Huntington State Beach

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Difficulty: Easy
Length: 4.1 miles / 6.6 km
Duration: 1-3 hours

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Overview: Huntington Beach is famous for its wide, sandy beaches and surfing. It's also a great place for an easy, flat walk along the coastline.

The key route is the wide, paved multi-use trail that parallels the coastline. Walking this trail from end to end (with a short side jaunt to the waters edge) adds up to just over four miles. Being paved and entirely flat, it's also popular with runners, bikers, and rollerbladers.

Tips: This beach gets crowded during the summer. Take your time, stay to the right and watch out for others. Or avoid the crowds and visit in the off season.

If you plan to visit this beach or any other California State parks eight times or more, it's worth getting an annual Day Use Pass.

This trail extends beyond Huntington SB, to Long Beach in the north and Balboa Pier in Newport Beach in the south. Try this on blades or a bike!

Points of Interest

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Lifeguard Headquarters

This is the headquarters for the Huntington State Beach lifeguards. There are numerous lifeguard towers along the beach, open seasonally.

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Fire Rings

There are a lot of fire rings available on a first-come, first-serve basis. In the summer, get there early to stake your claim!

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North End of Huntington State Beach

This is the turnaround point for the portion of the trail in Huntington State Beach. If you want a longer walk, you can continue north through the City Beach to the pier and downtown area where there are shops and restaurants.

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Least Tern Preserve

This area is fenced off and closed to hikers. It is one of the last remaining nesting grounds for the Least Tern along the Southern California coastline.

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Southern end of the Huntington State Beach trail

Although the Santa Ana River marks the southern boundary of Huntington State Beach, the trail continues south all the way to Balboa Pier in Newport Beach.

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A quiet stretch of beach

The western end of this "island" gets very few visitors. See the beach as it was years ago.

Here's our turn around point at the southern end of Huntington State Beach.