Mattole Beach Campground

Most memorable beach camping.

Despite the sites being closely spaced there was enough wilderness to compensate.

We stayed here for 2 weeks and switched sites 3 times. Sites closer to the beach are better suited for vehicle camping as there were spiky plants that poked right into tent bottoms, and are very windy. Sites in the bushes give more wind cover and more privacy. Our tent did better there! Make sure to have the right kind of spikes for the ground as it can be very hard. This place is very popular and is always busy so best to try to get a spot between Monday through Wednesday! No running water, with a very long and challenging road to get there and back, but very much worth it. Deer, raccoons, seagulls, eagles, birds of all kinds… hiking trails and a wild magical beach. Sometimes you can hear the walruses at night!

If you decide to go here, make sure you take the Mattole road exit north of Weott. Coming from the south it is tempting to take the Redway/Ettersburg exit. DON'T unless you are in a small vehicle.

We did take the Redway exit, and unless you feel your day is enhanced by scaring the wits out of your spouse while your driving is focused on staying alive, you should not copy our mistake in anything but a very small rig. There are segments of dirt road so steep and so tilted that passage is questionable, and once you get going, there is not much chance for turning back.

The Mattole road is not nearly as bad, but it is still a long journey from the 101 freeway.

The campground is small, the beach and surrounding areas are beautiful, and it is very windy. Not worth the drive if in a motorhome or large trailer.

No cell and no phone service in the campground. However, on the beach itself, we got two bars of Verizon coverage.

By the way, the stretch of road just west of 101 is a must-see. Amazing drive in the redwood forest.

Yes, I agree with the other reviewers that Mattole Road is terrible, however go slow and it will be worth it. The unpaved road into the campground was better than most of the ride from the 101. Campground itself was beautiful and right off the beach. We stayed 3 nights over the weekend in March and only had a few neighbors. Definitely would like to come back in the summer months, but probably during the week. Be advised there is no water there right now, but there are usually bathrooms.

Like others have said this can be a difficult campground to reach. The road from Ferndale to the north is 30-miles of up one hill and down the next. It is asphalt almost the entire way but at times there are more potholes than road. The drive adjacent to the beach before reaching Petrolia is stunning! The drive from the Humboldt Redwood Forest to the east is more of the same. Lots of potholes with steep climbs and descents and even large sections of road missing. Literally 1 lane of the 2 lane road has fallen off the hillside and instead of fixing the road the state has put up stop signs and signs stating that it is one-lane ahead. Somehow this is still a very well-traveled road. I feel bad for the locals who pay taxes to drive on these roads.

The campground itself is nothing short of perfect in my opinion. There are no hookups but if you need those you probably couldn’t navigate the roads here. There is potable water in the summer I guess, but it is shut off in the winter. There are two pit toilets. The sites are adjacent to the sand dunes and it is a short walk to the beach.

It is a much longer walk to the lighthouse (7-miles total) but one that should be done. Keep the tides in mind as it is impossible to get there at certain times of the day. The tidal charts are posted at the campground. The old lighthouse is a nice relic but the real reason to go is to see the elephant seal colony. When we were there it looked like there were more than 100 seals in three different groups very close to the lighthouse.

Cell Service:
No T-mobile
Verizon is tricky. I was able to pull down a useable LTE signal with our WeBoost but without it struggled to grab a single bar of 1x.

Vault toilet / no water / no bathroom sink / no shower / table / fire pit / middle-easy access / no shade.

The campground is ok: next to the beach, but protect of the wind. Toilet are clean, sites lack of privacy but people are quiet. The first and the last site are really cool: trees and bushes make a kind of shelter, where you can install your tent. Price is definitly good, but it needs to arrive early to have a place.

But you don't come here for the campground, you come here for the incredible beautiful coast. The Mattole Beach campground is the begining of the Lost Coast trail : a 3 days trail, with 2 bivouac nights, from Mattole Beach to Shelter Cove, be aware of the tires. If you don't have time or material to do that, you can walk along the trail, to the lighthouse or further. It's so beautiful! Ocean, flowers, sea lions, birds, cliffs and rocks… An incredible wild place!

At the end of the day, you can swim on the estuary behind the campground: water is really clean and not salty, there is a sand beach, a lot of birds…

We stayed there end of July and we drive a Chevrolet Malibu (not high clearance). In terms of access: we came from Ferndale, via Petrolia, on the "Mattole Road" it was totally ok, a georgous scenary road, Ferndale is beautiful victorian town, just take time and drive slowly. And we return via Petrolia, Honeydew, Ettersburg and Thorn Junction to Shelter Cove. It was ok too: it takes time, but the road is well maintened, some time not paived. A lot of cannabis farms are here, so they need a correct road… At the top of hills, there is cellphone coverage.

We had hesitated, because access seems difficult, but don't hesitate: with a normal car it's ok, and the place is just so beautiful !

Such a perfect campsite! There are 15 spaces, #14 and #15 area a little more private than the others. The beach is steps away, just over the dunes. The road in from the south (through Honeydew) was a bit rough... potholes galore! Dry out some of the beach driftwood for your campfires. If you happen to run out of water or supplies, Petrolia is your closest place 20 minutes away. But no gas or firewood.
I’d go back to this site in a heartbeat.

Okay, the road in from Petrolia is a bit challenging, but geez, no worries. After the road along the coast from Ferndale, I could have driven the final stretch with my eyes closed. Avoid THAT road if you have anything but a small van or a 4x4. Rough does not come close to describing that road!
Now, the campground. Easy access, lots of sites, clean. yup, It was nice there.
Windy? Yup. Quiet? Mostly, a LOT of wind but I had a good night sleep - and I'm a super light sleeper.
The toilets were clean, unheated, and a bot of a walk, but unless you need to go right now, it's okay. No complaints.
The beach was wonderful, long, clean, lots of driftwood to collect for a fire.
We went there because we saw there was a lighthouse along the beach.
Warning for that, it is a LONG walk, about 1 1/2 hours each way. And it's sluggish, as most of that you are walking in sand. That's tough to do. I was stopping every 20 minutes or so to dump the sand from my socks.
But, it's well worth it if you can do the walk. Watch along the beach for seal and sea lions. Right in front of the lighthouse, there were probably 40 or 50 lying in the sand, we walked right up to them and got pics and videos. They didn't care about us at all.
So, yeah, a great place to visit. A nice place to stay.

A really beautiful spot off the grid. amazing views from the dunes and surrounding hill sides. There are three roads in, none of which are for the faint of heart. We took a 35' 5th wheel in and I probably would not do it again. Small rigs (small C's, B's, truck campers even smaller TT and 5th wheels are ok. NOT for big rigs. As of fall of 2018 there is NO water. A ranger said a new solar sysyem was to be installed in 2019 which would allow them to pass CA inspection.

My husband and I came here 21 years ago in a little Alfa Romeo. Back then we drove from Garberville to Honeydew to Petrolia to Mattole. The roads were windy and loooong but in decent shape to drive. Fast forward to 2018, do not drive this route holy cow talk about nail biting potholes and intermittent dirt roads. Apparently some of the roads washed away and rerouted. If you are coming from the North then drive from Ferndale to Petrolia. If you are coming from South go the extra drive North to Ferndale to Petrolia. Dont rely on google maps

This is a first come first serve beach campground. We arrived appx 2:30 on Friday and found no problem getting a spot. However later in the evening I think the campground was almost full. Backpackers like to park here for the hike into the Lost Coast.

Hiking to Punta Gorda Lighthouse like training for Navy Seals (ok exageration) but really sand walk 4 miles. We took the Windy Point Road back....dont do this unless you are prepared to climb a hill. Our roundtrip was probably 9 miles this route. Go back on the lost coast trail for easier hike. Elephant seals at the lighthouse!

Vault toilets and NO WATER. many folks showed up thinking there was running water, there was in 1997 when I was last here. We had to give 2 other campsite water because they were unprepared.

Aside from the pain, I find this place magical and rewarding and will return just look at my photos