the beach today
San Mateo Coast Guide

Half Moon
Bay

Pumpkin Coast

A wide, windswept state beach on the San Mateo coast, backed by bluffs and a charming Main Street a mile away. Home to the legendary Mavericks big wave surf break and a November pumpkin harvest festival that draws the whole Bay Area.

Today on the Sand

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Water Temp

84°

warm · gentle surf

UV Index

9

very high · 10am–4pm

Beach Crowd

Busy

holiday weekend

Beach Toolkit

Beach Conditions

Surf, tides & water temp

Parking Finder

Garages, lots & meters

Sunset

Sunset countdown & live cam

Dining

Where to eat after the sand

Things to Do

Cruises, sails & tours

Events

What's on this week

Beach Rules

Dogs, drinks, fires, drones

Pick Your Sand

north to south

Francis Beach

The main state beach unit with campground, showers and picnic tables

Main

Venice Beach

Northern unit accessed via Venice Blvd -- less crowded with good surf

Surfers

Roosevelt Beach

Middle unit, accessible via a short bluff trail from the coastal trail

Quiet

Dunes Beach

Southern unit with sand dunes behind the beach and a horse trail access

Wild

Dolphin Cruises

Open →

Compare daily sails from the marina — wild dolphins on nearly every trip.

Beyond the Beach

day trips

Mavericks

5 min north

Legendary big-wave break off Pillar Point -- visible from the harbor on big swell days

Half Moon Bay Main Street

1 mi east

Victorian-era downtown with farm stands, galleries, restaurants and the historic Feed Store

Pescadero

20 min south

Tiny coastal town with Duarte's Tavern, artichoke farms and Ano Nuevo elephant seal colony

Santa Cruz

45 min south

Beach town with the iconic boardwalk amusement park and world-class surf at Steamer Lane

see you on the sand

Water temp, surf and UV are live from NOAA & Open-Meteo; sunset is computed locally for Half Moon Bay State Beach. Crowd level is a weekday/weekend estimate.

Right now at Half Moon Bay, the water is 62°F, surf is running 3–4 ft and the air is 65°F. Wind is 6 mph from the W and the UV index peaks at 6 (high) today. Unprotected fair skin burns in about 33 minutes right now, and the strongest stretch runs 1 PM to 3 PM. Today’s tides: High 5:52 AM, Low 9:55 AM, High 4:02 PM, Low 11:26 PM. Dogs are not allowed on this beach.