Our family visited on a beautiful December afternoon. Beach is very clean and you can find your own area with privacy. Waves were very large, so you need to be very careful. Saw a family letting their young children run into the surf and one got knocked down onto her knees and was crying. Looked pretty dangerous.
Being an outdoor painter Garrapata Beach is a great place for me to pant or just visit. It's a rugged and colorful part of the Pacific. Every time I've been there its windy and cold.
Nice sand, lovely colors of water, boulders, a sea cave that can be entered during low tide. Fun to walk and run around. Far enough from Highway 1 so traffic cannot be heard.
Got to see a lot of natural phenomena on our hike.....beautiful and not....a fisherman catching a nice sized fish and telling us how the sea lions that cruise the shores love to rob him of fish! Dead birds and a dead seal gave testimony to the circle of life in the Monterey Bay.
The park is very nice and offer trail with views of the ocean from high vistas. You could get a chance to see whales, sea lions, sea otter, dolphins. Depends on the season, the flowers and cosatal vegetation could add more to the wow factor.
We accidentally stopped here along the coastal hwy 1 drive from Cambria to Monterey. The views were just spectacular! You can view it from the top of the road or climb some stairs and pathways to get down to the beach. Be aware that this is VERY dangerous surf. This was not a spot for wading or swimming. It is not recommended that you climb on the rocks either. We took many wonderful photos and videos here of the coast and the large wave breaks. Enjoy, but be careful.
We were there on a near perfect afternoon in late October. There were only a half dozen people there at the time. Easy parking on the edge of the highway and a good path from the edge of the highway to the beach. Great photo opportunities
WOW! Free parking and beautiful blue water. Make sure you park the car and go down to the beach its a very nice spot. There are no washroom. what to expect in the end...The water is so blue and the sand was very white and soft creating a pleasant experience on California coast.This is why you need to drive on Highway 1!
It's worth it to walk down to the shore here. We saw several oil painters hard at work, they were amazing. The shore with its pools and sea life is amazing. There are brief exhibits describing the sandstone, but you can see the layers for yourself. The first part of the walk is over beautiful scrub terrain and then you're down at the beach, with rocks to climb and tidepools for the kids.
I spent a month in Monterey and got out each weekend to explore the natural beauty of Central California and this was my favorite beach! It was a huge stretch of sand, great cliffs, very few people and I even saw dolphins just off shore. It can be a bit hard to find and not a place for kids to play in the surf...but perfect for adults looking to escape the crowds at Carmel and catch a sunset. :)