Año Nuevo State Park
San Mateo Coast · near Pescadero · SF Bay Area
Wildlife Watching
At a glance
- Best season
- Dec–Mar for the breeding season (guided-walk permits required)
- Open year round
- Yes
What is here
- Wildlife
- seals-otters · birds
- Species
- Northern elephant seals (thousands), harbor seals, sea lions, shorebirds
- Amenities
- Largest mainland elephant seal rookery · Docent-guided breeding-season walks · Dune & bluff trails · Visitor center
- Best for
- The definitive elephant seal experience
- Features
- Thousands of elephant seals · Winter breeding spectacle · Guided naturalist walks · Near-guaranteed sightings
Worth knowing
- Hazards
- Guided-walk reservations required (winter) · 3–5 mile walk over soft dunes · Wind, fog & sun exposure · Seals are huge — stay with guide & keep distance
- Good for a first timer
- Yes
Wildlife Watching detail
- Viewing
- trail
- Effort
- moderate
- Habitat
- coast
- Sighting
- 5
- Viewing notes
- One of the world's largest mainland northern elephant seal rookeries — thousands of massive seals hauled out to breed, seen on guided winter walks across the dunes
- Intl tip
- One of the world's largest MAINLAND northern elephant seal rookeries, on the wild San Mateo coast. Each winter thousands haul out to battle, breed, and give birth — a raucous spectacle. Dec–Mar access is by reservation-only docent-guided walk (3–5 miles over soft dunes); other seasons you can visit solo for molting/juvenile seals. Book breeding-season walks well ahead; dress for wind, fog, and sun; expect walking on sand. Colossal wild animals — stay with your guide and keep distance. Unmatched and near-guaranteed.
The guide
Año Nuevo, on the wild San Mateo coast between Santa Cruz and Half Moon Bay, hosts one of the largest mainland breeding colonie…
In the Guidebook
Everything above is yours for free. The written guide to Año Nuevo State Park — what it is actually like, and what we would tell a friend before they went — comes with the Guidebook.
Getting there
- Coordinates
- 37.11, -122.31