My family and I spent two nights at campsite #5.  We had a really great experience here!

We visited Kirby in March 2024 and the weather was not as bad as I thought it would be.  The temperature was in the 50's for the most part.  There was decent amount of wind but not enough to make a stink about.  I was comfortable in pants and a sweatshirt the whole time, never had to break out my jacket.  During the day, it was warm enough to wear a t-shirt.  It rained a little bit overnight both nights we were there but we were equipped to deal with the conditions.

Each site has three square shaped wood-framed plots to pitch your tent on.   Two of them are covered in a bed of rocks and one of them was raised about two feet off the ground.  The third plot on our site did not have rocks.  I would recommend bringing a tent footprint to prevent the rocks from damaging the bottom of your tent.   Our site's fire ring was equipped with a thick steel BBQ grate that swivels laterally over the fire ring.  Our fire ring's grate covered a good portion of the fire ring so it was useful for cooking.  I'd like to note that not all campsites are equipped with the same style of fire ring as our site had.  Campsite #5 also had three picnic tables (two of them were bolted to the ground, one of them was not) and a bearproof storage container.

The campgrounds itself is relatively small (only 5 overnight sites).  You will receive a gate code emailed to you upon reservation which you will need to unlock a gate that leads you down a long dirt road to the bottom of a valley where the campgrounds are located.  The parking lot is sort of small but finding a spot wasn't an issue.  The parking lot is sitting on top of a hill, overlooking the entire campgrounds.  The sites themselves aren't too far away from the parking lot, but hauling your gear back uphill to your vehicle after camping a couple nights can be tiresome.  There are a few pit toilets scattered throughout the campgrounds that were relatively clean.  There is no running water at Kirby, so make sure you bring enough water!  The old military ruins (I believe from the late 1800's)  were also cool to explore.  The views of the Golden Gate and the city are breathtaking.  We got to watch between 10-12 large shipping vessels float in and out of the bay, very cool!  

All in all, we loved our stay at Kirby and will definitely be camping there again during the warmer months!

Kirby is a unique and unforgettable experience. Make sure you’re on top of the reservation window on recreation.gov, because there are only 5 super popular spots. Site 001 is the most popular for the views, but any of the sites are good, and most work well with groups of up to 10 people, and 2-3 medium size tents. Tent pads are provided, so try and avoid bribing your 15-person tent cabin.

Plan ahead: 1- if the fog roles in, prep for an all-night symphony of fog horns. Bring ear plugs. 2- the raccoons are vicious and fearless. Store all food and ANYTHING with a scent in the bear box. If you plan to leave your cooler outside of the bear box make sure it has a lock or secure latch. 3- you get a gate code and parking pass to drive down, but have to walk your gear the last 500-1,000 ft. to your site. Wheel barrows are provided, but packing a bit on the lighter side is best. 4- No water is available, so make sure to bring enough for drinking, cooking, washing up, and putting the fire out.

Fun: Relax and let the Insta-gold views fill up your like quota, but expect to be joined by plenty of day trippers making the long hike down to the beach. Expect it to empty back out again around dinner time. Spend your day on the beach or exploring the rest of the Marin Headlands. Check out the Nike Missile site, Point Bonita Lighthouse, Rodeo Beach, and the endless miles of hiking and biking trails.

Kirby Cove is a campground different than I have ever experienced before. You’re clearly very close to everything (i.e. San Francisco), while feeling like you are away from everything at the same time.

The campground is located in the spectacular Golden Gate National Recreation Area and down a 1-mile dirt road from Hwy. 1. You’ll get a gate code when you make a reservation so you can access the road.

All sites are walk-in, so depending on which site you get you might want to bring a cart of backpack to haul your gear to your site. We camped in site #1, which was awesome, but also the furthest from the parking lot at about 800 feet each way.

The views from site #1 are spectacular. You’ve got front row seats to the Golden Gate Bridge and San Francisco to your south. The site is located on a bluff just above the Kirby Cove beach.

Battery Kirby is right there at the campground and interesting to explore. Active from 1898 to 1934 the battery in quite interesting to walk through, despite the vandals that have clearly spent a lot of time there. Aside from the battery there isn’t a lot to do at the campground and we spent half a day picking up garbage at the beach.

There is however a ton of wonderful hiking in other parts of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, but you will need to drive to access the other trailheads.

Before camping here we were warned about the fog horn going off all night, but we didn’t hear it once during the night, so maybe we got lucky.