Dunes Beach

Nice clean beach, and if your lucky you will see some dolphins like we did! And don’t forget to pay your ten dollar parking fee!!!

First time coming to this beach. Parking was 10 bucks like most beaches in Half Moon Bay (so it says online). We came pretty early around 11am on a Saturday and there were other people already at the beach. When we were leaving the parking lot was filled! There are some public restrooms, the one i went to was clean, however the toilet water was yellow.
After you park, you have to walk down a path to get to the beach and while walking down the path it smelled funny. The path is a little steep but it isnt long.
The beach itself looked clean, however it had many. MANY dead birds all over the beach. After finding a spot where there were no dead birds, it was really relaxing.

Water was a bit rough and the sand was really rocky. I’ve got cuts on my legs from the rocks being banged up against them from the waves. Not a great place if you wants your kids to be able to go in. It was also PACKED, but that was probably due to the fact that it is Labor Day and like 100+ degrees out anywhere thats not the beach.

Great local beach. Bathrooms, good sand and parking lot ($ 10). Beach access is down a relatively steep ramp but my 2 and 4 year old manage it ok while holding my hand. This time of year you can see whales spouting and sea lions swimming in the surf. Not too many tourists since it’s off the beaten path and I hope it stays this way!

Nice place to park and look out at the sun setting in the distance. Paths lead to the sand from parking lot.

beautiful

We went here today. What a beautiful beach. There was hardly anyone around. We saw two giant crabs wash ashore. Sadly, the seagulls demolished them both. Poor crabs… The sand is soft and clean. Only use the bathroom if you cannot hold it. They are unisex and FILTHY!

This beach is probably the best that you’ll get along half moon bay. It’s actually part of a huge cove of beaches that you can see from on top of a cliff, so don’t bother with the 10 dollar parking. Park somewhere else for free and walk. However, if you are dying to use the bathroom and are looking for something protected, go ahead.
The beach is very nice, with the sand still surprisingly silky smooth beneath your feet. The only problem is that there’s a number of scattered dried seaweed everywhere, so depending on where you are there’s flies buzzing around. There are also flocks and flocks of seagulls perching from the nearby rocks, and they often make a poopie run every once in a while.
Pick a good spot and you can stay for hours, but be careful, it get’s quite chilly fast!

One of my favorite beaches on the coast. There is paved walking and biking path that’s surrounded by seasonal wildflowers. The walkway goes by a great with great views of the beach. The parking lot is rarely crowded and there are modern restrooms. I think the beach is not used too much because you have to look carefully for narrow road from Hwy 1 that goes to it.

Very nice beach. Clean, plenty of parking and remote enough not to be a huge tourist destination. The bathrooms are disgusting (good thing I had sanitizer in my bag) and there is no hand soap available. It was a bit cold, I wore a sweater the whole time, with fog that comes and goes throughout the day. There was even a paved trail so you can run, walk, bike or whatever along the coastline :)

Half Moon Bay was full so we traveled down the highway to check out one of the three other area beaches. Just as pretty and not as crowded. Plus, Roosevelt and Dunes are side by side with ONE entrance fee.

Gem of a beach tucked along Highway 1 in Half Moon Bay. Access is off a paved road that can be easy to miss so you have to watch for the signs. There is a gate that stays locked until 8am, there’s a $ 10 fee (standard CA Parks Fee) that can be paid either at the kiosk or self-​paid at a box by the bathrooms. Large parking lot with large clean unisex bathrooms.
Beach access is a little tricky in that there’s a cliff along the entire parking lot except for an outlet by the handicapped parking spots. Walk to the beach is very short which is a big plus. Beach itself doesn’t have a lot of distance between the cliff and the water and the cliff provides some early afternoon shade. Sand is very soft/​spongy in parts and the beach itself is clean with little debris/​rocks/​kelp, and not a lot of floating kelp in the water compared to some other beaches in the area. Swim with extreme caution as the waves crash down hard with the angle of the beach/​troughs and can take you off your feet very easily and there seems to be strong crosscurrents/​riptides in some parts; no lifeguard on duty. You get some morning walkers/​joggers but otherwise it’s a very calm and clean beach.

What a nice way to end a weekend in Half Moon Bay. We hadn’t spent much time on the beach and I was bound and determined to do so before returning to reality. The traffic was heavy and everywhere we went seemed to loom a mass of humanity. We asked as we entered which beach would be the least crowded and then followed that road.
We found a nook in the rocky crags and laid a nice big blanket down for a well deserved nap.
What a wonderful peaceful time. The wind was coming up but the day was clear of fog and the sun warm. Snoozing, gazing, listening to the surf and the laughter of the little family introducing their little girl to the sandy texture of the beach; she, crying and raising her hands to get off the gritty grainy land. Once her mom got her closer to the water and she could fell the wet firm sand, she changed her mind and began to enjoy running from the water following her dad in the chase.
It was a perfect ending to a very perfect weekend.

Awesome beach. Big, soft sand, and most important… CLEAN! It didn’t even bother me that my 10 month old ate most of the sand.

Out of the several beaches close to my house, this one is my favorite so far. Beautiful soft sand, a cool backdrop formed by the sand dunes, and most of all — fewer people. A nice serene spot to come enjoy the shoreline. Accessible by the bike path too!

Best local beach in my book.
Aside from the hefty $ 10 parking fee, the beach is super clean (bathrooms too) and well maintained. Came here about a month back to do a beach restoration project with the fam (re-​planting native plants and removing non-​native plants), and decided to come back to take a walk on the beach with my wife this time around. The beach doesn’t seem to ever get crowded (probably due to the fees), but it is well worth the price.
In addition to the beach itself, there is a nice little paved bike/​running trail running parallel to the beach. Lots of local eateries close by as well (ie., Sam’s Chowder House!)… Became a member of the California State Parks Organization because of this spot!
Will definitely be frequenting this spot during Summer.

It’s a decent beach, and does have really nice clean bathroom facilities so no problem with that, and I am even OK with during the spring and summer months that they enforce the 6.00 parking fee if it means we can have clean beaches and rangers coming through every now and then. In the fall and winter every year this beach fee is not required unless its some major holiday with a three day weekend, but like I said it’s rare. If you do like this beach and prefer to go alot you will want to consider getting a season pass for all of the local beaches that charge entrance fees, it get’s cheaper that way.
I’ve had some incidents from locals here who went and painted (note: he didn’t use spray paint, he used that shitty cheap color latex shit from the bottle that high schooler’s typically «paint» onto their car for some homecoming dance or something…) my brother’s car here with «locals only.» My friend walked in on him doing this after snapping his leash down at the beach.
My friend: Hey dude, wtf are you doing?!
Shit for brain teen: Bunch of kooks stay outta our beach. Locals only.
My friend: Dude that guys car you just sprayed, lives in this city about a mile away from here.
Shit for brain teen: Well f_​ck how the hell was I supposed to know he’s from here. I didn’t recognize his car…
The conversation escalated from here when the rest of us came up to see what was taking my friend so long, and I see little point into going into anymore detail on this incident.
Any case adolescent teens aside, the surf here can be really good on a SW swell day, and can produce some killer long rides with a workable shoulder at the northern section of this beach BUT, it is very prone to close out conditions if you even get a breath of wind, this place due to the cliff or something can be turned into a wind tunnel. This place can have a decent rip as well so be prepared to keep up with paddling to keep yourself in position otherwise you’ll miss a nice set and if you drift to far you might have a long walk back to your car. Generally, I like to stop by and check it out, if it’s surfable it’s great, although most times it’s not. It’s nice and quiet and often I’m able to get a nice session to myself as most people who surf here pretty much keep to themselves as the ratio of space between your neighbor is quite good.
So here we do have a nice white sands beach, clean facilities, some minor localism (which isn’t a big deal, I’ve seen worse.) Can get big and just close out, but still fun place to just park the car and watch the sunset after a crappy day at work.

Nice state beach to visit. $ 6.00 parking fee and enough parking spaces in the lot. It was very windy when I went. Clean bathrooms in the lot, but no paper towels available. At the south end of the lot, there is a mildy steep dirt trail that leads down to the beach. White sand, some of it is rough, some of it is soft. If you continue walking South, you will come across a little lagoon that is actually adjacent to Venice Beach. Across from the lagoon is a staircase that leads up to a trail that goes to one end of Venice Beach’s parking lot.