Coast Camp Gear Checklist
Coast Camp is a hike-in campground a short walk from Santa Maria Beach, reached on foot in 1.8 to 6 miles depending on the trailhead. The gear that matters is about wind, damp and animals more than distance. Bring a gas stove, a wind layer and warm hat, shoes that tolerate mud, a way to treat the camp's tap water, and a plan to keep every scented item in your site's locker. Hikers who wrote about it describe a gentle first backpack that still gets cold and breezy after dark.
What shapes your gear on Coast Camp
- Ways in
- The shortest route starts at the Laguna Trailhead and climbs a 400-foot ridge over 1.8 miles. The flat Coast Trail from the Coast Trailhead is 2.7 miles. The Sky Trailhead route is about 4 miles, and the shortest walk from Bear Valley is about 6 miles.
- Water
- Water faucets are provided at the park's four hike-in campgrounds, and the park says the water is usually safe to drink. It also tells campers to bring a way to treat it in case the system fails and a sign goes up.
From Point Reyes National Seashore (NPS): Camping at Point Reyes National Seashore
- How sites are released
- Six regular sites (#1, #4, #6, #10, #12 and #14) and the two group sites are released on Recreation.gov three months ahead. The other six regular sites (#2, #3, #5, #7, #9 and #11) are released 14 days ahead.
- Weather
- Visitors describe steady wind, with gusts past 25 mph on a spring weekend, and nights that feel colder than the thermometer says. One family camped here just before New Year and found days pleasant and nights much chillier. A Marin County hiker adds that Coast Camp can be a bit more sheltered from wind than Wildcat Camp to the south.
From Mark's Musings, The Outbound, Backcountry Post and Backpacking Light
What the agency requires on Coast Camp
Your Recreation.gov confirmation, printed or saved
Camping is by permit only. Rangers may ask to see the confirmation email on the trail and at your site, and the park advises keeping an electronic copy. A printout must also sit face up on the dashboard of any car left overnight at a trailhead.
From Point Reyes National Seashore (NPS): Camping at Point Reyes National Seashore
A gas stove or canned heat
Cooking at Coast, Glen, Sky and Wildcat is limited to a gas stove or canned heat. The park bans wood and charcoal fires inside the hike-in campgrounds.
From Point Reyes National Seashore (NPS): Camping at Point Reyes National Seashore
Every food and scented item in the site's locker
Food and scented items go in the food storage locker provided at the site, not in the tent or left outside it. The park's scented list includes toothpaste, sunscreen, lip balm, first aid kits and the pots and bowls you cooked in. Set up your tent close to the locker, within about 20 feet.
From Point Reyes National Seashore (NPS): Camping at Point Reyes National Seashore
What hikers carry on Coast Camp
A wind layer and a warm hat
Wind is the common complaint. A father-daughter group in May felt chilly in the evening at 50F because gusts passed 25 mph. Another visitor called the wind rather intense in late April. A winter camper recommends a beanie, warm socks and sleep clothes.
From Mark's Musings, Backcountry Post and The Outbound
Shoes that can get muddy or wet
The Laguna route passes a vernal pool near the ridgecrest, and the park says to expect wet feet in the rainy season. A child on an earlier trip lost a shoe in a mucky stretch of trail and carried the nickname for the rest of the weekend.
From Point Reyes National Seashore (NPS): Coast Campground and Mark's Musings
A small gas stove
Fires and charcoal are not allowed, so your only hot meal is on a stove. Beach fires are a separate permit from the Bear Valley Visitor Center, and the park says to have a stove ready if a fire ban applies.
From Point Reyes National Seashore (NPS): Camping at Point Reyes National Seashore
Rain shell for a spring or winter trip
One family packed for a forecast storm in late April and never needed it. A hiking club on another April trip had a damp night at neighboring Sky Camp that turned out to be mostly pine needles falling on tents. Weather here swings, so people keep a shell handy and may not use it.
From Backcountry Post and Wasatch Mountain Club
A way to treat tap water
The faucet water is usually fine, but the park asks campers to bring treatment in case the system fails. Hikers describe the camp as having several freshwater spouts, so a small filter or tablets covers the gap without hauling extra water.
From Point Reyes National Seashore (NPS): Camping at Point Reyes National Seashore and Backcountry Post
Food and kitchen gear packed to fit the locker
The camp's lockers are the only safe place for food. One visitor warns that the birds are smart and will work picnic tables, so snacks and bags should not sit out, and a coyote walked through camp during that trip.
From The Outbound and Point Reyes National Seashore (NPS): Camping at Point Reyes National Seashore
Kid-sized pack items for a first trip
A dad took a 5 and 7 year old on the Laguna route and says they carried their own clothes and water. He picked Coast Camp because the mileage and climbing are low.
From Backcountry Post and Point Reyes National Seashore (NPS): Coast Campground
6 people can go on one permit. Split this list between them so nobody carries two stoves.
Plan a trip hereWhat hikers regret or leave behind on Coast Camp
Firewood, charcoal or a camp stove that burns wood
None of these are allowed in the hike-in campgrounds, and the charcoal grills were removed in 2022. People who plan a fire-side evening end up on the beach with a separate permit or in the tent early.
From Point Reyes National Seashore (NPS): Camping at Point Reyes National Seashore
A dog
The park keeps pets off nearly every trail and out of the hike-in campgrounds. Working service dogs are the exception.
From Point Reyes National Seashore (NPS): Camping at Point Reyes National Seashore
Food left on the table or in the tent
The park calls raccoons, foxes and skunks plentiful and bold, and says a black bear has lived in Marin County since 2021. Close the locker doors every time you leave the site.
From Point Reyes National Seashore (NPS): Camping at Point Reyes National Seashore and The Outbound
A tent set up far from the locker
The park asks campers to pitch within about 20 feet of the food storage locker. A tent set far from it turns every snack, toothbrush and sunscreen trip into a longer walk.
From Point Reyes National Seashore (NPS): Camping at Point Reyes National Seashore
Gear questions for Coast Camp
Is there drinking water at Coast Camp?
Yes. The park provides water faucets at its four hike-in campgrounds and says the water is usually drinkable. Bring a way to treat it in case a sign says the system is down.
From Point Reyes National Seashore (NPS): Camping at Point Reyes National Seashore
Can you have a campfire at Coast Camp?
No. Wood and charcoal fires are banned in the hike-in campgrounds, so cooking happens on a gas stove or canned heat. Beach fires need a separate permit from the Bear Valley Visitor Center.
From Point Reyes National Seashore (NPS): Camping at Point Reyes National Seashore
How far is the hike to Coast Camp?
It depends on the trailhead. The park lists 1.8 miles from Laguna, 2.7 miles on the flat Coast Trail, about 4 miles from Sky and about 6 miles from Bear Valley.
Do I need a bear canister at Coast Camp?
No. Each campsite has a food storage locker and the park tells you to use it. Bear canisters are only needed at the boat-in beach sites on Tomales Bay, which have no lockers.
From Point Reyes National Seashore (NPS): Camping at Point Reyes National Seashore
Is Coast Camp a good place for a first backpacking trip?
Hikers who took kids there say yes. The Laguna route is short and the camp has tables, lockers, toilets and tap water, though the wind and cold nights still call for real layers.
From Backcountry Post, Mark's Musings and Point Reyes National Seashore (NPS): Coast Campground
Sources
- Coast Campground · Point Reyes National Seashore (NPS) · Agency
- Camping at Point Reyes National Seashore · Point Reyes National Seashore (NPS) · Agency
- Backpack to Coast Camp in Point Reyes via Palomarin Trailhead · The Outbound, Noel Clark · Trip report
- Point Reyes National Seashore Coast Camp Trip · Backcountry Post, BackpackingtheSierras · Trip report
- Pt Reyes, Father/Daughter Backpacking Trip · Mark's Musings, Mark Verber · Blog
- Trip Report: Point Reyes National Seashore Backpack · Wasatch Mountain Club, Aaron Jones · Trip report
- Point Reyes National Seashore (forum thread) · Backpacking Light, Nathan Moody · Forum thread