Stranded in Dana Point

Orange County "Secret" Beach: Dana Point Strand

The key to finding an uncrowded beach in Orange County? Be willing to hike! Dana Point’s Strand lies beneath a protected coastal promontory called the Headlands, surrounded by rocky bluffs and elegant homes. Getting there (and back!) is a challenge—exactly why it’s such a great beach!

You can skip the main parking lot (where a refurbished funicular shuttles people much of the way down) and opt for a diverse 3-mile loop starting at the cliffside Dana Point Nature Interpretive Center. Grab a map and hike through coastal sagebrush, buckwheat, and coastal scrub. As you meander through the preserve, search the skies for osprey and listen for the meow-like song of the threatened California gnatcatcher.

A brief walk on a road and down some switchbacks leads to the sand. Grab a spot, relax, swim, look for the local brown pelicans, and enjoy your beach day. When it’s time to go, head up the shoreline, and then conquer some leg-busting stairs that trace the funicular track, and follow the path along the main lot as you are rewarded with constant panoramic ocean vistas.

Soon the paved walkway reaches Selva Road. Cross it to the aptly named Passage des Palmiers, a paved uphill test among palm trees. At PCH, head for a trail to your right leading into Hilltop Conservation Park, where more native flora thrives, including coastal prickly pear and bush sunflower, not to mention views of the fishing boats and yachts moored at the Dana Point Marina. The outlet releases you onto Street of the Green Lantern, which leads you southwest back to the Interpretive Center parking lot and the completion of your beachin’ workout!

Bonus: The nearby Ocean Institute, an educational center for marine biology and history, is home to interpretive exhibits and a replica of Pilgrim, the ship that Richard Henry Dana himself sailed aboard in the 1830s.

To get to the Dana Point Nature Interpretive Center (10 a.m. to 4 p.m., parking lot closes at sunset), from the north, take  Pacific Coast Hwy. (CA-1) to Street of the Green Lantern. Turn right and follow the road as it becomes Scenic Dr., which leads to the lot. From the south, take Pacific Coast Hwy. (CA-1) and turn left on Dana Point Harbor Dr. Continue a mile and turn right onto Cove Rd., followed by the next left onto Scenic Dr., which leads to the lot. No dogs.

Story and photos by Matt Pawlik, @mattitudehikes

Trending Stories NorCal

View all Stories
  1. Camp at Goose Lake in the Lakes Basin

    Duck, Duck, Goose!

    Try to get a first-come, first-served campsite at one of the Lakes Basin’s lakeside campgrounds. We love Goose Lake Campground, where there are just 13 sites and no motorized boats.

    View
  2. This Is Paradise

    Granite mountain-scape, superb sunset views, crystal lakes, and shoreline campsites … the trip to Paradise Lake in Tahoe National Forest lives up to its idyllic name.

    View
  3. Aloha from California

    Say Aloha without leaving California with a 7-mile out-and-back hiking adventure to Lake Aloha in El Dorado National Forest. You can also camp here, a premier place for stargazing.

    View
  4. Sequoia Re-opens Crystal Cave

    Step inside Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Park's hidden world by visiting the newly re-opened Crystal Cave—the only cave in the parks open to the public. Closed for four years, this rare marble karst cavern is welcoming visitors once again, but only through the summer season!

    View

Trending Stories SoCal

View all Stories
  1. Can't Top This

    San Francisco’s Presidio was already a fantastic place to hang out for the afternoon, a beautiful site within the largest urban national park in the United States (the Golden Gate National Recreation Area). And Presidio Tunnel Tops is like a cherry on top. Make that two cherries on top, with the newly opened (July 2025) Outpost Meadow, a 1.5-acre green space located at Old Mason Street across from the Crissy Field Marsh in the Presidio.

    View
  2. Underground Garden

    Looking to escape the summer heat? Head to Fresno and discover its cool secret: the Forestiere Underground Gardens–an enchanting garden and architecture oasis like no other.

    View
  3. Oh Ryan

    Sure, it’s those whimsical trees that give Joshua Tree National Park its marquee billing; but this beautiful landscape also has surrounding mountains and its night sky—one of the darkest in Southern California and designated an International Dark Sky Park. Joshua Tree has four allowable stargazing parking lots, and a newly opened haven for spending the night nearby...

    View
  4. Easiest Best Hike in the World

    Choose the easiest and most view-rewarding hike in Yosemite. Okay, we’ll go first: the combination of hiking to Sentinel Dome and Taft Point. Both of these lookouts are within a couple miles of each other on Glacier Point Road

    View