Point Reyes National Seashore is a 71,000-acre preserve on a distinctive, triangle-shaped peninsula north of San Francisco in Marin County. With a wild coastline, lush grasslands, and rolling foothills, Point Reyes is home to 300 miles of trails and spectacular views of the Pacific Ocean.
It encompasses miles of beaches, rocky headlands and estuaries and is home to dozens of species of birds and one of the last remaining herds of tule elk in Northern California.
Dogs are permitted on just three beaches—Kehoe, Limantour and Great Beach—and just one trail, and are required to be leashed.
Point Reyes is well worth visiting, even with those restrictions. There’s a lot to see from the car, too. The regulations are set out below; check the website or stop by the visitor center for a map of pet-friendly areas and directions to the visitor center.
Pets must be on a leash.
Pets are allowed in the Bear Valley Visitor Center parking lot and picnic area. Pets are not permitted in public buildings, on public transportation vehicles, or in locations designated as a swimming beach, or within any structure or area closed to pets by the superintendent. This prohibition does not apply to guide dogs accompanying visually impaired persons or hearing ear dogs accompanying hearing-impaired persons.
Leaving a pet unattended and tied to an object is prohibited.
Pet owners not adhering to regulations will be cited.
All trails within the park are closed to pets—with the exception of the Kehoe Beach trail and designated trails in the neighboring Golden Gate National Recreation Area
Pets are allowed on the following ocean-facing beaches throughout the year
- Kehoe Beach – north of the Kehoe Beach trail
- Limantour Beach – southeast of the parking lot to the beach adjacent to Coast Camp
- Point Reyes/Great Beach – from the North Beach parking lot to the south (see exception below)
Palomarin Beach is no longer open to pets
Due to the threatened snowy plover habitat, pets are not allowed on the beach south of the trail at Kehoe Beach or on the beach to the north of the North Beach parking lot.
During the elephant seal pupping and mating season (December through April), pets and humans are not allowed on the beach south of the South Beach parking lot.
TOMALES BAY
Pets are permitted on boats in Tomales Bay and on National Seashore beaches on the west side of Tomales Bay from the northern boundary of Tomales Bay State Park to Elk Fence North Beach. (Map 263 KB PDF). These beaches include:
Kilkenny Beach
Long Cove Beach
Fruit Tree Beach
Marshall Beach
No Name Beach
Tomales Beach
Elk Fence South Beach
Elk Fence North Beach
Pets are not permitted on beaches or anywhere else within the Tomales Point Elk Reserve.
Pets are not permitted on Hog Island, Duck Island or Pelican Point.
Pets are not permitted on beaches within Tomales Bay State Park.
Please note: the only way to access the Tomales Bay beaches listed above if you are accompanied by a pet is by boat.
Pets are not permitted on Marshall Beach Trail.
Stop by a visitor center to pick up a free site bulletin on pet regulations for the Seashore and other parks in the area.
