Salt Point State Park Campground

Along the forgotten coast of Central California along Hwy 1, this small state park offers a great way to explore the area. 

The upper campground is relatively small and was still heavily impacted by 2023-24 winter storms, many downed trees still had some campsites closed in the spring of 2024. Most of these sites would accommodate smaller rigs and tents only. The campground is tucked in between the remaining coastal pines and live oak. The bathrooms were small but tidy with flush toilets and running water, no showers.   We drove through here and then headed to the overflow lot...

If you are in a self-contained vehicle, the most stunning place to camp in this park is the “overflow” camping lot closer to the beach. Here you can camp with a 180 degree view of the ocean and the rolling hills leading to the beach. The lot is completely open to the sky, so solar and satellite internet work great. The only downside is that the closest bathroom and fresh water spigot is either in the day-use area down toward the water, or back uphill at the campground. But the view and scenery were more than worth the minor inconvenience. 

If you’ve got a solar powered system, you could have the most inexpensive California beach vacation around. The rocky beach area is great for wildlife viewing, we saw sea lions, seals, and even the occasional spout from migrating gray whales. While not necessarily good for swimming, the beach area is great for fishing.  Hiking is right from the campground and leads to the north or south from the headland area. 

Come prepared with food and gas!  Supplies will be difficult to come by, as there are only a few small convenience/ general stores and restaurants, in nearby Jenner. The larger grocery outlets will be inland in Santa Rosa about an hour away. This is the price you pay to have a stunning California beach vacation without the normal crowds.

Salt Point State Park has 3 separate camping areas: Woodside Campground, Gerstle Cove Campground, and Gerstle Cove Overflow. The overflow is a lot that overlooks the ocean, and you don’t have to wait for the campground to be full to be able to camp here. You can ask to stay here when you arrive at the ranger station at the entrance. 

The overflow is for self contained RVs only. No tents or car camping allowed. There is a trash bin in the center of the lot but no other amenities. It seems to be mellow during the week and busy on weekends. We’re glad we were just paying day by day because it got too crowded for us when the weekend hit, so we decided to leave. 

There are beautiful hikes in this area, and a trail straight from the lot to the ocean. You can also see whales from the lot! 

Dogs ok, cell service is good, the lot isn’t very level but it isn’t too bad. No designated spots so just come down and figure out a good place to set up once you get there. This is a beautiful place to camp and we do love it, even at $30.

General: Small (30-site) campground in Salt Point State Park. Although you will not have views of the ocean from the campground, you will hear it. 

Site Quality: Varied– some are level, but some are sloped, and most are spaced a very generous amount apart. There are no hookups for any site. We had reserved Site 10, but the pad was sloped in every direction so no matter how we maneuvered our van, we could not find a level spot. This site has ample room for two vehicles to park but would best be suitable for tent campers. We were able to move to Site 6, which was much better– level with a good long driveway. A picnic table, food box, and fire ring complete the site. 

There is also an overflow area, but this area is not reservable. Cost for camping in the overflow section is $30 (vs $35 in the developed campground) and while there are awesome views, it would not be good if it is very windy. Also, be aware the closest restroom is in the day-use area, and I do not know if this gets locked at night. 

Bathhouse: There are two bathhouses that serve the campground. The one closest to our site had two private separate toilet stalls and one outside sink with soap but no towel or other way to dry your hands so make sure to bring your towel. Cold water only. There is a sign prohibiting dishwashing in this sink but there is a water spigot and drain nearby. 

Activities: You can hike either north or south from the visitor center (only open on weekends during the summer). I don’t know what the south trail would have been like, but we were not disappointed in the north trail, which to go to Stump Beach was about 4.5 miles roundtrip from the campground. The wildflowers were beautiful in April and the trail either winds along the bluffs or can be made shorter by cutting inland. 

Other: A shoutout to the camp volunteers. They were available, friendly, and helpful. About the only thing keeping this from a five-star review is the challenge we had in Site 10 (and a few others looked like they might experience the same challenge).

Salt Point State Park has several camping options: Gerstle Cove CG ($35/night), Woodside CG ($35/night), hiker/biker camping ($5/night), and Overflow camping ($30/night).  This review is for the Overflow Camping, which we thought was amazing.

This spot is amazing! You have ocean view and various hiking trails to keep you occupied. It is basically a parking lot but we were able to get a corner spot with no neighbor with awesome views. The lot is large and suitable for any size rig. Easy turnaround, unless there are a lot of other vehicles.  You just have to pull in and find any spot and set up, but maybe don’t hog the good view by parking parallel along the ocean view side…that’s a jerk move.

$30 for basically "lot docking" seemed steep at first but then who would stay in the regular campground with a view like this? There are no amenities in overflow lot, and no fires allowed. Only self-contained vehicles are allowed to camp here.  No tents.

Further down the road there are bathrooms and trash at the day use parking area.

Slow but usable cell service from ATT and Verizon

This can get crazy in the summer but in the spring and fall it is still beautiful.  I like the Gerstle Cove side (ocean side) camping area rather than the hillside area across the highway.  Smaller loop.  There is no better place to watch a sunset!

Good sites with tables, fire ring and privacy. The inside loop sites are open. More shade on the outside of the loop. Visitor center and small harbor type area to launch kayaks. Lots of abalone divers.

Great hiking trail along the bluff. Hear the ocean crashing the whole way.  Great rock formations.

There is tidepool area which is fun to explore at low tide.

Great moutain biking nearby from the top of the mountain down to the sea.

Near the Rhododendron Grove which - if you hit it when they are blooming is spectacular.  A whole grove hidden on the hillside in the redwoods you can hike through.

Good surf fishing at the picnic area at Stump Beach.

The group tent site is on a bluff away from the other sites at Gerstle Cove. A great place to gather.