April 17, 2025
The California Coastal Trail (CCT) is a 1,230-mile proposed route that, when complete, will traverse the entire state’s coastline. To date, about 875 miles have been mapped. We looked for a short trek to incorporate into a road trip north to visit family in Seattle, Washington. And a five-day, 60-mile section of the CCT from north to south along California’s Monterey Bay fit nicely into our schedule.
This region is part of the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary, which is a federally protected offshore area running from just north of the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco to Cambria, north of San Luis Obispo. It is one of the country’s largest marine sanctuaries.
Map of our California Coastal Trail trek
We first discovered the California Coastal Trail when we trekked 800 miles from San Diego to Sonoma on the California Missions Trail in 2023. During that hike we walked on sections of the CCT in San Diego County, between Ventura and Santa Barbara, and near Monterey and Santa Cruz.
Unlike our mission trekking route that was almost exclusively on pavement and inland for significant portions of time, the CCT follows the coastline as much as possible. Therefore, the goal on this trek was to maximize our walking on the sandy beach.
Busing to our Trek Start and Setting Out on the First Stage
To arrive at the start of our trek in Santa Cruz, we drove our car to Monterey and left it at a downtown parking garage. The next morning we rode three public buses: one from Monterey to Salinas, the second from Salinas to Watsonville, and the last one from Watsonville to Santa Cruz. Total elapsed time (including transfers) was about four hours, costing us $4.00 each.
Traveling on the buses between Monterey and Santa Cruz
The next morning we began our hike at the Santa Cruz Wharf.
Initially, we walked on the sand along the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk. Through the fog we could just make out the rides at the oceanfront amusement park. Founded in 1907, it is California’s oldest surviving such park.
Few people were on the beach on the foggy weekday. We saw several birds as we hiked.
Birds on the beach
Leaving the sand, we turned inward to cross the San Lorenzo River on an old railroad bridge.
Walking past the end of the amusement park to begin crossing the bridge across the San Lorenzo River
From there, we alternated between hiking on neighborhood streets and walking on Twin Lakes and Seabright State Beaches.
Making our way to Twin Lakes and Seabright State Beaches
After passing Pleasure Point, a popular area for surfing, we continued hiking to the city of Capitola and its state beach.
Capitola is located at the mouth of the Soquel Creek and its wharf was first constructed in the 1850s.
Views of Capitola Wharf as we approach the city
Turning inland from Capitola, we took a peaceful walk next to some old railroad tracks.
Toward the end of the day, we ventured back to the water and hiked about two miles on the sand along New Brighton and Seacliff State Beaches. We found walking on the sand easier than we thought it would be as long as we stayed close to the tide line.
Hiking along the beach
Just before the end of the stage, we saw a curious site off the coast. The SS Palo Alto was a concrete tanker ship that was constructed at the end of World War I. Never placed in service, it was towed to its current location, and a pier was built to connect to the ship in 1930. The SS Palo Alto initially became an amusement site, with a dance floor, swimming pool, and cafe. Over time it developed into a fishing pier, but fell into disrepair as the structure was destroyed in a series of storms.
As we walked down the beach we observed what was left of the ship.
We completed our 10-mile stage shortly thereafter in the community of Aptos. The community’s name means “the people” in the indigenous Ohlone language.
Miles of Uncrowded Beach Trekking and a River Crossing
When planning the trek, we eagerly anticipated our second stage as the 14.9-miles of hiking would be almost entirely on the sand. We began our day on Rio Del Mar State Beach.
While hiking on the sand, we passed through Manresa State Beach and Sunset State Beach. Trekking on the empty beach for hours felt surreal as we saw very few other people.
Continuing the hike; looking back at our footprints on the sand
Later, we were treated to views of seals, sea lions, and many types of birds. We even saw a whale just offshore of us.
Wildlife sightings during the stage
When we reached Pajaro Dunes State Beach. we began to see sand dunes to the left of us.
In the middle of the afternoon we reached the mouth of the Pajaro River. The river is about 30 miles long and is the border of Santa Cruz County and Monterey County. In order to safely cross the river, we needed to time our arrival close to low tide. Even so, the water level was a little higher than we had hoped. To road walk around the crossing would add six miles, so we were determined to find a safe way across.
We both took off our shoes before Darren began to scout out several options. They all started shallow but quickly became too deep.
Patiently trying alternatives, we finally found a satisfactory path that only took the water level to our mid-calves. Even so, we had to be careful where we stepped as there were unexpected drop-offs in the sand, making it easy to lose our balance.
Entering Zmudowski State Beach after crossing the river, we put our shoes and socks back on and continued our hike.
Just after reaching Moss Landing State Beach, we headed off the sand. Before we left, we took a moment to sit on a log and take in the deserted scene. It had been a magical day of walking and one of our favorite stages over the thousands of miles that we have trekked.
A short hike took us out to Pacific Coast Highway for a two-mile road walk to the community of Moss Landing. The skyline here is dominated by the Moss Landing Power Plant’s two 500-foot high stacks. In fact, we could see them getting closer to us almost the entire day as we walked.
We spent the night at a local hotel, with our location at about the midpoint of Monterey Bay.
A Stage of Artichokes, Road Walking, and a Scenic Wildlife Refuge
Continuing our trek south along Monterey Bay, we had equal parts of coastline beach hiking and road walking during the 11.3-mile stage. After a breakfast that included a delicious artichoke omelet, we left the community of Moss Landing to head straight to the sand.
Heading back to the beach to begin the stage
We walked about a mile on Salinas River State Beach before leaving the coast. Since it was a Saturday, we figured that we would see more people on the sand. But, to our surprise, the beach was deserted.
Unlike our Pajaro River crossing during the previous stage, we could not ford the larger Salinas River. Instead, we completed a 5.5-mile road walk alternative adjacent to local farms. Fortunately, large dirt shoulders kept us away from the traffic.
We soon came across several artichoke fields, as we were near the community of Castroville. Its nickname is the “Artichoke Center of the World.”
Artichoke field along the road
About halfway through the road walk we came to a produce store that had a food truck out in front of it. We decided to take a break and order a snack from the aptly named “Choke Coach.” After enjoying some fried artichokes with a garlic aioli sauce, we continued on our way.
Ordering from the Choke Coach; our fried artichoke snack
Soon after we crossed a bridge over the Salinas River, the longest river in California’s Central Coast region at 175 miles. We were surprised to learn that the river actually flows in a northerly direction.
One advantage of the road walk was that we had the opportunity to hike through the Salinas River National Wildlife Refuge before returning to the beach. Established in 1974, the refuge encompasses sand dunes, salt marshes, and lagoons. Walking through the refuge was a highlight of the entire trek. Not only did we marvel at the beauty of the landscape, but we also saw many birds in the distance.
Images of the Salinas River National Wildlife Refuge
Finally back on the beach, we stopped for a food break, splitting an artichoke burrito that we had also ordered from the truck.
Up to this point the sand had been fairly easy to walk on, as the beaches were flat and we stayed near the tide. However, the nature of the coast began to change to undulating sand, requiring more effort to navigate up and over. This slowed our progress.
A headwind also made it cold. Fortunately, we had just a few miles left in the stage before we arrived in the city of Marina and our hotel.
Reaching Monterey via the Sand and a Paved Trail
We began the first 1.5 miles of our next stage hiking on Marina State Beach. There, we encountered more of the challenging terrain that we had seen the previous day. Having to continually climb up and down uneven sand was slow-going, but hiking on a deserted beach again made it all worthwhile.
Our day would end in the heart of Monterey, so we knew the beach would soon be full of people. We took our time to enjoy the last few miles of secluded coastline.
We left the beach to transition to the Monterey Bay Coastal Recreation Trail. The path follows the former Southern Pacific Railroad line that was used to transport goods from Monterey. Our walk took us slightly inland and along the former Fort Ord grounds. This land was used as an infantry training center as far back as 1848, with major growth taking place during World War II.
Fort Ord was decommissioned in 1991 and closed in 1994. In 2009 Fort Ord Dunes State Park was opened.
As we hiked, we could see old storage bunkers off to the side of us.
The plan was to hike on the paved trail all the way into the city. But as we got closer to Monterey, we felt the urge to walk on the sand once more. So we made our way to Monterey State Beach for a short distance before arriving in the city.
Monterey was founded by the Spanish in 1770, when its presidio (fort) and nearby Carmel mission were established. The California Coastal Trail took us through the heart of Monterey, including Fisherman’s Wharf and Cannery Row.
Walking on the California Coastal Trail through Monterey
Along the way we also saw otters and seals.
Otter and seal sightings
We ended our 11.7-mile stage at the Monterey Bay Aquarium. With 47.9 miles completed from our start in Santa Cruz, we were near the southern end of Monterey Bay. But we had one more stage to trek along the coastline, via the famous 17-Mile Drive, to the city of Carmel-by-the-Sea.
A Final Day Along the 17-Mile Drive and in the Forest
At the beginning of our last 12.8-mile stage of trekking we left the Monterey Bay Aquarium and headed south. Walking again on the Monterey Bay Coastal Recreation Trail, we entered the city of Pacific Grove. It is known as “Butterfly Town, USA” because monarch butterflies winter here. We passed several beautiful viewpoints, as well as a harbor seal observation area.
Pacific Grove viewpoint; harbor seals at the observation area
After passing Point Pinos, we left Monterey Bay and trekked with the open Pacific Ocean on our side. Soon, we came to Asilomar State Beach, where we took an opportunity to walk on the sand.
Walking on Asilomar State Beach
This led us to the adjacent North Moss and Moss Beaches before we joined the famous 17-Mile-Drive.
The 17-Mile Drive was first established in 1892 when it began and ended at a hotel. We joined the road just as it turned out to several scenic coastal viewpoints near Point Joe. From here, we continued along the coastline on a pedestrian path parallel to the traffic.
Later, the path led us past Bird Rock and Seal Rock.
Views of Bird Rock and Seal Rock
For the final five miles of our trek we hiked inland through the Del Monte Forest and community of Pebble Beach. Leaving the 17-Mile Drive, we climbed steeply up an unmarked sand dune to enter the forest.
We followed a series of color-coded paths, walking along neighborhoods, next to golf courses, and through the peaceful green forest. The signage was confusing, and we got lost a couple of times before getting back on track. But we still found the area to be beautiful.
Following the paths through the Del Monte Forest
Finally, the trail ended at the 17-Mile-Drive’s Carmel gate and we entered the city. Carmel-by-the-Sea is known for its quaint village center and historic mission, which we visited in 2023 when trekking the California Missions Trail.
With just a short distance to go to Carmel Beach, we walked down several streets before following a series of wooden stairs down to the white sand.
Walking down the wooden stairs to Carmel Beach
There, we completed trekking a total of 60 miles since leaving Santa Cruz five days earlier.
We were pleased with our choice to trek the Monterey Bay section of the California Coastal Trail. Our goal at the start was to hike on as much of the beach as possible. In all, we completed about 25 miles of actual coastline trekking as we walked through 15 state beaches. We were grateful for the miles of uncrowded sand, the crisp wind in our faces, and the soothing sound of the waves. The trek provided us with a relaxing immersion in nature that we won’t soon forget.
It is our hope that this “mini-adventure” will be just the beginning of other trekking journeys that we have planned for later this year.