River Function Nice beach located at the confluence of the Salinas River and the Pacific Ocean and is part of the 99 miles of protected Monterey Coastline. The Good: *Fishing *It's a beach?! *My favorite price: free *Three parking lots *Port-o-potties in each parking lot *Sandholt Trail that takes you along the estuary and River The Meh: *No dogs on beach but OK on the aforementioned trail. *No camping The Ugly: *Rip currents 0_o Conclusion: Life's a beach, and then you die. read more

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This was a long beach with clean sand. We spent a lot of time playing on the sand, watching the waves, with sea lions frolicking, dolphins surfing, and a gorgeous winter sunset. There is a porta-potty on the north end of the beach (closer to the harbor), but not really any facilities otherwise. read more

Salinas River State Beach - Beach - Beaches Near Me

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Well, it was a good little hike to the beach on the other side of where the parking lot is. It was definitely a good walk. It was definitely cold when we were there, but it was enjoyable. We sat on the beach for a while and enjoyed it was not crowded, which was nice. It was a little bit fishy smell, but we're next to the ocean you'd expect it. The beach was clean. I wish they had more trash cans around to collect some of the trash. I didn't see any Porta potties, but there was a lot of horse do along the road. read more

Salinas River State Beach - The beach - Beaches Near Me

This beach was behind an airbnb we rented for the weekend and it was very foggy the entire time we stayed, but we saw some really beautiful animals while we were there. A lot of ducks and babies, geese, egrets, snowy plovers, playfully swimming sea otters just to name a few. Only sad thing was beach was not well maintained as it was littered with plastic bottles and garbage from recent partygoers who built a makeshift party hut out of the driftwood on the beach. And a couple dead pelicans due to the recent pelican issues with overfishing. But overall, a peaceful area with lot of wildlife. read more

Salinas River State Beach - Mama duck and ducklings - Beaches Near Me

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Amazing white sand beach! Small uphill walk to the beach. Also a flat pathway along the water front. Outhouse toliet available read more

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Parking here is easy as long as you are at the part of the beach where the horse trailers enter. Driving north on highway 1 it is the first left into Moss Landing. You will see a liquor store on the highway and the left hand turn lane is small. Be patient as there is always traffic heading the other direction into the Monterey area. You will drive through a neighborhood so please be careful and drive slowly. The road becomes a dirt road for just a short time and I am able to access this parking lot safely in my mini cooper. No truck or four wheel drive needed like other beaches farther down. The walk on the beach is short and gorgeous! I usually walk towards the harbor and work my way around on the road walking past Phils Seafood. Today, the tide was the lowest I have ever seen it today. I am so grateful I was up for a walk. It is a short 2.5 mile walk round trip. The fog was fairly thick this morning but I didn't care. Much needed outside time. No bathrooms here except for the porta potties which are usually disgusting. Thank goodness it is beautiful! Enjoy and keep your valuables covered. Cheers and Happy Yelping. read more

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Beautiful and peaceful. Our baby loved the soft sand. The dolphins were out and showing off! A lot of sea weed on the beach, but nothing bad. read more

Salinas River State Beach - Beaches Near Me

Nice clean beach but you might come across horse poop. You can rent a horse to ride on the beach. Keep in mind as nature takes place, you may come across a dead bird, sea otter, etc. just leave them be. There is free parking and a porta potty. Beautiful place to relax. read more

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Another great beach in Northern California. I used to go here quite often to walk the beach in my bare feet and feel he sand between my toes. Lots of beautiful floors nearby too. Be careful where you step as you might step on one of those beached crabs. Great view of the twin towers of Moss Landing. Quiet, peaceful, great cool weather beach read more

I stumbled upon this beach while on the way to and from the city of Marina. There's no parking fee to get into the beach itself, but when going up the hill into the main beach area, there was so much poop and other droppings; very disgusting and you have to watch where you step in the sand. I really wish folks would clean up after themselves or the state would do a better job of maintain this beach. I plan on coming back to take photos of the scenic beach but I sure hope that poop is cleaned up big-time! read more

This beach is a gem. Not only is it less traveled than others, it is possible to call ahead and get a personal horse back ride right on the beach from dreamor ranch! They don't "rent" horses, they take people out on private guided rides on their wonderful horses. Beware of leaving valuables in your car since there are occasional break ins, but a little diligence goes a long way. There are Porta potties too. read more

This beach is awesome! First off it's an amazingly beautiful beach situation in the Monterrey bay pretty much between Santa Cruz and Monterrey off HWY 1. The beach is easy to get to, has a nice parking area with plenty of spaces. The beach and ocean are gorgeous. On a clear day you can see both Santa Cruz and Monterrey. The beach has a nature trail that runs parallel to the water that takes you thru the dunes area so you can observe the vegetation there. Or you can take the direct trail from the parking lot and go straight for the ocean. This beach allows dogs (on leash) and horses. There are no horses available for rent on the beach directly, but there is a company that trailers in horses for beach rides. I think you have to get in touch with them and make an advanced reservation. I know nothing of them but have seen them parked there in parking lot taking out groups and families. Their horses look a little tired and run down, so it's probably not that enjoyable for experienced equestrians. We trailered out a friends horses to the ocean and the beach was relatively open and empty so we go to do lots of trotting and cantering along the water as the sun was setting on the water. It was an amazing day! Overall I give this beach a 5 stars. If it did not allow horses (which is a HUGE plus in my book) I'd prob give it a 4 star because I do think there are prettier beaches in the area, but not by much. read more

Was a lovely place to stop ! The beach is well taken care of . It's great place to take your kids and have a picnic ! Not a lot of ppl around which is a nice.. I highly recommend this spot ! My only complaint was the horse droppings . It would be nice if they would pick up after them just like some owners would pick up dog poop .. The beach sign says no dogs but I seen a few there .. I will return with my family ! read more

Salinas River State Beach - Overcast but nice !! - Beaches Near Me

My kids are having a blast finding lots of sand dollars and shells! There are a few dead otters but that's just nature. Plus i got a cool skull out if it!! Parking is free and the trail to the beach isn't that bad. There is also horse trail access. There ate no bathrooms around so if you have little ones that might be an issue. read more

Salinas River State Beach - View from the beach - Beaches Near Me

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It's an absolutely beautiful beach, with literally no one on it for miles. It has very limited access, so I usually jog a few miles from Marina State Beach. It's great for surfing, with tall waves that can get up to 15 feet. It's typically around 50-60°F with 10-20 mph winds. Make sure you bring a windbreaker! There's incredibly diverse terrestrial and marine wildlife there. I've seen brown pelicans, seagulls, sandpipers, snowy plovers, red-tailed hawks, turkey vultures, seals, sea lions, dolphins, and the occasional whale. Another bonus is The Barge (my nickname for it). It's a relatively unknown shipwreck, with only a few articles on the internet describing it's existence. It has turned into a mini intertidal ecosystem, with hundreds of thousands of mussels and barnacles clinging to the hull. It's also home to hundreds of seagulls and pelicans. Salinas State Beach is one of Monterey Bay's best kept secrets. read more

Great, amazing, and wonderful. I fell in love with this beach the minute I first stepped onto the sand. It's the perfect place to enjoy time with a few close family members or friends. It's not crowded, not too hot, and it's super clean. read more

Since it's neither the cleanest nor the most convenient beach in the state park system, it's also less-visited. I came here with my girl and we got to watch the sun set over the ocean, with the shoreline all to ourselves as far as the eye could see. read more

This beach is about a mile from the beach and location I was staying. A beach is a beach is a beach, am I right? It is hard for me not to enjoy my beach time. The only reason I would give this place a "3" is because of the few inconveniences or lack of conveniences you might find at other beaches. For example, the pathway to get to the beach is all sand, so even after schlepping all your crap off of the beach, you aren't afforded the convenience of getting to your car without exhaustion. Also, there are no bathroom facilities provided. I don't know about everyone else, but when I go to the beach, I'm in it for the long haul- going to get some quality beach time in. That being said, it is only natural that people are going to need facilities to comfortably stay somewhere. You cannot swim in this beach, or swim without worrying about being pulled out to sea by a rip tide. Haven't heard of one? Well, I have several times by my mom who loves to repeat her stories to make her point- over and over again. Needless to say, it was disappointing not being given the option to jump in and cool off. I find it thoroughly therapeutic to swim in the ocean. Finally, this was awarded a "3" because of the undesirable scenery. This place is right next to a large and crazy looking power plant, which kills the illusion of "being away from it all" because you're staring at s-it factories on your vacation. But a beach is a beach, and I had a great time staring at the waves and enjoying beach bites with my crew. read more

Gorgeous beach with plenty of room to walk on the beach, along with a nearby recreation trail and another trail going through the sand dunes, both parallel to the ocean. Horses are allowed on the beach; dogs are not. Very rarely crowded here - often you can have the whole beach to yourself. read more

This is a beautiful stretch of beach. We came here to go riding with Monterey Bay Equestrian center. It was a great ride, and we saw an awesome pod of very active dolphins right off the beach. It would have been perfect if our car hadn't been broken into in the parking lot while we were riding. One of our back passenger windows was completely smashed out, and everything was taken from our coats to a bag of Trader Joe's groceries. Our riding guide said this happens quite often at this beach, so it's something to be aware of. Had I known before hand, I would have made sure my car was empty and the windows rolled down. There wasn't anything of value stolen, but it still sucked. My husbands favorite coat was taken, and we had to replace the window while on vacation, so that was a couple hundred dollars gone and put a damper on the day. Be forewarned! read more

This place is 5 stars, REALLY?? Some folks must be easily pleased. We have been to shitty beach and this one is at the top of the list. I'm not expecting the beach to be anything like Hawaii or the Caribbean, but I wasn't expecting it to be a dump either. The water was rough as expected on the coast but that is not the reason for the low rating. The sand was nasty. The location is dead. No wonder it is empty!!! What a waste of time coming here. read more

Beware there is no security at this Beach and several people's cars have been broken into including mine. The beach itself is nice but I will never go there again read more

Beach is very clean and not crowded. Lots of parking space and only about 5 minutes to the beach. Sand is soft. Very nice to take a long walk along the beach and enjoy the view of Montery Bay. Not a lot of people around but horses are allowed. Definely will come back. read more

This is a beautiful beach especially if you like feeling like you are in a remote place. It's possible to walk from Moss Landing to Seaside along this beach during which one would see few people. The major detriment is that it is covered in horse poop. There are a few local horse-riding commercial outfits who are allowed to just let their animals crap all over a public beach. This is a public place where people regularly walk barefoot. People making money while their animals crap all over everyone's beach is unacceptable and the park service should do a way better job being the stewards of our public lands read more