Pirate’s Cove

Lots of pervy creepers with wedding bands on trying to cheat on their wives. Too bad they ruin the beautiful view.

This is one of my all-​time favorite beaches! Whenever I bring someone new here, they are amazed at how much they enjoy it. One of my best friends described this beach perfectly. She said, «It’s beautiful! Out of a storybook. The shore is intimate (small). It’s an environment where openness is encouraged, and it has a pleasant aura about it.»
I usually go here when I need to unwind. Feeling the breeze on my body is so relaxing and seeing people talk to strangers like it is nothing makes me smile. Usually people think it is weird when a stranger on the beach starts talking to them, but here it is just another normal conversation.
There are some college kids near the entrance that don’t get into the spirit, which is sad, but it’s not a mandatory nude beach so it’s their choice.
Anyway, this is an amazing beach where in the summer fish swim around your legs as you walk in the water. This is a very accepting community so don’t be afraid to strip down and have some fun in the sun.

Totally worth checking this place out no matter what your age.
When we finally took the short hike from the parking lot we saw a bunch of high school kids hanging out, however, there are other places to enjoy the view on many different rocks.
My wife and I watched the sunset here and it was fantastic!

Small beach with a lot of of nice, nude old people. Everyone is happy, respectful and not aggressive. Some college girls come here to take their (rolling eyes) artsy-​topless-​facing-​the-​ocean Instagram pictures with their friends. You get a lot of saggy pants-​ed peepers at the top trying to spy on any young girls.
The folks here are very suspicious of people with cameras. You can certainly come here with regular clothes on and swimsuits. But if you have your camera or phone out you might get chewed-​out for it. And rightly so– lots of creepers here, so they are tired of it.
I’ll give you a tip fellas: the college girls that come here are too shy to be nude when people are around. You’d have better luck buying a plane ticket to France or S. America and seeing something at the nudie beaches there than here at Pirate’s Cove. I’ve caught a couple guys with major telephoto lenses lying prone on the sea cliffs that overlook the beach too. They get embarrassed when caught. Just know, if you’re a girl, assume someone’s always watching.
If you truly want to be topless/​nude somewhere and truly have privacy, you gotta discover your own strip of beach. Personally, I love driving up to San Simeon and chilling on one of the many private beaches off the obscure hiking trails. Just bring a friend for safety and maybe to help act as a lookout while you relax and tan.

I highly recommend this place. It is dog friendly and if its not crowded it leads you basically to a private beach. They have a pretty easy hike down to the beach where it is clothing optional. The beach is gorgeous with views of the clear water and some seals sunbathing on rocks. You truly feel like you’re on a private beach.
Bring food, music, your pup and enjoy the day. Then when you’re done with the beach, you can go toward the caves and see stunning views over there.
Overall, I think this is a must when you’re in the area.

Amazing views and gorgeous houses. The trail is easy and honestly any trail would be easy with a view like that. However parking sucks. There’s about 4 parking spots so plan to park far and walk.

Notice that all the reviews are from out-of-town’rs. It used to be cool and local;s only. Now those who live 2 hrs inland flock here and to Avila. Need to make 46 a toll rd if u are headed west.

Well that was interesting. I came into town to visit friends and they said they knew of a cool beach where the seals hang out. There’s more than seals here!
The view of the water and the seals: gorgeous. The random femur bone that washed ashore while we were there: creepy. Otherwise, there were lovely multi-​million dollar yachts just offshore. However, there was a lot of gross seaweed.
As far as the people looking to go naked, it became clear to me that there were small groups of elderly men or really really high/​drunk guys that would go naked. But otherwise, it seemed like a party spot for freshmen in college. I’m neither, and didn’t know I was heading to a nude beach so it was a little shocking to see a grandfather type with white hair staring at our group of girlfriends but naked and clearly enjoying it by the looks of things. If the naked people here looked like svelte models and body builders, it would be great. People watching would be A+. But nobody wants to see someone their grandfather’s age naked. Saggy balls are not hot guys.
All in all, we played smashball with our crew and watched seals play. We even saw a dog play with a seal in the water and that was great. But my eyes may never recover from the high man sprinting down the sand naked or the old men strutting their stuff naked.

I was disappointed visiting the beach. Saw the cove on Pintrest and had to visit. Getting to the beach was kind of hard to begin with, you have to go downhill on a small trail. The beach itself was small, but plenty of room for everyone BUT it was dirty, tagged up, too many kids drinking, and being obnoxious. It’s a nude beach too, so prepare to see some saggin. The view by the cove is beautiful though, also seals come close to shore as well, beautiful sight.

Great for the views and cave, but the trash was disgusting. Condoms, hypodermic needles, beer bottles and misc trash scattered all throughout parking lot and trails. It’s sad people don’t take care of this beautiful site. Also a couple shady drug deals happening as we pulled out of parking lot. Wish there would be more patrols by P.D.

If you’re looking for a place to strip off all your clothes and relax on a hot summer day you couldn’t find a better place than this pretty little secluded beach North of Pismo and just down the road from Sycamore Springs Hot Tubs. My girlfriend and I found this place several years ago and have been going way out of our way to visit ever since. Like, three hours out of our way. Hey, it’s hard to find a good nude beach in these prudish times.
Unlike most nude beaches there’s a good mix of men and women here, which gives it a fun, casual vibe attracting couples, families, and groups of friends who tend to hang out the whole day here and have a picnic, strum their guitar, toss the frisbee, play a game of volleyball, or just look at their iPhones and listen to the waves roll in. The spot is so relaxed that after awhile you forget you or anyone else is naked and you can turn off the «Woo, I’m at a nude beach» self-​conscious feeling and just enjoy the sun on your skin. Yes, I’m sure some people steal the occasional glance, but whatever. After awhile you forget to care.
Surrounded on all sides by hills, rocks, and modest cliffs, the beach itself is a long strip that you hike down to from a large dirt parking lot. I use the term «hike» loosely here, because it’s fairly easy to get down to, but you need to watch your step along the trail and be careful. The place gets a fair sized crowd on some days, and on holiday weekends it’s packed, so you’ll have plenty of company both clothed and unclothed, young and old. The cool naked section is at the far end of the beach once you reach the bottom of the trail although it’s pretty much clothing optional throughout. There are no services down here, so make sure you sure to bring some water, a magazine, a snack, an umbrella, a towel, sunscreen, maybe a hat, and use the bathroom in town before you drive out here.
Here are the directions:
Drive the 101 north from Pismo Beach and get off at the Avila Beach Dr exit. Continue straight through the stop light. Shortly after you see the golf course on the right, look for Cave Landing Road going uphill on your left. Take Cave Landing Rd and park in the dirt parking lot at the end. Continue on foot down the path leading south and stay on the left. Be careful along here. It’s not an difficult path, but you should exercise caution. Go down the wooden steps and you’re there.

This USED to be a great nude beach, but ever since it somehow became «clothing optional» it’s gone completely downhill. 15 – 20 years ago the beach was overwhelmingly nude, the people friendly, and not a speck of litter anywhere. Nowadays it’s been invaded by groups of uptight college kids who blast their loud, crappy music, keep all their clothes on, and leave huge piles of litter for others to pick up. When did young people become so body-​shamed and so environmentally unconscious? I can’t tell you how many glass bottles I’ve seen laying on the sand. And what is with the gang bangers tagging the cave and cliffs? Not to mention someone planting a cross on the ridge top. People who don’t have respect for the environment don’t deserve to come here.
I know I sound like an old geezer longing for the good old days, well let me tell you, in this case the good old day WERE much better, unless you prefer litter and people who are ashamed of their bodies.
I still give the place two stars because it is scenic and warm. Come early and find a spot away from the clothed crowd. Maybe sit next to another naked couple, if you can find one. They are now an endangered species. Enjoy the freedom, because I’m afraid this soon will become a clothing-​required beach.

If you venture at the very end of Shell Beach, and where the huge McMansions end, you can spy a secluded cove down the slope. With a brief hike you can be somewhat along…
except for the naked… which did shock my wife… since we stumbled upon here while
hiking from the Avila Beach direction.
You can hike to the «cave» (which is rather corrupted by a-​holes), around the coastline rocks, which is rather hazardous, down to Pirate’s Cove (rather steep), or up the huge over-​looking hill.
All in all, this area is worth at least a half a day to explore…
& lacks the huge gaggle of tourists at the other well known area beaches.
Unfortunately, there are no restrooms, nor other facilities in this area.
But there are even better, more isolated beaches within about 20 miles that are real nature preserves, like the amazing
Montana de Oro State Park & the
Rancho Guadalupe Dunes County Park
, among some lessor known others…

Screw Disney — THIS is the Happiest Place on Earth!!!
I’ve been to this nude beach a few times, all on weekdays. It was never crowded, and everyone kinda kept to themselves. Not everyone was nude, so if you’re shy, you won’t feel awkward keeping your swimsuit on.
The drive is easy, just minutes off the 101. The parking lot is a bit rough, but nothing crazy. And the hike/​walk down to the beach is steep, but very easy and short.
Because it’s in a cove, this GORGEOUS beach is even great to hang out at when it’s windy — on one of my visits the wind was BLASTING up above, but down on the beach it was pretty chill.
On all of my visits, I laid out around the halfway point. Reading about the territorial locals down at the end, though, has piqued my curiosity… so next time, I am definitely heading all the way down there to make some new friends. Or enemies, I guess… depending on the vibe :-)

One of the most beauitful hidden spots right off the 101. The sunset was incredible, and we were even able to spot some sea otters from off of the coast. Worth checking out.

I don’t know how to rate this. This beach is clean and great for dogs (unleashed, yay!) there’s a small steep hike, I wasn’t able to go on. Saw a bunny crossing the path on the way to pirates cove. If you’re a nudist, this is a great place for you. I’m not, but my friend was showing us around.
Tip for the guys. If you can get a boat, get a boat! You might be lucky to scoop a naked college girl onto your boat. Saw it with my own eyes. Lol

My favorite beach on the west coast! It’s clothing optional — woo hoo! At the far end are the locals, they have a volleyball net up. The best place to swim is the far end, otherwise lots of rocks under water. It’s gotten quite popular, used to come here 14 years ago and there weren’t many. A lot of college kids come party with loud music, all ate clothed. A few naked woman, mostly men. If a woman, just look down and ignore the perv guys, don’t talk to ‘em. Can’t escape them at any nude beach. Worth the annoyance!
Bring shade, water, snacks, hat (water shoes help). Pick up your dog poop and trash!

Sick of kitschy tourist shams and massive crowds? Looking to get in touch with nature among friends? Pirate’s Cove is the place for you.
In all seriousness, my husband and I love this beach. Considering how much Pismo and Avila have been built-​up in recent years, this has restored my faith in local beaches. Sure, you may find yourself awkwardly avoiding eye contact, but there’s plenty of other scenery here.

A lot of old balls…
Not that young balls are more attractive…
I digress. This beach is not crowded and offers amazing views and I’m not talking about body parts. You can watch the cute seals on the rocks and relax without all the crowds.
P. S. PICK UP YOUR TRASH!!!

What a gem! My new favorite beach when visiting the central coast. Everyone is respectful and I’ve never had any issues with cameras or lookie-​lous.
Not all the beach-​goers are nude — so you don’t ever feel obligated to strip down if you’re not comfortable. But why not? This is the place to be free, if you’ve ever wondered what it was like. Besides, there is nothing quite like swimming naked on a hot beach day!
The only thing I would suggest (and the reason for the four, and not five star rating) is the parking. The parking area is quite rough (not paved) and if you don’t drive a truck or 4-​wheel drive, it can be a little unnerving. Still, there was no damage to my car or tires, it’s just very uneven and dusty (it’s a dirt road with rocks).
The view and tranquil energy are quite spectacular though — I will be coming back many times!
~ @thatgalkiki