Last updated: November 24, 2024
Thing to Do
Hike to Secret Beach and Skylight Cave
NPS Photo / Anela Kopshever
Distance:
5–5.6 miles (8–9 km) roundtrip from Limantour Beach parking lots
6.1 miles (9.8 km) roundtrip from the Laguna Trailhead
8.1 miles (13 km) roundtrip from the Coast Trailhead
Skylight Cave is a sea cave with a collapsed ceiling at the north end of Secret Beach, which is located within the Phillip Burton Wilderness along the eastern shore of Drakes Bay. Even though Skylight Cave is only 2.5 miles (3.8 km) from the closest parking lot at Limantour Beach, it is usually only safe to visit at tides that measure -1 (negative one) foot or lower. There is also one section of the route that will require descending and later climbing back up a nearly vertical eight-foot-tall wall of rock. The best thing you can do to guarantee a safe, fun visit to Skylight Cave is to be prepared.
To visit Secret Beach and Skylight Cave safely, Point Reyes National Seashore recommends hiking/walking to Santa Maria Beach adjacent to Coast Campground and, from there, walking a mile (1.6 km) southeast to Sculptured Beach when the tide is very low (more information about tides is provided below).
Many trails/routes lead to Coast Campground, Santa Maria Beach, and Sculptured Beach, but the most commonly used routes are: from the Limantour Beach South Parking Lot via Limantour Beach; from the Laguna Trailhead via the Laguna and Fire Lane Trails; and from the Coast Trailhead via the Coast Trail. The northern 2.8 miles (4.5 km) of the Coast Trail from the Coast Trailhead to Coast Campground is open to bicycles. Visit our Hike to Sculptured Beach page for in-depth descriptions on these three routes.
These route descriptions alone are not a substitute for a trail map. Print out the park's South District trail map (3,422 KB PDF) before your visit, or pick one up at a visitor center on your way..
Always check current conditions before heading out into the park and familiarize yourself with park regulations. Please practice Leave No Trace principles.
Visit the park's Hiking at Point Reyes National Seashore page for hiking tips and information about trail etiquette and safety.
Visit the park's Trail Advisories and Closures page for current information about closed trails, trails blocked by trees, or other temporary hazards or advisories.
Please take note! The Sculptured Beach Trail was decommisioned in 2023. Many social media posts, websites, and guide books may still reference the Sculptured Beach Trail. This is NOT a maintained trail, and poses many hazards to off-trail hikers—poison oak and crumbling and eroding cliffs. Visitors who use this unmaintained trail may endanger themselves and rescuers, and damage park resources. The National Park Service strongly advises visitors against using this unmaintained route. Please use the recommended routes described on our Hike to Sculptured Beach page to visit the Sculptured Beach, Secret Beach, and Skylight Cave.
Park Regulations
- Glass: Glass containers are prohibited on all Point Reyes Beaches.
- Take only pictures; leave only footprints: Almost everything one finds at Point Reyes is protected by law, including shells, rocks, fossils, flowers, and artifacts.
- Please only travel on authorized trails, respect posted signs, and practice Leave No Trace principles when recreating in the park.
- Bikes are prohibited on most routes leading to Secret Beach and Skylight Cave. Bikes are permitted on the northern three miles of the Coast Trail from Coast Trailhead to Coast Campground. Visit our Bicycle Riding page for more information.
- Dogs are not permitted on Sculptured Beach, Secret Beach, nor on any of the trails in this area of the park. Visit our Pets page to learn where pets are permitted at Point Reyes National Seashore.
- Check current conditions before your visit.
- Horses and pack animals are permitted on most park trails, including the Laguna Trail and Coast Trail. Please visit our Horse Riding page for more information.
- Drones are not permitted anywhere in Point Reyes National Seashore.
Hiking Directions to Sculptured Beach via Santa Maria Beach
Please visit our Hike to Sculptured Beach page for in-depth descriptions on how to get to Sculptured Beach.
Santa Maria Beach
Santa Maria Beach is a one-mile-long (1.6-km-long) beach backed by sandstone bluffs that stretches from the southeast end of Limantour Beach to Santa Maria Creek. Coast Campground sits above the middle section of Santa Maria Beach where the seasonal Jaybird Creek descends to Drakes Bay. (Please note: Jaybird Creek is mislabeled as Santa Maria Creek on Google Maps.) The perennial Santa Maria Creek marks the boundary between the sandy Santa Maria Beach and the rocky Sculptured Beach. There is usually more than enough sand on Santa Maria Beach to safely walk along it without needing to worry about tide levels; the waves rarely reach the base of the bluffs unless there is a high surf warning or very high tides during winter storms.
Sculptured Beach
Sculptured Beach is a 0.75-mile-long (1.2-kilometer-long) stretch of coastline along which many rocky outcrops rise above sandy sections of beach and extend out into Drakes Bay. At higher tides, waves reach the base of the naturally sculpted cliffs for which the beach is named. Therefore, it is only safe to visit Sculptured Beach at low tides. About 0.5 miles (0.8 km) southeast of Santa Maria Creek, a larger, finger-like rocky headland extends into the bay, blocking further passage unless one climbs onto the relative low headland near the base of the bluff. This ascent is not to challenging.
The Drop/Climb
On the other side of the headland is a much steeper, approximately eight-foot (2.4-meter) drop onto a small pocket beach. Do not descend here unless you are certain you can make it back up.
After descending onto the pocket beach, you will walk on the sand between the bluff and a second finger-like rocky headland that has been severed from the bluff. (Or…there is a sea cave/tunnel that waves have carved through this outcrop. At very low tides, it might be possible to walk from one side of this headland through to the other without getting your feet wet. Please be careful only to step on sand and barren rock and not on intertidal organisms.) Once past this headland, you'll walk around the base of a stubby headland and reach a third finger-like headland after another 150 feet (45 meters) or so. This headland has a short tunnel through which you will pass. From here, your route is unobstructed sand for the next ~1,000 feet (~300 meters), until you get to the headland that separates Sculptured Beach from Secret Beach. And this is the location where planning, timing, tides, and surf conditions are most critical.
The Keyhole
At the south end of Sculptured Beach is a headland that extends into Drakes Bay. The water around its base is relatively deep and it is never safe to walk/swim around it. However, there is a keyhole/tunnel that has been eroded through the headland that is large enough for people to pass through. But, safe passage through this keyhole is only possible when the tide is very low, i.e., a negative tide, sometimes necessitating a low of -1 foot. Be sure to check the tide predictions for Point Reyes before you visit.
Please watch your step as you pass through the keyhole, both for your safety—the rocks may be covered by algae and can be very slippery—as well as for the survival of intertidal marine organisms—only walk on barren rock.
There are two other variables besides the tides that come into play at this location: 1) how much sand is on the beach around the keyhole; and 2) the height of the surf.
The more sand there is, the higher the tide can be without potentially having to wade through water. The less sand there is, the lower the tide will need to be. Usually, there is more sand on the beach around the keyhole during the summer and fall and less sand during the winter and spring.
Somewhat similarly, the smaller the surf, the higher the tide can be without potentially having to wade through water. The bigger the surf, the lower the tide will need to be. And bigger surf increases the hazards of being hit and battered by a large wave while passing through the keyhole. If there are Beach Hazard Statements or High Surf Advisories or Warnings (or worse) in effect, do not attempt to pass through the keyhole.
Once you make it through the keyhole, you've arrived at the north end of Secret Beach. Please watch you step as you cross the tidepool zone to reach the sandy section of the beach.
Secret Beach and Skylight Cave
Secret Beach is 0.85 miles (1.4 km) in length. Sheer bluffs run the length of the beach, all the way to Point Resistance at its south end. In numerous locations, small faults and twisted and contorted layers of rock may be viewed, along with some small sea caves. The largest of Secret Beach's sea caves formed at its northern end. But, at some time in the distant past, the roof of the sea cave, but not its ocean-facing wall, collapsed, forming a large sinkhole-like depression in the coastal bluffs. This feature is labeled as Skylight Cave on an early park map used by the park's trail crew. Usually, one may enter Skylight Cave through a small tunnel-like entrance about 130 feet (40 meters) to the east of the keyhole. Sometimes, the sand has been scoured away from the entrance and one can walk upright through the tunnel. Other times, sand has built up at the entrance and one may need to crawl on hands and knees (or even on one's belly). And sometimes during the summer and fall, the entrance may be blocked by sand. Be careful as you pass through the tunnel not to hit your head on the tunnel's rocky ceiling.
Timing Your Visit
If you are going no further than Skylight Cave, you will want to pass south through the keyhole no later than about 15 minutes before low tide so that you will have about 30 minutes before you need to pass north through the keyhole and have the same approximate tide level as when you passed to the south. If you plan to walk the entire length of Secret Beach to Point Resistance, you will want to pass south through the keyhole no later than 30 minutes before low tide. The lower the tide, the longer the window of opportunity will be, e.g., the tide might be low enough to pass through the keyhole an hour before to an hour after very low tides.
Details
Duration
3-4 Hours
Allow at least 3 hours to hike to Secret Beach and Skylight Cave from the Limantour Beach parking lot, 3.5 hours from the Laguna Trailhead, or 4.5 hours from the Coast Trailhead.
Activity
Hiking
Age(s)
All ages.
Pets Allowed
No
Pets are prohibited on all trails that lead to Secret Beach and Skylight Cave. Pets are permitted on Limantour Beach from the main Limantour Beach parking lot to Santa Maria Creek, but are not permitted on Sculptured Beach nor Secret Beach. Visit the park's Pets page to learn where pets are welcome at Point Reyes National Seashore.
Activity Fee
No
Entrance fees may apply, see Fees & Passes information.
Location
Secret Beach and Skylight Cave within the Phillip Burton Wilderness, Point Reyes National Seashore
Skylight Cave is a sea cave with a collapsed ceiling at the north end of Secret Beach, which is located within the Phillip Burton Wilderness along the eastern shore of Drakes Bay.
The closest trailheads are over 2.5 miles (4 km) away at the Limantour Beach South Parking Lot, Laguna Trailhead, and Coast Trailhead.
Directions to Bear Valley
Directions from Bear Valley to the Coast and Laguna Trailheads
Directions from Bear Valley to Limantour Beach
Please be aware that on weekends throughout the summer and on many holidays throughout the year, the parking areas may fill early in the day. Visitors arriving late in the morning or in the afternoon may be turned away. The park will close Limantour Road to further entry, potentially for several hours, when there are no more parking spaces available in the parking areas. Please observe all "No Parking" signs. If you wish to visit Secret Beach and Skylight Cave or other locations accessed via Limantour Road, arrive early, or consider visiting mid-week.
Reservations
No
Season
Year Round
Winter
The heaviest rainfall occurs in the winter months. Come prepared for rain and drizzle to possibly last for several days. More rain falls east of Inverness Ridge than on the west side. In between winter rains, it is often sunny, calm, and cool.
Spring
Most spring days are windy. Expect cool temperatures in March. By late May and early June, temperatures can be quite warm on the east side of Inverness Ridge.
Summer
Although there is very little rain during summer months, there is often dense fog. Patchy morning fog may burn off by mid-day. Afternoons are often sunny and warm with a light breeze inland. By contrast, the beaches and headlands are often 20 degrees cooler with heavy fogs common throughout the day in July, August and September.
Fall
The coastal areas of Point Reyes experience some of the clearest days in late September, October and early November. The occasional storm will start rolling through in late October, bringing clouds, wind, and rain. The strongest winds occur in November and December during occasional southerly gales.
Time of Day
Point Reyes National Seashore is open daily for day-hiking from 6 am to midnight. Overnight parking and camping is only permitted with a valid backcountry camping permit.
The walk along Sculptured Beach and Secret Beach and passage through the keyhole may be impassible at high tide or during high surf conditions. Before you visit, check the tide predictions and the National Weather Service's Watches, Warnings & Advisories page to learn whether there are any active warnings about the surf.
Accessibility Information
Each of the three routes varies in length, difficulty, and type of terrain. The route from the Coast Trailhead via the Coast Trail is the most consistently flat and wide—it's a gravel and packed dirt path the entire way to Coast Campground. The route from the Laguna Trailhead is a significantly narrower trail that gains and loses 400 feet of elevation as it climbs over a ridge. The route from Limantour Beach is almost completely on a sandy beach, except for the Sculptured Beach section which requires climbing up and over rocky outcrops.