Yellow Bank Beach
Santa Cruz, CA
Yellow Bank Beach is reached by parking along a dirt frontage road, a genuinely informal, low key stop on this stretch of coast north of Santa Cruz. It's the kind of beach mostly used by people who already know it's there.
Genuinely quiet thanks to its informal, easy to miss access, though that same obscurity means it takes some local knowledge to find in the first place.
How we score beachesLook for the dirt frontage road pullout rather than expecting a marked lot, this one takes a bit of local knowledge to find.
Free parking is available along the dirt frontage road.
A path leads from the frontage road down to the beach.
Dogs are not allowed at Yellow Bank Beach, part of Coast Dairies State Park.
Fog is common most mornings year round, typical of the Santa Cruz coast.
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