Montara State Beach/McNee Ranch
North of Montara on Highway 1, Montara State Beach is a wide sandy beach about eight-tenths of a mile long. The south end of Montara Beach has rich but mostly inaccessible tide pools. Harbor seals occasionally haul out at Montara. The beach is bounded by low hills both to the north and south. The granitic rocks of Montara Mountain are the main source of sand for this beach. As the sand travels such a short distance, the grains have not had a chance to weather into fine particles and tend to be quite coarse.
There are two beach access points from the bluff area. One access is off Highway 1 across from Second Street; the second access is located about a half mile north on the ocean side of highway. The paths down to the beach are steep.
Dogs are permitted provided they are controlled with a leash of no more than six feet at all times.
McNee Ranch
McNee Ranch, part of Montara State Beach, is located on the west face of Montara Mountain, north of Half Moon Bay and south of Pacifica. The mountain is a northern spur of the Santa Cruz Mountains and features the only undisturbed coastal mountain habitat found on over 100 miles of coastline. It is an ecological island of natural biological diversity. Its steep slopes have minimized human impact, and it is home to plant and animal communities found nowhere else in the world.
