Punta Gorda Lighthouse
King Range NCA (Mattole trailhead) · near Petrolia · North Coast
Hiking
At a glance
- Difficulty
- moderate
- Route type
- out-and-back
- Distance
- 5.5 miles
- Elevation gain
- 300 ft
- Time needed
- day
- Best season
- Late spring–fall; avoid winter storms
Permits and booking
- Permit required
- No
- How the permit works
- BLM King Range - day hike, no permit or bear canister. BUT it uses the north Lost Coast Trail: the stretch near Punta Gorda is IMPASSABLE at high tide - carry a tide table and hike a low/outgoing tide (~3 ft or less).
- How hard the permit is to get
- 0 of 5
What is here
- Features
- Historic Punta Gorda Lighthouse ruins · Large sea lion & harbor seal haul-out · Black-sand beach & tidepools · A permit-free taste of the Lost Coast
Worth knowing
- Dogs
- Allowed
- Good for a first timer
- No
Hiking detail
- Intl tip
- The best day-hike taste of the Lost Coast - beach walking to a historic lighthouse and a huge sea lion haul-out. No permit needed, but CARRY A TIDE TABLE: the Punta Gorda stretch is impassable at high tide. Soft sand is tiring. Dogs OK on leash.
The guide
The hike to the Punta Gorda Lighthouse is the perfect day-hike taste of the Lost Coast - a roughly five-and-a-half-mile round t…
In the Guidebook
Everything above is yours for free. The written guide to Punta Gorda Lighthouse — what it is actually like, and what we would tell a friend before they went — comes with the Guidebook.
Getting there
- Coordinates
- 40.2938, -124.356