Seal Cove
Moss Beach, CA
Seal Cove sits just south of the main Fitzgerald Marine Reserve entrance, part of the same reef system but reached by its own stairway down from the bluff. It's a quieter extension of the same tide pooling stretch, worth combining into one visit rather than treating as fully separate.
A genuinely quieter piece of the same excellent reef system as Fitzgerald Marine Reserve, though it's really an extension of that visit rather than a separate destination.
How we score beachesCombine this with the main Fitzgerald Marine Reserve entrance, the reef here is part of the same protected system just reached from a different stairway.
No fee, though the CCC records no formal parking area; use the main reserve lot nearby.
Stairs and blufftop trails lead down to the cove.
Dogs are not allowed on the beach at Seal Cove, which falls within the Fitzgerald Marine Reserve.
Fog is common most mornings year round, typical of this stretch of the San Mateo coast.
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