San Clemente Beach Trail

Summer in Southern California usually means hiking/walking is out of the question unless you start early in the morning or are up for a night hike. Thankfully, Alex and I live reasonably close to the beach and can get some fresh sea air and some mileage under our belts with several trails along the coast.

A few years ago, I went on a “work field trip” to check out some projects we funded and ended up walking a portion of the San Clemente Beach Trail, a multi-use trail in San Clemente, California that spans from North Beach (and the train station, that has paid parking for beach and trail users) to Calafia. On that trip, we walked from North Beach to the San Clemente Pier, which is a nice walk.

Alex and I recently walked the entire trail (4.6 miles roundtrip) one evening before having dinner (and coconut shakes!) at Active Culture, and we walked from North Beach to the Pier on Saturday night before heading over to Pizza Port for delicious veggie pizza and beer (my Sprite/cranberry juice was a hit with the other patrons!).

For a very descriptive write up of the San Clemente Beach Trail, I suggest checking out Jeff’s post on SoCalHiker.net.

Some things to note:

• The train is active in this area, please use extreme caution when crossing the tracks. Look both ways and pay attention to the pedestrian crossing arms flashing lights. A railroad selfie isn’t worth getting hurt
• As this is a multi-use trail, be aware that you may encounter dogs (with their owners), bicycle riders, runners, and many strollers. Yield, when necessary, and be clear about your intentions when making a move to pass other trail users
• Watch the tide schedule, some of the beach access along the trail may not be available during high tide
• Be sure to read all the signs wherever you decide to park. You may need to pay to use the lot at the train station, so read carefully and bring some quarters with you
• This isn’t a trail with a ton of elevation or anything special (scrambling, secret passages, etc.) it’s a basic trail with great views of the water, surfers, and an up-close view of the trains that pass through this corridor

If you’re ever in the area and want to get some space between you and other beach go-ers, this trail will get you away from some of the crowds (seriously, triple-check the tide charts, you’ll know what I mean if you arrive during high tide) or just want to take a nice, easy walk along the beach and get some good mileage in, this is a great trail. If I lived closer, I would be on the trail every night for a jog or just to stretch my legs after a long day at work.

Wearing: Leon tank from Fabletics (affiliate link, I’m an Ambassador), shorts are from Columbia’s Titanium Omni-Dry collection (similar), shoes are ASICS Gel-Neo 033 running shoes (Amazon affiliate link).

The post San Clemente Beach Trail appeared first on Campfire Chic.

Subscribe to the monthly Campfire Chic Newsletter and get a FREE copy of the Simple SEO for Creatives ebook.