Pinnacle Gulch and Shorttail Gulch are coastal access trails served by the same

Sonoma County Regional Parks Department Sonoma may refer to: * ''Sonoma'' (beetle), a genus of beetles * Sonoma County, California, a county in northern California in the United States ** Sonoma, California, the city for which the county is named ** Sonoma Valley, the region in Sonoma ...

parking lot. The trails provide

beach A beach is a landform alongside a body of water which consists of loose particles. The particles composing a beach are typically made from Rock (geology), rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle beach, shingle, pebbles, etc., or biological s ...

and

tidepool A tide pool or rock pool is a shallow pool of seawater that forms on the rocky intertidal shore. These pools typically range from a few inches to a few feet deep and a few feet across. Many of these pools exist as separate bodies of water only ...

access to the

Pacific Coast Pacific coast may be used to reference any coastline that borders the Pacific Ocean. Geography Americas North America Countries on the western side of North America have a Pacific coast as their western or south-western border. One of th ...

of northern

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. The trails are located south of

Bodega Bay Bodega Bay () is a shallow, rocky inlet of the Pacific Ocean on the coast of northern California in the United States. It is approximately across and is located approximately northwest of San Francisco and west of Santa Rosa, California, S ...

Sonoma County Sonoma County ( ) is a county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States census, its population was 488,863. Its seat of government and largest city is Santa Rosa. Sonoma County comprises the Santa Rosa-Petaluma ...

. Automobile access from

California State Route 1 State Route 1 (SR 1) is a major north–south state highway A state highway, state road, or state route (and the equivalent provincial highway, provincial road, or provincial route) is usually a road that is either Route number, ...

is via Harbor Way just south of downtown

Bodega Bay, California Bodega Bay is a village and census-designated place (CDP) in Sonoma County, California, Sonoma County, California, United States. The population was 912 at the 2020 census. The town, located along California State Route 1, State Route 1, is on ...

. A fee or Sonoma County Regional Parks pass is required for use of the trail head parking lot and rest room. The Pinnacle Gulch coastal access trail begins across Mockingbird Road from the parking lot at 20600 Mockingbird in the residential subdivision of Bodega Harbor. The Shorttail Gulch coastal access trail is reached by walking south from the parking lot along Mockingbird and Osprey roads. Both trails follow steep

ravine A ravine is a landform that is narrower than a canyon and is often the product of streambank erosion. Ravines are typically classified as larger in scale than gullies, although smaller than valleys. Ravines may also be called a cleuch, dell, ...

s eroded through

Pleistocene The Pleistocene ( ; referred to colloquially as the ''ice age, Ice Age'') is the geological epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from to 11,700 years ago, spanning the Earth's most recent period of repeated glaciations. Before a change was fin ...

marine and

marine terrace A raised beach, coastal terrace,Pinter, N (2010): 'Coastal Terraces, Sealevel, and Active Tectonics' (educational exercise), from 2/04/2011or perched coastline is a relatively flat, horizontal or gently inclined surface of marine origin,Pir ...

deposits supporting

northern coastal scrub Northern coastal scrub is a diverse scrubland plant community found along the Pacific Coast from Northern California to Southern Oregon, as well as some offshore islands. It frequently forms a landscape mosaic with California coastal prairie, coast ...

including thick growth of

poison oak Poison oak refers to two plant species in the genus '' Toxicodendron,'' both of which can cause skin irritation: *'' Toxicodendron diversilobum'' or Pacific poison oak, found in western North America *'' Toxicodendron pubescens'' or Atlantic po ...

. The beach is suitable for

recreational fishing Recreational fishing, also called sport fishing or game fishing, is fishing for leisure, exercise or competition. It can be contrasted with commercial fishing, which is occupational fishing activities done for profit; or subsistence fishing, ...

and swimming at your own risk. It may be possible to hike along the beach between the two trails at low

tide Tides are the rise and fall of sea levels caused by the combined effects of the gravitational forces exerted by the Moon (and to a much lesser extent, the Sun) and are also caused by the Earth and Moon orbiting one another. Tide tables ...

References

External links

Pinnacle Gulch Coastal Access Trail
official webpage
Shorttail Gulch Coastal Access Trail
official webpage {{California hiking trails Protected areas of Sonoma County, California

See also

References

External links