Kirby Cove

Category: C/O Beaches

GPS GeoCoords: 37.821107, -122.527792

(San Francisco Bay Guardian 2005)
Years after closures due to rain-damaged trails and lack of funds to repair them, nude and suited sunbathers are trickling or, in some cases, pouring back onto some of the five clothing-optional coves located off Conzelman Road in Sausalito. Golden Gate National Recreation Area rangers like Terry Swift still say they're not recommended, because of the scrambling sometimes required, but readers report several of the sites to be in relatively good shape.

Legal status: Part of GGNRA. Trail officially closed. "We don't have enough rangers to post somebody there 24 hours a day, 7 days a week," supervising ranger Richard Danielsen told us. "Some people do go down there, they get back up, and they don't get hurt. Other times, people do get hurt there."

How to find it: From San Francisco, cross the Golden Gate Bridge and take the Alexander Avenue exit off Highway 101. Instead of driving toward Sausalito, go under the highway and up into the headlands on Conzelman about half a mile to the parking lot on the left with chemical toilets. Walk down the winding dirt road (blocked to cars by a metal gate) leading to the beach.

The beach: More pebbly than sandy, Kirby is a narrow, quarter-mile-long beach that's more exposed and somewhat smaller than Red Rock (see below). Swimming isn't advised.

The crowd: On hot summer days when the tide's out, nude use has varied from 50 to 90 percent.

Problems: Pebbly beach, swimming hazardous, trail problems, hard to find (drive slowly).

According to the WANR site, this beach has a long and established history as a clothing-optional beach.

View some high-resolution images of this beach here