shows, but if she had her druthers, I know she'd be living right around here in Montara or Moss Beach or some other close cute little town from which she could easily zip over to the beautiful serenity of Montara beach. Between the two of us, we probably have hundreds of cheesy photos taken here over the years to memorialize important rites of passage that we celebrated here:
- Our first surfing lesson from the cute "older" boys on our swim team
- Getting ready to leave for college
- Mourning the love of her life lost to a horrible bus accident in France
- Celebrating graduation
- Yelling at our bosses (not actually present), but still satisfying
- Me recovering from a scary illness after living in Asia
- Being friends over the years
I've noticed we don't take as many pictures anymore, preferring, instead to feel the beauty, the roaring ocean, & and still cliffs dotted with Monterey pines. Sometimes we talk volumes. Other times we hold hands and stroll, content just to be here.
We've come in all kinds of weather - balmy sunbathing days, rainy cliff-cowering days. It really doesn't matter. This beach is never crowded, never less than breathtakingly gorgeous, and always brings comfort, space, and peace.
It's an easy & lovely drive from San Francisco. It's free. You can park on the side of the road. It's more effective that Prozak or Zoloft. Good for free sand scrubs for your feet and free Vitamin D from the sun.
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So beautiful and peaceful. You have to hike down a long flight of narrow stairs to get to the actual beach. But its worth it. The view is amazing.
There are tons of large rocks, which I love. The sand is clean and grainy. love that too!
It was chilly when we went. But it was still very nice.
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Not crowded, always clean, amazing view towards Devil's Slide. The beach is 3/4 mile long, and right near (on the North end) entrance to McNee Ranch State Park which provides some breathtaking views with only a 1-1.5 mile walk/hike.
Be wary for children/pets/yourself as the undertow here can be TREMENDOUS at times. It's a not a beach to wade up to your waist on a hot day, and let the waves come in on you.
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I found this beach in my dog book and I'm sooo glad that I did. We were here this past weekend - super sunny and perfect beach day - but the place wasn't all that crowded like the half moon bay beaches just 5 miles down the road. On top of that they allow dogs (on leashes, but it wasn't enforced when I was there) and it's much nicer with rocky walls surrounding the south end.
We were lucky with parking, but there were lots of cars that filled up the small lots and along hwy 1. The sand is a bit coarse and my friend had to wear her flip flops when we were walking back and forth between the waves and our shaded spot by the rocks. I just watched where I stepped (lots of seashells).
Everyone we encountered was friendly, but there were a couple of groups with unleashed yapping dogs that were harassing my dog and a few other people and their dogs. Seriously, just because your dog is tiny, doesn't mean mean that they're cute and harmless no matter what they do. Keep them leashed and watch where they're going! Otherwise, we'll have too many people complaining about the dogs and they'll ban dogs all together (plus your "i think i'm big and strong" dog might get attacked by a dog that ACTUALLY IS big and strong)! Sorry, had to vent.
Other than that, the beach was awesome! The water was blue-green and the sand was clean. My dog loved it too! I will be bringing him here again. :)
I want to say this beach sucks to discourage others who may not know about it, but me and my wife love it. It's clean, never crowded, plenty of parking, has beautiful cliffs and views. Not bad considering we used to trash this place with bon fires way back in high school.
I forgot what time of year it was, but once a young whale ventured from it's migrating pod to surf the waves a few hundred yards from shore.
Not far from the city and Half-moon Bay so the best of both worlds are nearby.
Anyways, I hope you just keep driving past this place to keep it the way it is. Thanks.
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My favorite beach in NorCal by far. Driving down PCH you see these majestic cliffs meeting a beautiful white-sand beach. On the south end is a sheltered cove (where you can surf sometimes) and the beach stretches northward with small little nooks to hide in when it gets too windy.
When I want chill and get out of the city to relax and enjoy the sun, this is the place I go to.
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a beautiful spot to sleep off a post fish and chips buzz. the parking is bad here so if you can score a spot on the streets, do it. just know that you will have to make a dash across the one to get to the beach. you can brave it and take the hillside to get down to the beach or you can take the stairs. i advise taking the stairs. that hillside is some scary shit!
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After having our trip to Mexico delayed because of Piggy Plague, we decided to get our beach on regardless. We're glad we did! Started our rainy April Saturday with chowder, popcorn shrimp & a yummy lobster roll at Sam Chowder House a few miles down PCH and then took the pooch and our full bellies to Montara State Beach. What a great beach! As we pulled into the parking lot, we noticed the sign with a leashed dog, but figured on a cold and rainy day we were good to go sans leash. The beach is beautiful, with small cliffs on all sides, a volleyball court and great sand for humans and canines. With just a handful of people on the beach today, our mutt was able to run, swim, fetch and play with her new ridgeback and laberdoodle pals 'till her hearts content. Not bad for me and the wifey either- a nice long walk to burn off the meal then planted on our butts at the southern end, watching surfers, listening to the surf and uploading pix from the iphone app! Not quite the Maya Rivera, but an amazing day none the less.
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First time here and wouldn't be the last. This beach is awesome, especially with the recent weather. Wasn't crowded and there were plenty of spaces to just have your spot. Great beach to play football or any other beachy sport since it's so spacious. Very clean and plenty of parking.
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Gorgeous!!!!!! The view is breathtaking, and when we went the weather was good. There are some bathroom stalls next to the parking spots, which are dirty but they are better than nothing, and beach itself was not to crowded. I still need to check out some other beaches but this one is a keeper.
If you're looking for sea glass to take home, this is the place to go. I've been all up and down the California coast, and nothing compares. Nice coves and isolated areas too. Dangerous to swim in though.
Me likey... You can bring your pooch and let her play in the surf. We bbq and drink while looking at the ocean. There is a small parking lot available. Just bundle up and prepare to feel zen.
Devil's Slide is a really nice beach, the north is supposed to be the clothes optionnal part but onnce you get there you realize that a lot of curious dressed people come to this side just to watch you. I will say if not by best nude beach experience.
This is my favorite 'show off the pacific ocean' beach. It's perfect for a bbq, bonfire, volleyball game, surfer watching and romantic strolls. It's not too far from the city (about 20 min down windy roads you can barely keep your eye on because the view is gorgeous) and it's oh so quiet...
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I will always and forever love this beach. It's quiet and it's my geataway from life's stresses. I found it when my Ocenaography class went here for a field trip. And I just kept coming back, I love it.
If I am ever lost ie don't answer my cell, haven't been seen for days I'll be sitting or walking on Montara Beach wishing I had a dog.
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