Contents
Half Moon Bay | Introduction
Half moon bay is located on the coast 40 minutes south of San Francisco and looks like a half-moon shaped bay. With dozens of beaches, a beautiful harbor, and fresh seafood, the bay is a great day trip for Bay Area residents.
Half Moon Bay | 2 Days 1 Night Trip
I've lived in the San Francisco Bay Area for a long time, but I don't get to visit often. This time, we were lucky to have a reservation at a popular campground in Half moon bay state park, so we spent the weekend in a relaxed mood. Because of the proximity, the itinerary was actually very simple.
- Day 1: We left at noon, set up camp at Francis beach campground where we were camping, enjoyed a relaxing afternoon, and because of the current restriction of not being able to build a fire, we went to the nearby restaurant Pasta Moon for dinner.
- Day 2: Woke up in the morning and walked around Half moon bay coastal trail, then went to Pillar point harbor for lunch. After lunch, I went to the seafood market at the pier, took a walk along the trail next to the Pillar point harbor beach to see the sea view, and then ran back to Hop Dogma next to the pier to have a beer.
Half Moon Bay State Beach
Come here.Half moon bay state beachThis is the Francis beach campsite where we are going to stay, State beach occupies a 4 mile long area of the coast, divided into three beach access areas: Francis beach, Venice beach, Dunes beach, and this time we are staying at Francis beach. We came to Francis beach this time, there is a small visitor center in front of the entrance of the Day use area, which is kind of cute.
Accommodations | Francis Beach Campground | Camping Tips
- Camp Comfort: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Although it is on the beach, there is vegetation right next to it, so the sand is not too much, so it is very easy to set up camp, and the location is good. Of course, it is windy near the sea, so you can just wear more clothes and sit down for the afternoon.
- Camp Space: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
The space is small by California State Park standards, and the three walk-in sites are close together, but not too crowded, making it a good size for a small family unit of up to four people.
- Cleanliness: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
The campground facilities are shared with the Day use area next to it, and there are quite a lot of people coming here to have picnics and play in the water, but the park is pretty well organized.
- Location: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Next to the campground is the Day use area, where you can directly walk up the Half moon bay coastal trail to see the spectacular coast. The neighborhood is also very busy, CA-1 is within walking distance and there are many stores within five minutes drive.
- Overall Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
This time is really very lucky, the appointment is Francis beach campground walk-in site, the location of the campsite is right next to the beach, it is really rare to see such a good location of the campsite. There are 52 campsites in this campground, there are only three tent campsites, and these three are the closest to the sea, next to the stairway down to the beach, and all the other campsites are RV sites, and the walk-in site is in fact a very short walk from the parking lot, less than half a minute.
Recommended Trails | Half Moon Bay Coastal Trail
The entire Coastal trail can be walked all the way down for 3 miles, which is not very long and is perfect for running, and there are actually horseback riding activities here as well. On the trail, you can enjoy the rocky shores from a very close distance, and in April and May, it is also a good place for whale-watching. If you go north, you can walk to the busy Pillar point harbor.
Viewpoints | Pillar Point Harbor
Pillar point harbor is very busy on weekends. Some tourists do marine activities here, such as kayaking or sailing, but the most crowded place is the seafood market on the pier. There are dozens of fishing boats selling seafood, fresh sea urchins, crabs, fish, etc. It seems that many people come here specifically to buy fish, especially for the crabs, where the queue is very long. If you want to eat cooked food, there are several famous chowder restaurants nearby.
If you go north, there is a smaller fishing pier at the other end, which was crowded with a group of people who came here to fish.
To the south is the other end of the Coastal Trail, which is a good place to take a walk to see the beach in the afternoon. After noon, the weather is relatively sunny, and the sea view is especially beautiful. Sam's chowder house is very famous and the queue is very long.
Half Moon Bay | Cuisine
Half Moon Bay is such a busy place and it's on the beach, it's delicious!Half Moon Bay CuisineThere are certainly many restaurants, and I will summarize them in another article.
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