El Capitan State Beach
Campground amenities include picnic tables, fire rings with high metal sides, flush toilets, pay showers, potable water, and a general store. The most appealing amenity of course is the beach, where you can swim, surf, fish, play in the sand, and walk along the shore. For those who are not camping overnight, there is a day use parking area with access to the beach, general store, horseshoe pits, hiking trails, picnic tables, and charcoal grill.
Hiking opportunities included a Nature Trail that provides a short stroll through a lush sycamore grove along El Capitán Creek and the Bill Wallace Trail that extends around the 2500 acre section of the park that is north of Hwy 101. The Aniso Trail follows the bluff and connects to Refugio State Beach giving cyclists, runners, and walkers a way to explore the coast even when the tide is up. This path is eroding away in spots due to storm damage, but still passable.
The lush coastal area gives you a chance to see wildlife that make the park and the campground their home. You’ll also find an array of birds, including scrub jays, woodpeckers and black phoebes. Watch the beach area for curlews and sanderlings. In the fall, monarch butterflies flock to the area during their annual migration.
Learn More →
California State Parks: El Capitan State Beach information
El Capitan State Beach Brochure (PDF)
Article by Seth Smigelski at Hikespeak.com
Article about the Nature Traillat El Capitan State Beach
Article in Wikipedia
Article at Oh, Ranger! web site
