Salt Point State Park

Park News Alert
Notice:
The Abalone fishing / diving season is closed until further notice due to red tide’s impact on the Abalone resource.

Effective October 1, 2011
Due to service reductions at Salt Point SP, the following facilities are closed:

Fisk Mill Day Use
Stump Beach Day Use
Gerstle Cove Day Use restrooms
Woodside Campground
(Reservations accepted April 1 - September 30)

Service reductions are subject to change. Please call 707-865-2391 for further information.

Getting There
Salt Point is located on Highway One approximately 90 miles north of San Francisco.

The Day Use Annual Pass is accepted at this park.

Seasons/Climate/Recommended Clothing
On California’s north coast, winters are mild and wet, with average temperatures in the low 40s. Cool and foggy summer days average about 64 degrees. Changes in weather are common and frequent. Layered clothing is recommended.

Operating Hours & Contact
The park is open from sunrise to sunset. The Visitor Center is open on Saturdays and Sundays from April through October, from 10am – 3pm.

Contact the park for schedule of interpretive, junior ranger, and school group programs.

Telephone: 707-847-3221

Camping
Camping reservations are strongly advised from March 15 to October 31, especially on weekends. Each site has a fire ring and picnic table with food locker. Drinking water and restrooms are nearby, but no showers or sanitation stations are available.

Make Campground Reservations

Family Campsites: The 109 family sites at Salt Point State Park include 30 on the ocean side of the highway at the Gerstle Cove Campground, and 79 on the east side of the highway at the Woodside Campground.
Walk-in Campsites: The 20 walk-in sites in the Woodside Campground do not require reservations, but they are frequently unusable in bad weather. Check at (707) 847-3221 before your trip. The sites are approximately 1/3- to 1/2- mile from the parking area. No dogs are allowed.
Hike/Bike Campsites: 10 hike/bike campsites are behind the ranger office near the Woodside Campground.
Group Campground: The group campground, on the ocean side of Highway 1, accommodates a maximum of 40 people and 10 cars. No dogs are allowed.
Overflow Camping: A day-use parking lot below Gerstle Cove Campground is available for self-contained vehicles only (no tent camping or open fires). There are no restroom facilities, and you must bring your own drinking water.

Activities
Other popular activities at the park include picnicking, fishing, free diving, kayaking, scuba diving and hiking.

Fishing: Salt Point is a very good spot for surf fishing. In the Gerstle Cove State Marine Reserve and the Stewarts Point State Marine Reserve, marine life is completely protected. Abalone diving, spearfishing, and rod and reel fishing are permitted elsewhere in the area. Anglers over the age of 16 must carry a valid California fishing license.

Diving: Salt Point’s rocky coastline attracts abalone divers. Abalone collection is highly regulated. People taking abalone need a valid California fishing license and abalone report card. Additional rules apply regarding minimum size, daily bag and possession limits, tagging and reporting. For more information on abalone and fishing regulations, contact the Department of Fish and Game.

Picnicking: Fisk Mill Cove, a day-use area with paved parking, picnic tables, upright barbecues, restrooms and drinking water, is shielded from the wind by Bishop pines. For a dramatic view of the Pacific Ocean, take a short walk from the north parking lot to Sentinel Rock’s viewing platform. Stump Beach, one of the few sandy beaches north of Jenner, has some picnic tables near the parking lot and a primitive toilet, but no running water. A 1/4-mile trail leads to the beach. Gerstle Cove also has picnic tables, a primitive toilet and a scenic view of the ocean.

Trails: The park has more than 20 miles of hiking and equestrian trails—visit www.parks.ca.gov for details. Mountain bikes are not allowed on single-track trails because they can damage wet trail surfaces. Please stay on the trails to preserve the park’s unspoiled qualities and to avoid contact with ticks and poison oak. Motor vehicles are permitted only on paved roads.

Underwater Park: The park includes one of the first underwater parks in California, Gerstle Cove Marine Reserve, where marine life is completely protected. The cove affords shelter for the hand launching of small boats and divers come to the cove to explore the wonders of the undersea world.

Marine life can be experienced on land during low tide in the rocky intertidal zone through tide pool exploration. When exploring these areas remember that many of these organisms can be damaged or destroyed by even the simple act of turning over a rock and exposing the animals to the sun.

Natural History
Inland
The inland portion of the park features acres of grasslands and forest areas. Northeast of Highway 1, coastal brush and grasslands merge with lush growths of wind-sculpted Bishop pines towering over wild calypso orchids. Mixed evergreens skirt the edges of the second-growth redwoods, descended from trees that were logged in the last two centuries. Douglas-firs stand tall among madrone, tanoak and peaceful meadows.

At about 1,000 feet elevation, a large open prairie was once home to elk. At the park’s highest point, a pygmy forest holds stands of smaller cypress, pine and redwoods. Their growth is stunted because of the area’s highly acidic, nutrient-poor soil and a hardpan layer beneath the surface. Similar groves of stunted trees can be found along the coast from Monterey County northward to Mendocino County.

Among the native animals, coyotes and gray foxes usually hunt at night, while bobcats are more active during the day. Black-tailed deer, raccoons, striped skunks, and several varieties of squirrels, chipmunks and field mice may be seen. Bears, mountain lions, badgers and porcupines- rarely seen- occasionally range the area.

The forest, grassland and ocean shore host a wide variety of birds. Look for pelicans, ospreys, woodpeckers and oystercatchers. Be especially wary of mischievous Steller’s jays and ravens, who ravage unattended campsites in search of food.

The Coast
Bull kelp thrives along the coast. In April, though the kelp is not yet visible, its growth has already begun. Attaching to rocks with a holdfast (a root-like structure that holds the kelp to the ocean floor), bull kelp will grow up to ten inches a day reaching for the sunlight at the surface. After storms, bull kelp can be found piled in large, greenish-yellow mounds all over the beach. Visitors might be lucky enough to spot a great blue heron fishing from “rafts” of kelp at sea. In August, the water is dark with the lush kelp forest that provides homes for countless varieties of rockfish and marine organisms.

From November to January, gray whales pass through the kelp forests as they migrate south to breeding and calving areas along the coast of Baja California. The whales return to summer feeding areas in the Bering Sea, heading north between February and April.

The Sonoma Coast is famous for its red abalone. This slow-growing mollusk, an important part of the intertidal community, takes about ten years to reach a diameter of seven inches.

On the north coast, the rocky tide pools are full of life. Sea stars, mussels, sea urchins and several varieties of tiny young fish lead a precarious existence in these pools. These organisms are so fragile they can easily be destroyed by accident. Many of these creatures can be damaged by even the simple act of turning over a rock and exposing them to the sun.

At Gerstle Cove State Marine Reserve, Stewarts Point State Marine Reserve and the Salt Point Marine Conservation Area, no form of marine or intertidal life or artifacts may be collected or disturbed. Only kayaking, underwater photography, and recreational diving are permitted within these designated reserve areas.

Sandstone and Tafoni
Ever wonder where the streets of San Francisco came from? Sandstone from Salt Point was used in the construction of San Francisco's streets and buildings during the mid 1800's. If you look closely at the rocks at Gerstle Cove, you can still see eyebolts where the ships anchored while sandstone slabs were loaded onboard. Quarried rocks can still be seen scattered along the marine terrace north of Gerstle Cove. Look for the drill holes along the edges of the rocks that were used to separate the large rocks into smaller slabs.

Tafoni is the Italian word for cavern. It is a natural phenomenon that is common along the sandstone near the ocean's edge at Gerstle Cove and Fisk Mill. Look for a honeycomb type network carved into the rocks forming pits, knobs, ribs, and ridges.

Tips & Rules
•Ground fires and open fires of any kind are not permitted. Use your own off-the-ground barbecue to cook in the campground areas, or you may use the facilities provided. Safely extinguish hot coals in park fire rings.
•Dogs must be kept on a leash at all times and are permitted only in the developed areas, except the group campground and walk-in campsites. They must be kept in a tent or vehicle at night. Only service dogs are allowed on trails.
•Tide pools are extremely sensitive to any disturbance. As you observe and explore tide pool areas, please watch your step; do not disturb or collect any of their delicate residents.

Note: All natural and cultural features are protected by law and may not be disturbed.

Accessible Features
The Salt Point HC Trail is accessible along coastal bluffs for 0.10 mile. A generally accessible restroom is located in the Gerstle Cove Terrace Day Use area. Two designated accessible parking spaces are available in the Gerstle Cove Terrace Lot.