Orange County State Parks

Orange County State Parks Overview

The state park system is responsible for almost a third of California's scenic coastline. State parks include underwater preserves, parks, redwood forests, plant and wildlife reserves, state beaches, recreation areas, wilderness areas, reservoirs, historic parks & homes, Spanish buildings, lighthouses, ghost towns, waterslides, conference centers, and off-highway vehicle parks. Below you'll find a list of the more popular Orange County state parks and ones we personally recommmend from the firepits at Huntinton to the scenic bluffs of San Clemente.

Orange County State Parks

Huntington State Beach is located off PCH (highway 1 - Pacific Coast Highway) in Huntington Beach. This beach features huge sandy beaches, a pier, cement bike path and fire pits. Nighttime bonfire parties are popular and the beach closes at 10pm in the summer. Public restrooms, concession stands and bike rentals can be found along the bike path. Activities include surfing, biking, sunbathing, skating, fishing and beach parties.
NOTE: Check out Corky Carrol's Surf School for some surfing lessons.

WARNING: The waters off this beach are known to be some of the more polluted in the state and have been the cause of several beach closures. A sewage treatment plant resides at the southern end and often releases untreated sewage during the rainy season.

Huntington Beach
Huntington Beach, California 92645
(714) 536-1454
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Bolsa Chica State Beach is located off PCH (highway 1 - Pacific Coast Highway) in Huntington Beach. It features wide sandy beaches popular with sunbathers. The beach extends three miles from Seal Beach to the Huntington Beach Pier. Bolsa Chica is connected to Huntington State Beach to the south by a cement bike path. Wildlife and bird watching are popular across the street from the beach at the 1,000-acre Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve. Activities include surfing, swimming, sunbathing, skating, biking and bird watching.

Bolsa Chica
Huntington Beach, California 92648
(714) 846-3460
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Crystal Cove & El Moro is located off PCH (highway 1 - Pacific Coast Highway) between Corona del Mar and Laguna Beach. Crystal Cover offers three and a half miles of beaches and 2000 acres of undeveloped woodland. The beach features large sand beaches, a historic beach community, a bike trail on the bluffs and tidepools. A great snowcone & smoothie shop can be found along the beach bike path where it meets PCH. Activities include swimming, sun bathing, snorkeling, surfing, biking and walking.
On the eastern side of PCH is the Moro Canyon portion of Crystal Cove, which features thousands of acres of hiking and mountain biking. Hike or bike in primitive camping is also available. The peaks offer beautiful ocean views.

TIP: This is one of our favorite beaches for its seclusion and lack of crowds.
WARNING: Rocks are just below the surface of the water in several portions of Crystal Cove. See our Tips page for safety suggestions when swimming in the ocean.
Also, the most rattlesnakes I've ever seen in my life I spotted in one day at El Moro. Talk to the rangers about rattlesnake safety before venturing out on these trails.

Crystal Cove
Laguna Beach, California 92651
(949) 494-3539
(949) 492-0802
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Doheny State Beach is located in the Dana Point Harbor off Interstate 5 and PCH (highway 1 - Pacific Coast Highway). This was California's first State Beach. Doheny State Beach offers camping in the southern area and day use in the northern area. The camping is literally steps from the beach. The day use area features a five-acre lawn with picnic facilities and volleyball courts, public restrooms and concession stand. Surfing is popular, but is restricted to the north end of the beach. Dana Point Harbor offers fishing & whale watching charters, boat & kayak rentals, restaurants, shops and an aquarium.
NOTE: Doheny has a rock-bottom ocean and can be annoying to venture out into without foot protection.

WARNING: This region of Pacific Ocean is notorious for having high bacteria levels. Be sure to check with Heal the Bay for recent test results.

Doheny
25300 Dana Point Harbor Drive
Dana Point, California 92629
(949) 496-6172
Map  |   Accommodations  |   Camping  |   Website  |   Other Ideas

San Clemente State Beach is located off interstate 5 in San Clemente. San Clemente State Beach features a one mile narrow sand beach and bluffs overlooking the ocean. Train trestles used by Amtrak separate the bluffs from the beach. Covered picnic areas are on the bluffs. Trails lead down to the beach, which is popular for surfing, swimming, and sunbathing. Picnicking and hiking are popular activities on the bluffs.

San Clemente
San Clemente, California 92672
(949)492-3156
Map  |   Accommodations  |   Camping  |   Website  |   Other Ideas

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