Shell Beach

Shell Beach is a bluff-top residential neighborhood inside the city of Pismo Beach, running along Ocean Boulevard with stairway descents to a series of rocky coves at the base of the bluff. Margo Dodd Park sits directly above the main cove with a covered gazebo and ocean-view benches. Dinosaur Caves Park, immediately south, has paved paths and lookouts over a row of caves and arches in the cliff face. A small offshore islet with a natural rock arch and sea cave sits opposite Margo Dodd Park.

Cliff-backed cobble and exposed rock, low-tide tide pools at the base of the bluffs, and rocky structure extending several hundred feet offshore make the coastline a rocky reef biome. Between the rock walls, the small sand and cobble pocket beaches where waves break on the open shore are a surf zone biome.

Kayaking is the headline use. Rentals out of downtown Pismo Beach put paddlers within reach of the arches and caves under Dinosaur Caves Park on calm summer days. Snorkeling and tide-pooling are common, and hook-and-line fishing and spearfishing from the rocks both happen. Surfing is uncommon and there are no reports of shore-based scuba. The caves take direct surge on any swell. Fatalities have occurred when kayakers entered the caves on large days.

Free street parking is available along Ocean Boulevard near both Margo Dodd Park and Dinosaur Caves Park. Stairway access is at Wilmar Stairs, with additional descents at Boeker Avenue and Cuyama Avenue; the Pier Avenue stairs are closed indefinitely after structural failure. Fishing and spearfishing are legal here under standard California regulations.