The California Coastal National Monument is a part of 

BLM

the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) National 

Landscape Conservation System. 

For more information, contact these Trinidad Gateway 

partners, who are working together to help protect and 

provide for public enjoyment of this unique part of the 

California coastline: 

Bureau of Land Management 

Arcata Field Office 

www.blm.gov/ca/arcata 

(707) 825-2300 

California Coastal National Monument 

www.blm.gov/ca/pa/coastal_monument/ 

California Department of Fish and Game 

www.dfg.ca.gov/MRD 

(707) 445-6493 

California State Parks 

North Coast Redwoods District 

www.parks.ca.gov 

(707) 445-6547 

Trinidad Museum Society

 400 Main Street 

Trinidad, CA 95570 

Cher-Ae Heights Indian Community of the Trinidad Rancheria 

www.trinidad-rancheria.org 

(707) 677-0211 

Tsurai Ancestral Society 

P. O. Box 62 

Trinidad, CA 95570 

Yurok Tribe 

www.yuroktribe.org 

(707) 482-1350 

City of Trinidad 

www.trinidad.ca.gov 

(707) 677-0223 

HSU Marine Lab 

570 Ewing Street 

Trinidad, CA 95570 

www.humboldt.edu/~marinelb/ 

Explore the Trinidad Coast Explore the Trinidad Coast 

CALIFORNIA COASTAL 

NATIONAL MONUMENT 

- TRINIDAD GATEWAY -

Photos by Bob Wick; Illustrations by Gary Bloomfield; Design by Chris Lohoefener of 

the Natural Resources Services Division of Redwood Community Action Agency, 

with assistance from the Trinidad Museum Society, City of Trinidad, California Department 

of Fish and Game, Yurok Tribe and the Cher-Ae Heights Trinidad Rancheria 

c c
TRINIDAD’S ROCKY RICHES 

see map inside 

Patrick’s Point 

State Park 

Big Lagoon 

County Park 

Trinidad 

To Arcata/Eureka 

Luffenholtz 

Beach 

Houda Point 

To Crescent City 

C a l i f o r n i a

Moonstone 

Beach 

At very low tides, one can 

walk between Houda Point 

and Moonstone Beach. There is 

a walk-in sea cave, a waterfall 

that tumbles into the surf, 

numerous marine birds and 

rocky pools full of sea life. Clam Beach 

elcome to Trinidad’s lovely, lonely coast. Here, dark 

spruce and redwood-cloaked ridges tumble onto 

coastal cliffs and hidden coves as Pacific waves explode 

against the offshore rocks and headlands. Trinidad’s 

majestic sea stacks are part of the California Coastal 

National Monument, a string of more than 20,000 

rocks and small islands off the state’s 1,100 mile-long 

coastline. The National Monument was designated to 

protect the offshore rocks’ significant scenic and 

ecological values, and is managed by the Bureau of 

Land Management and its partners. 

The Trinidad area is one of the most spectacular 

and pristine segments of the California coast, and 

has been established as a California Coastal National 

Monument Gateway – an area that offers the best 

shore-based opportunities to discover and view 

offshore rocks and islands and their inhabitants. 

As you begin your coastal discovery, please 

remember that this is a unique and 

extremely fragile environment – 

tread lightly, view wildlife from 

a distance, and always 

respect your 

surroundings. 

W 
TSURAI: YUROK TRIBE’S FROM CONTACT TO COMMERCE 

COASTAL VILLAGE 

The canoe is a 

inhabitants of Tsurai 

first made contact with Europeans when explorers Hezeta and Bodega 

 he Yurok T

symbol of life and is 

important to the Yurok people 

for travel, food gathering, and religious ceremonies. 

anchored in the bay and claimed the harbor for 

Spain on Trinity (Trinidad) Sunday in 1775. Over the 

A large part of the Yurok culture is centered along 

the water's edge, and ancestral villages are concentrated along the coast and Klamath River. Tsurai, 

meaning mountain, is the southernmost permanent 

village within Yurok territory. The village domain 

extends north from Trinidad Head (Tsurewa) to 

Beach Creek (O prmrg wroi) several miles up the 

coast, and south to Little River (Me'tsko or Srepor). 

Just as in the past, the Tsurai Village, Tsurewa, and 

the offshore rocks continue to be components of the 

Yurok cultural landscape embedded with deep 

cultural, historical, and spiritual significance to the 

Tsurais of the Yurok people. 

next 75 years, British, Russian, and Spanish ships landed 

here for refuge, exploration, and sea otter hunting. 

American settlement began in 1850, when Trinidad 

became a port of entry to the Trinity River gold diggings. 

Since then, Trinidad harbor has hosted lumber and fishing 

fleets, and even served as a whaling port during the 1920s, 

processing up to 300 humpback whales a year. 

Today the harbor facilities are owned and 

operated by the Cher-Ae Heights Indian 

Community of the Trinidad Rancheria, 

and support a modest commercial and 

recreational fishing fleet, focusing 

mainly on salmon and dungeness crab. 

If you take a stroll down the Trinidad 

Pier, you might see some of these 

fishermen bringing in their catch. 
AN EVER-CHANGING

LANDSCAPE

t’s easy to imagine the pounding ocean 

waves and rushing coastal streams wearing 

away the area’s bluffs and beaches, but 

hidden far under the surface, even more 

powerful forces are at work as active 

faults squeeze, fracture, and uplift the 

same landscape. These natural processes 

continually reshape rugged coastal landforms. 

Coastal bluffs - made of soft materials such as shale and 

clay - have been fractured and eroded away, forming 

sandy beaches such as College Cove and Old Home 

Beach. The harder, more resistant rocks - such as basalt 

and greenstone - withstand the erosive forces and create 

I 

cliff-ringed headlands such as Trinidad Head and Elk 

Head, as well as the numerous offshore rocks and islands. 

Binoculars will allow you to view one of California’s largest 

colonies of Common murres – up to 60,000 birds nest on Green 

and Flatiron Rocks each spring and summer. 

The scale of offshore rocks can 

be hard to appreciate – some 

reach several acres in size and are 

taller than a 10-story building! 

Pewetole Island

the few stable places in this ever-changing environment. 

A CLOSE-UP VIEW

OF FAR-OFF ROCKS

A t first glance, the offshore rocks may look grey and 

barren, but a closer inspection reveals they are covered with 

life. Numerous plants have adapted to survive in the harsh 

coastal environment, and grow in pockets protected from 

winter waves and drying salt-spray. Marine mammals and 

birds are the most visible occupants, as the rocks provide 

them refuge from land-based predators such as foxes, 

raccoons, and humans, and also provide an easy escape 

from marine predators such as great white sharks. 

Marine birds nest on the tops and sides of these rocks, and 

each bird species is partial to choosing just the right site. 

Pigeon guillemots build nests in rocky crevasses, while 

storm-petrels dig small burrows on rocks that have patches 

of soil. Common murres are actually “pelagic” - they spend 

most of their lives on the open ocean and only come to the 

rocks to nest and lay their eggs right on top of the rocks! 

Below the water’s surface, barnacles, sea stars, anemones, 

and a wealth of other intertidal life cement themselves to 

every inch of available space, taking advantage of one of 
-

Look and touc Look and touch

but don’t remove but don’t remove!

Walk on sand Walk on sand 

or bare rock or bare rock! 

Remember: Dogs on Leash Remember: Dogs on Leash! 

Puffin Rock 

Green Rock 

Pewetole Island 

Flatiron Rock 

Blank Rock 

Prisoner Rock 

Pilot Rock 

Elk Hea Elk Head

Old Home Beach Old Home Beach 

College Cove College Cove 

Trinidad 

State Beac S ate Beach 

Trinidad Trinidad 

Head 

Common Murre 

Can fly as far as 100 miles to find food for 

their chicks and can dive up to 300 feet. 

Pelagic Cormorant 

Black Oystercatcher 

Nest on rocky headlands and offshore 

islands and are often seen diving for fish. 

With bright-red beaks, they pry limpets, 

mussels and other shellfish from the rocks. 

Giant Green Anemone 

Can live up to 50 years and like to eat small crabs, sea urchins 

and fish which they stun with stinging cells in their tentacles. 

Ochre Sea Star 

Sea stars are voracious predators and use their tube 

feet to easily open clams and mussels to eat them. 

Can weigh up to 1,000 pounds 

and dive 500 feet deep. 

California Sea Lion 

HSU 

Marine 

Lab

Memoria Memorial 

Lighthous Lighthouse

Edwards Stree Edwards Street 

Main St. Main St.

Trinidad Trinidad 

Museum 

City 

Hall

Trinity Street T

rinity St

reet 

Cher-Ae Height Cher Ae Heights 

Trinidad Rancheri Trinidad Rancheria 

Patrick’s Point

Drive 

Stagecoach Road

Scenic Driv

Parker e

Street

 Axel Lindgren Axel Lindgr en Memorial Trai Memorial Trail – Access to 

Old Home Beach from Memorial Lighthouse. Good 

family beach walking, protected from the wind with 

generally small waves. Great views of Camel rock, oystercatchers, pelicans and harbor seals.

 Trinidad Hea Trinidad Head – 350-foot elevation gain, 

best overall views of coastline and nearby rocks, great 

views of Flatiron rock and Pewetole island, and great 

seasonal whale watching opportunities.

 Parker Creek T Parker Creek Trail – Beautiful forested walk 

to Old Home Beach. Access to tidepools and close-up 

views of sea lions, marine birds and offshore rocks.

 Elk Hea Elk Head – Yurok named me’wil-e’’g:rn 

meaning “elk stand - always”. Level hike through spruce 

forest to coastal headland. Spectacular views of Pewetole 

Island, Trinidad Head, Green Rock and the coast north 

towards Patrick’s Point. Look for harbor seals in cove 

north of point. 

Trinidad Sate Beach inidad Sate Beach – Walk the beach northward from the 

neck of Trinidad Head. Great spot to view geology close 

up and to get a taste of tidepool life. More ambitious 

hikers can follow bluff-top trails to College 

Cove and Elk Head. 

THE INTERTIDAL ZONE: 

NATURE’S AQUARIUM

 magine spending part of each day 

underwater, part exposed to sun and 

drying winds, and the rest of the day 

being pounded by crashing waves. 

This is the daily life of inter-tidal 

plants and animals. 

Low tide is a magical time when 

you can walk on the bottom of 

the ocean to view some of these 

fascinating life forms. Trinidad’s best 

viewing of inter-tidal life is on the 

rocks along the north end of 

Trinidad State Beach and on 

parts of Old Home Beach. The 

most commonly seen creatures 

are barnacles, sea anemones, sea 

stars and a variety of kelp. 

Remember, they are extremely 

sensitive! Watch your step and 

avoid lifting or disturbing them. 

1 

1 

2 

4 

3 

4 

2 

3 

The Memorial Lighthouse offers I

breathtaking views of the Trinidad Coast 

and is a great viewpoint for whalewatching 

and spotting your favorite birds. On winter 

mornings, crab fishermen often gather here 

to watch the winter storm waves. They use 

certain offshore rocks to gauge wave-height, 

and call this spot “Chicken Point”as this is 

where they debate whether it is safe or 

smart to go out to sea that day! 

Don’t forget to visit the 

Trinidad Museum! Check out 

the local artifacts and historic 

photos that tell the story of 

Trindad, past and present. 

The HSU Marine Lab 

offers public displays on 

marine ecosystems and 

several aquariums with 

local marine life. 

NEVER TURN YOUR BACK ON THE OCEAN 

The pounding surf, ice cold water 

and rip currents can be treacherous 

- HIGH TIDE WARNING -

Check tide tables before walking on beaches. Rising 

water can trap you against a cliff with no escape routes 

WILDLIFE VIEWING TIPS TRINIDAD’S COASTAL TREKS

• Watch quietly and avoid sudden movements 

• Bring binoculars to get a better view from a distance 

• If an animal notices your presence, back away 

• Do not attempt to rescue wildlife. If you think an 

animal is sick or injured, call the Northcoast Marine 

Mammal Center at (707) 465-6265