Sea Stack and Cove, Wilder Ranch State Beach. Santa Cruz, California. December 29, 2008. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Twilight view of a surf filled cove, shoreline ledges, sea stack, beach, and Monterey Peninsula at Wilder Ranch State Beach.

Although I have visited the section of the California Coast Highway between San Francisco and Santa Cruz many times and have driven past this spot frequently, I had never actually stopped at Wilder Ranch State Beach and wandered out the the ocean here. Having seen some interesting photographs of this spot recently, tonight as I drove north from Santa Cruz I decided that there was no time like the present and I pulled over and hiked down to the beach. Compared to many winter evenings along this section of the Pacific coast, it was very calm and almost warm tonight.

This photograph looks south toward Santa Cruz and Monterey Bay – the Monterey Peninsula is visible on the horizon. The sea stack is probably the most recognizable feature of this beach, though the low rock shelfs along the water’s edge are also pretty interesting. This photograph is a fairly long time exposure shot in the post sunset glow.

This photograph is not in the public domain. It may not be used on websites, blogs, or in any other media without explicit advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

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