Kirby Cove Campground

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This is by far the coolest place I’ve ever camped in California! Pictures hint at the view, but it really needs to be experienced — absolutely gorgeous! The upper gate is easy to find next to a bridge viewing turnoff. Don’t miss it though! Conzelman Rd is one-way, so you’ll have to circle back around if you pass it. Pro tip: after entering the combo, push the lock in slightly, then pull out and it’ll pop open. Thankfully, the road is wider than it looks on Google Maps and fairly well maintained. Biggest obstacle is hikers, but there’s enough room to pass if everyone’s courteous. As many reviews mention, it’s a decent walk down from the parking lot. We managed with a foldable luggage cart, but most campers had foldable wagons — highly recommended unless you pack very light. One of the most amazing things about this site is how perfectly you can hear the ocean from the campfire area! You can’t see the water from there, but the sound of the waves carries beautifully, and you’re protected from the wind. Definitely use the food storage boxes! One night, as our fire was dying, I heard a loud rustle down the hillside. It was dark, and for a moment I thought we were about to be devoured by something huge — but it was only three raccoons! They froze under our flashlight, and one stood on its hind legs. We didn’t immediately run them off, so they slowly approached. If we’d left anything out, they would’ve snatched it and ran. The foghorns only sounded one night, around 3 a.m. I used earplugs and fell back asleep; my partner didn’t and fell back asleep fine. The pattern is predictable, so it’s not too bad. That morning the Golden Gate Bridge was completely hidden in the fog, like it wasn’t even there. As of September, the swing was back! It hung a bit low but was still fun, if slightly sketchy.
The Marine Mammal Center is just a 15-minute drive and worth visiting. Overall, an absolutely wonderful stay if you can manage to nab a reservation!

It was great to be able to camp at my favorite place. I am disabled and it was so helpful to have that access for me to camp. A very special time with togetherness for my family.

Our first time reserving campsite #4. We usually reserve #3 and have actually used all the campsites over the years.
However, I feel #4 is by far my favorite. Kirby Cove campground is special and magical. Make sure you bring heavy duty carts, lots of water, and firewood. We have a pop-up tent for our toilet and shower. I’m not fan of their bathrooms (old school port-a-potty in a shed. It doesn’t cost much to purchase the items and super easy to clean. No smells.
I love how secluded the campground is and you basically have the beach to yourself. It’s truly one of my favorite campgrounds w/o amenities along the California Coastline. Highly recommend it.

Kirby Cove is a magical place. We had an issue trying to open the gate locks. It took awhile to get in. Other than that, it was a great experience.

I tried to follow that instructions on how to get there and maybe my fault since it was already sunset. But the service gate wasn't easily located so I ended up driving around the big loop 3 times and once Google said I arrived I walked around to see where the trail was and finally found a small gate that was locked and according to previous users it was a 1 mile walk down to the campsite. When i thought the directions said there was closer parking or at least could park a bit closer to unload my thing . All in all didn't even spend the night and decided to rent a motel 6 that was not good but new were it was at .

Excellent time at Kirby Cove site 5. Previous reviews regarding wind are no joke, our tent flew away several times in the process. Thankfully the wind died down by the evening, but earlier on it was very windy. The area to set up your tent with the permanent anchors is approx. 10x10, so if you bring a tent bigger than that (we did) you need to get crafty as to how you're going to anchor down your tent. Extra paracord can really be your friend here. We ended up anchoring our tent to our wagon that had the cooler on it so nothing would blow away and it worked!

Awesome trip, the view and campsite of a lifetime. Had a wonderful time and built a bonfire and enjoyed s’mores with an excellent view. Aloha. 🍍

It’s a special place. Unfortunately the campers before us left their trash in our “animal/bear box” and that wasn’t cleared out so we had to haul it up to the dumpsters.

Stayed overnight at site 003. Difficult to find site and instructions were not clear. Entrance is not clearly marked, as it is off a heavily populated street with tourists and people clambering to take photos of the Golden Gate Bridge. Eventually we were able to unlock the gates with the code emailed in our reservation, and make our way down to the site. It is a very private and small campsite, with one-of-a-kind views of the bay and the bridge. We luckily did not get a lot of fog, and did not experience the horns blaring.

Our family did have to deal with a lot of wind and breezes blowing through our site, so it was tricky setting up our tent and it was very chilly at night. The bathrooms are pit toilets only, with no running water so please prepare for that. We brought our own wagon to tote our items- if we hadn’t had a wagon it would have been a deal breaker. Wildlife was all around us; we had deer approach us and a raccoon came and rifled through our belongings, we observed many bird species and butterflies. Cute quails! Overall a memorable experience for our family, but the chill and pit toilets, as well as lack of water would not encourage us to return. Grateful to have been able to secure a one night stay, but not eager to return.