DAY 198: McGrath State Beach
Date: Tuesday May 31, 2011
Miles: 3.5
Elevation Gain: 50 Feet
Time: 2.5 Hours
Difficulty: Easy
Reward: Beaches & Trails
Description: Walk along a wooden boardwalk and then explore the Santa Clara Estruary
Where: Ventura, CA
Directions:From the 101 Freeway in Ventura, exit on Seaward and take Harbor past the Ventura Harbor to McGrath
This was my first ever visit to McGrath. Upon turning in you will drive up to a gate with a guard standing by. My quick reflexes drove us to the right lane where it said something to the effect, if you already have a pass... So I passed on that side acting like I knew what I was doing. It's quite possible that day use is free anyway... I then made an immediate right turn and parked in a small parking lot. (McGrath is a State Park where you can camp overnight). Although I dislike car camping (versus the hike in with heavy pack), McGrath seemed spacious.
From where we parked there are two trails that you can hike. One goes directly to the beach** and the other spurs off to the right onto a wooden boardwalk. We walked the boardwalk until it turned into a dirt trail. We kept going:
There were several different ways that you could go. We explored for about 20 minutes and then decided to head back to the other trail, which in theory would take us directly to the beach...
Snowy Plover protection! I encountered a portion of the protected area about a month ago at Oxnard Shores. It was warming to discover that there are more protected areas. The only bad thing is, you are forced to take a long detour and the dunes until the beach finally opened up...
Good Times! I will have to return because there are miles of trails and beach to still explore!
I've been told that McGrath is closing. If anyone had details, please advise.
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