waddell state beach

SteveTraveler

If you are a windsurfer, you will know this beach. Stunning beautiful hills and creek. A beautiful part of our CA coastline!

BrinMoreson

This is a great place to pull off of Highway 1 and enjoy the ocean for a bit. Large sandy beach area with shells, birds and sea creatures. This beach is a draw for surfers, especially kite surfers who can get thirty feet into the air on a very windy day. Entertaining! Sometimes people just sit in their cars and look at the ocean and the surfers. On a sunny day, it's fun to eat lunch here.You will see all kinds of people: bikers, families, young people, older people, surfers and lots of tourists on their way to and from San Francisco. Swanton Berry Farm is close by and is a good place to stop for a snack. Or try Whale City Bakery and Cafe.There's a parking lot just off the highway; parking is free. The lot is usually filled up and there always seems to be a lot of people on the beach, but it doesn't feel crowded. (There are restrooms, but the locks on the doors don't always work and they take a lot of abuse.)Worth a visit.

mini

Waddell State Beach is a very nice place to watch surfers and on a windy day kite surfers. This summer day there were just surfers (August 2014). Waddell Beach is part of Big Basin State Park - there are redwood trees across the road from the beach area. The park size is 28 miles so the beach area is just a small portion of the larger redwood state park.Enjoy beach walking, picnic, just relaxing and enjoying the scenery. (Note: It can be overcast even on a summer day here but still very pleasant).

activeoldster

We really enjoyed watching the kite surfers as we had never seen this before. It was especially nice that I didn't have to go down to the sand as I was in a walking cast. There are handicapped parking stalls and rest rooms available. It was just nice to sit and relax.

JudyS19

What can you say about northern California beaches? This is a great beach with great sandy shores and surf that the surfers love. It makes for some stunning eye candy for those of us too chicken to surf. It's worth venturing up north from Santa Cruz. Check it out.

597kalani

This is a very cool beach for families with young children. There is an inlet body of water perfect for wading. The views are spectacular. Lots of kite surfing goes on here. If you cross the high way, there is a trail that leads you straight into Big Basin. 6 miles to Berry Creek Falls. Lovely views of farmland from higher up on the trail.

dougmendoza

We were cruising up the coast and saw the kite surfers here, so we pulled in for a watch. Really not much more to it for us than that. However, the beach is quite scenic, parking was easy, and the kite surfers provided a good deal of entertainment.

aatimes2

The orientation of the shore and the wind makes this a great place for kite surfers (on some days). We have always found parking and love watching the surfers. However, some days the wind is SOOO strong, that you don't want to get out of your car or go down to the beach. It is like what I imagine a windstorm is like in the Sahara with the sand ripping the skin of your face. However, go to watch the amazing amazing talented surfers. Its like watching a ballet!

25dg

When I was a little girl we always used to for a lil drive up there to waddell state beach and go there to watch the wind surfers. (my grandma, grandpa and i would always have a blast up there. =)

IrishGlamgram

Nice that you don't have to park a long ways away but be careful some drivers don't slow down.

TravelinSag

Waddell State Beach is a great place for hiking with lots of trails ... also campsites in the park with redwood forests and elevations that go from sealevel to 2,000 feet.

Local93921

Obvioulsy often windy, but beutiful beach. Nearby State Park mini-museum is intersting. Nearby valley was allegedly location of last Grizzly Bear taken in CA.

schmidtmba

Great place to watch kit surfers and other types of surfing.

sactokaren

We parked our car and headed to Big Basin. The trails for hikers are longer than the bike-horse trails. We started on the hikers trail and when it met up with the bike trail, we switched. Otherwise the marked 5 mile hike would have been closer to 8 miles and we didn't have that much time to spare. We did hike a 16 mile round trip seeing some beautiful sites within the park. Maps are available and although you'll see people along the way, they are few and far between.The portable toilet near the ranger's office is the only facility we saw during our stay.