Half Moon Bay State Beach
Managed by California Department of Parks and Recreation
182 acres3.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Photo: Doc Searls · CC BY-SA 2.0A+Outdoors
Outdoors in Half Moon Bay
Half Moon Bay has 16 miles of mapped trails, 2.5 for every square mile of land
16% of Half Moon Bay’s land is conserved, about 654 acres. 92% of residents live within a half mile of a park. The biggest trail networks: Half Moon Bay State Beach (3.4 mi).
Ahead of 96% of U.S. towns · #105 of 847 in California. What drives it
Conserved land
16%
654 acres · of 6.2 sq mi of land
Trails
16 mi
2.5 per sq mi of land
Park land
384 ac
34 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
92%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
17 mi
7.1 mi lanes · 9.4 mi paths
What kind of outdoors town is Half Moon Bay?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Half Moon Bay have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Half Moon Bay is ahead of 96% of U.S. towns, #105 of 847 in California. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; trail miles rank highest, park acres per resident lowest.
A+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Half Moon Bay’s overall grade.
Conserved land16% of the land · typical CA town 4% · U.S. 4%ATrails2.5 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (16 mi) · CA 0.9 · U.S. 0.4A+Park land34 acres of park per 1,000 residents (384 acres) · CA 5 · U.S. 13B+Parks close to home92% of residents within a half mile of a park · CA 91% · U.S. 72%A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 96%
LessMore
California towns of 2,500+ (847)Ahead of 88%
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from A to A+. Trails and many small parks come from OpenStreetMap, mapped by volunteers, so coverage varies from town to town; the half mile is a straight line from each census block, so a river or highway in the way isn’t counted against it.
PAD-US, OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors), Census 2025 Gazetteer and 2020 blocks; details in Sources below. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →
The map
Conserved land, trails & bike routes
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it.
Easements protect land from building but are usually private.© OpenStreetMap contributors · USGS PAD-US
Places to walk
Pick a walk
The longest trail network is Half Moon Bay State Beach, with 3.4 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Smith Field Park
Park
29 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary
Managed by National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration
12 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Frenchmans Creek Community Park
Park
10 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 7 parks & preserves
Half Moon Bay State Beach182 acres · 3.4 mi of trail · California Department of Parks and Recreation
DirectionsJohn L. Carter Memorial Park5 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · City of Half Moon Bay
DirectionsSmith Field Park29 acres
Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary12 acres · National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration
DirectionsFrenchmans Creek Community Park10 acres
Oak Avenue Park1 acres
DirectionsOcean View Avenue Park1 acres
Who protects it
654 conserved acres
16% of Half Moon Bay’s land. Who manages Half Moon Bay’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Land trusts & nonprofits354 ac
State parks184 ac
Town or city105 ac
County63 ac
Private Conservation · 289 acState Park · 184 acLocal Park · 136 acUnknown Easement · 58 acLocal Recreation Area · 30 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 50 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wavecrest Open Space Reserve Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 199 | Open |
| Half Moon Bay State Beach State Park | State parks | 184 | Open |
| Poplar Beach Local Park | Town or city | 63 | Open |
| Midcoast Beaches Local Park | County | 61 | Open |
| Smith Field Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 29 | Open |
| Wavecrest Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 25 | Closed |
| Andreotti Family Farm Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 21 | Closed |
| Nurserymen's Exchange/Hwy 92 Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 21 | Closed |
| Johnston Ranch Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 13 | Closed |
| Coastside Land Trust Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 10 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
23 places to go in Half Moon Bay
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Half Moon Bay
Dunes BeachIn Half Moon Bay State Beach
DirectionsEl Granada Beach
DirectionsElmar BeachIn Half Moon Bay State Beach
DirectionsFrancis BeachIn Half Moon Bay State Beach
DirectionsManhattan Beach
DirectionsMateo Coast State BeachesIn Half Moon Bay State Beach
DirectionsMiramar BeachIn Half Moon Bay State Beach
DirectionsNaples BeachIn Half Moon Bay State Beach
Directions5 more beaches
Pillar Point Harbor Beach
DirectionsPoplar Beach
DirectionsRedondo Beach
DirectionsVallejo Beach
DirectionsVenice BeachIn Half Moon Bay State Beach
DirectionsPlaygrounds in Half Moon Bay
Oak Avenue Park PlaygroundIn Oak Avenue Park
DirectionsPlus 2 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Picnic areas in Half Moon Bay
5 picnic areas without a name on the map.
Campgrounds in Half Moon Bay
Francis Beach CampgroundIn Half Moon Bay State Beach
DirectionsSweetwood Group CampHours: Open 24 hours · In Half Moon Bay State Beach
DirectionsTrails & water
2 named trails
Named trails
Horses · 1.9 miUnpaved · 7.7 mi
Coastal Trail1.3 mi
Old California Coastal Trail0.1 mi
Biking & sports
17 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
7.1 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
9.4 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
15Tennis
8Basketball
7Baseball
1Soccer
1Skate park
1Field hockey
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →4 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 1 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
When to get out
The best walking months in Half Moon Bay: April to August
NOAA’s 1991–2020 normals for the town and the daylight at its latitude. Outlined months have long days, highs of 59 to 86 °F and little rain for the place.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 9.8 | 10.8 | 11.9 | 13.1 | 14.2 | 14.7 | 14.5 | 13.6 | 12.4 | 11.1 | 10.1 | 9.6 |
| High (°F) | 58 | 59 | 61 | 62 | 64 | 66 | 67 | 68 | 69 | 68 | 62 | 58 |
| Rain (in) | 4.8 | 4.8 | 3.6 | 1.8 | 0.8 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 1.2 | 2.4 | 5.0 |
July is the driest month (under 0.1 in) and September the warmest (highs of 69 °F). 5.0 inches fall in December, the wettest month. The climate in Half Moon Bay →
Next door
Half Moon Bay and its neighbors
Half Moon Bay has the most mapped trails of the 2 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Half Moon Bay | 16% | 2.5 | 34 | 92% | A+ |
| El Granada | 59% | 3.2 | 340 | 99%+ | A+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Half Moon Bay
Where can I hike in Half Moon Bay?
The longest trail networks: Half Moon Bay State Beach, 3.4 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Half Moon Bay is conserved land?
16% of its land, against a typical 4% for a California town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Half Moon Bay’s trails?
Half Moon Bay State Beach and Smith Field Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Half Moon Bay?
17 miles of bike routes are on the map: 7.1 of painted or protected lanes and 9.4 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Half Moon Bay?
25,028 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Half Moon Bay or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 384 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Half Moon Bay have?
Ahead of 96% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #105 of 847 in California. The grade combines the share of land that is conserved, miles of mapped trail per square mile of land, park acres per 1,000 residents and the share of residents within a half mile of a park. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
Trail talk
Conditions, parking and favorite walks from Half Moon Bay neighbors.
Share a tip
Sources
Where this page comes from
Conserved and public land: USGS Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US), service updated July 2026. Parks, trails, playgrounds, beaches and other places: OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL), map data as of 2026-10-28. Land and water area: Census 2025 Gazetteer. Residents near a park: 2020 Census blocks. National Register: National Park Service. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →