Hidden For A Century, Pristine Stretch Of Sonoma Coast Opens To The Public: Report

SONOMA COUNTY, CA — A stunning, but long-closed off stretch of California coastline where Marin and Sonoma counties meet, is open to public for first time in 100 years.

Privately owned for nearly a century, the windswept undeveloped property includes new hiking trails, sweeping ocean views, and a sandy beach that, until last, week had been virtually off-limits except to the owners.

“This area has been completely inaccessible to the general public essentially for 100 years, so we’re really excited to be able to open it up and have people experience it,” Luke Farmer, regional director of the Wildlands Conservancy’s Sonoma Coast and Eel River Canyon preserves, told SF Gate.

The coastal prairie spills toward nearly a mile of rugged shoreline, with panoramic views to Point Reyes National Seashore and seasonal whale watching, according to the Wildlands organization.

The newly opened preserve also provides a long-awaited stopover for kayakers traveling down the estuary from Valley Ford in Marin County. For now, paddlers can pull their boats onto a sandbar at the beach, the SF Chronicle reported. A formal kayak pullout near the mouth of the estuary, along with improved trail signage and minor upgrades, is planned within the next few years.

The Shorttail Gulch Trailhead, tucked within a quiet residential subdivision just off Highway 1, serves as the main entry to the roughly 5-mile network of trails. A ridge trail climbs to the preserve’s highest point, offering expansive views south to Point Reyes National Seashore, east across coastal prairie, and—on clear days—west to the Farallon Islands.

A (gentle) short trail descends to the estuary’s mudflats and an isolated sand beach nestled below coastal bluffs, a place few people had ever set foot before. Previously, reaching the beach required a risky low-tide scramble from nearby Doran Beach, and some hikers were stranded when the tide returned. The new trail eliminates that hazard.

“The beach is incredible, and you couldn’t hike to it from the hills before,” said Misti Arias, general manager of Sonoma County Ag + Open Space, which helped acquire the property and prepare it for public recreation, told the SF Chronicle.

The preserve is open daily from sunrise to sunset, with free entry. Visitors can park at the Shorttail Gulch Trailhead in Bodega Bay, where portable restrooms are available, with additional facilities near the beach. There is no drinking water. Dogs are permitted on leash; horses and bicycles are not allowed.

Trail maps and additional information are available at wildlandsconservancy.org.