Sonoma Coast: Jenner | Wild Camping

April 8th, 2024 by Bincent

Yep, beautiful. Wow. Road quiet at night. Harbor seal sign tip was perfect.

WeBoost got us a very limited signal with AT&T.

June 27th, 2023 by sammy

Amazing one night stay, place seems exactly as described. The seals in the morning were a bonus treat too!!

June 11th, 2023 by ericalanholbrook

We slept a night here in our 35ft skoolie. I dunno what the whole moderator note about vandalism is about, it was a pretty standard large pulloff. Absolutely no service, our first spot in six months without service and I missed my sister's engagement as a result.
Cool spot though, it does get busy with people using the overlook during the day. The seals are adorable this time of year.

September 10th, 2022 by Wind and Whim

Found a good spot and a few others stayed as well. You could see the seals and pelicans from there..

August 1st, 2022 by bardinnaomi

Stayed there for one night, seals are still there!

No one bothered us, a bit of traffic but nothing dramatic still managed to get a good night sleep.

July 2nd, 2022 by shaderfx

Lots of seals still. Very windy when I visited. No Verizon or AT&T, but Starlink worked well.

July 1st, 2022 by jtl.hardwick

Just as described, we were a total of 4 vans parked overnight when we stayed here. There are also washrooms and water available in Jenner.

Be aware that it is popular, so a spot isn't guaranteed if you arrive late during the high season for travel. But, there are many large turnouts on the highway heading North from Jenner (as OP described). South of Jenner there are signs restricting overnight parking.

May 17th, 2022 by Olsen

No one else here with us except the seals! We parked in the smaller spot a hundred feet north. No Verizon

April 5th, 2022 by david_l_95667

Exactly what I was looking for. No cell service but you can go to Duncan Mills "museum" and get free wifi. I was the only overnight camper and had no issues. Drive-by honker at 5a.m. but I was already up. Also, this apps map still worked even without service.

March 28th, 2022 by 321dani

spent a night at the seal nursery pullout, beautiful view, no hassles. go to cafe aquatica down the road for breakfast! Perfect spot to warm up with some coffee.

January 21st, 2022 by vamosportierra.com

Beautiful location we were the only rig in the pullout all night. Bald eagle on the beach in the morning and harbor seals playing in the channel.

November 21st, 2021 by michellepallozzi

Nice big place to pull out, more popular than the last time I was here last year. there were four other vans and a truck and trailer along with me. Last spring there were seals or sea lions down there on the beach, but this kind of the year nothing. It's at the mouth of the Russian River and absolutely gorgeous. quite a bit of traffic that dies down late at night and several hunks overnight but nothing else. I will make a note in case the people see it, there was a van park next to me last night and they were pulling out their barbecue and had bags all over the embankment. work quite loud and I woke up to their bag of trash and alcohol containers outside their door. they did however pick it up, but they were a little bit inconsiderate of those who want to get off the road and rest out here. just remember being considered of your neighbors when boondocking and close quarters.

September 28th, 2021 by z.zhang.huskers

Great view. No “no” sign. Sound of the ocean and the birds made great dreams

September 26th, 2021 by kevanfoote320

My van was egged, presumably by the people that drove by honking at the other review below. I’d recommend driving farther north.

September 9th, 2021 by debipinkham

Amazing views and the sunset was beautiful. camped here for one night along with one other van and a truck/trailer. Road noise wasn't an issue for us. Woke up to the sound of waves and a foggy sky. My new favorite spot on the coast for sure.

August 7th, 2021 by instagram.com/krawchy/

As advertised. I almost stayed here a few months back but there’s absolutely no cel network and I had to work. But this time it was a Friday night so I went for it. I got lucky to get a spot as it was full about 30 mins after I pulled in at sunset. Beautiful views, ocean waves sounds and some wildlife everywhere. Ya it’s near the road but not too bad. A few locals came by and honked their horns to be jerks but I’d probably do the same if I lived in a small town like that. Definitely recommend it, and would also recommend that vans/trucks back in so that more people can fit (vs parallel parking).

There’s a few places to eat in Jenner and one gas station. Not much else and that’s kind of the charm of it.

August 2nd, 2021 by Andrew

Just up the road from the Jenner town sign. Great place to wake up.

August 2nd, 2021 by mark

Exactly as described. Three others parking here too - plenty of space for all of us. Woke to really amazing views in the morning of the Russian River mouth, with hundreds of pelicans and a family of seals playing.

July 24th, 2021 by instagram.com/sweetsweetbuslife

Exactly as described. Pulled in to find another vehicle parked. Quiet except a little road noise. No bothers at all. We’re in an SUV with rooftop tent.

July 8th, 2021 by goodpixels

as stated. Local hang out. Loud at times. This site is Out of Cops jurisdiction, confirmed with trooper, not Part of the continuous CA State Park that has outlawed sleeping in your vehicle on the side of CA 1.

July 5th, 2021 by mailsiggy

Stayed overnight. Pull off on the highway, quiet, flat, great view. Just as described by the other beautiful folks on here.

June 18th, 2021 by teal.bowden

A nice spot with enough room for about four small to medium size rigs. Overlooks ocean and the Russian river. Quite at night but we were woken up at about 7 am by a loud group of over zealous seal watchers who felt the need to set up their lawn chairs and tripods about 3’ from our vehicle. They also blocked us in with their cars on both sides of our small shuttle bus.

This stretch of road is beautiful and in the morning there was about 5 other vehicles on the pullouts to the north. If you want a peaceful morning, I would suggest going to one of the other pullouts up the road.

June 16th, 2021 by Aud

Big pull out. Perfect view. Many seals on the beach. Noise from cars but OK. No amenities.

May 28th, 2021 by alclaypo9

amazing sunset views! was able to see some sea lions too. a bit noisy from road but bit awful. no Verizon cell service. there's a gas station and welcome center toilets less than 1/4 mile south of pullout. good spot!

May 6th, 2021 by dave

The location was fine for roadside parking for the night. Car noise was there but it did quiet down until around 5am. We did feel safe. Million $ views!

May 1st, 2021 by thomas.bob.1960

The sunset was nice, but the sunrise was epic.
Lots of harbor seals and birds to watch. Stayed all by ourselves tonight. Totally comfortable - great spot.

April 23rd, 2021 by rick

Fantastic location, only one other van. Views to die for and quiet at night. Doesn’t seem like much when you get there. There is a path down to the beach around the top of the hill north of the turn off.

February 23rd, 2021 by /blogs/111507

Beautiful view, slept in my car, I was the only one in the pull off. Woke to the sounds of seals. Drove 2 min south to Jenner in the morning to use the water spigot/bathrooms near the visitors center picnic tables.

December 14th, 2020 by namastekaruna

We were parked here in my RV towing a car actually looking for a place to camp for the night when this guy Jim walked over, like an angel, with 2 beers in hand to say this spot was ok to stay the night and recommended on this app! We stayed the night with no problem! Toad noise dies down during the night! Great views of the sea lions at sunrise in the morning! Big level spot pretty much! ♥️🕉🌿

December 5th, 2020 by TheHersh

This place is actually pretty quiet for a road turn off. This was our first camping trip in our new trailer, super thrilled. It is also close to Blind Beach which has a big place to setup during the day. T-mobile no service.

October 24th, 2020 by stihl.warrior

Amazing views, there was a lot of people that joined us for the sunset. Traffic noise until an hour past dark, but the view was worth it. There are pit toilets at a small park a mile down the hill.

July 18th, 2020 by markledford

We had a great Saturday night / Sunday morning here in July 2020. No AT&T cell service (even with cell booster) but the Jenner beach views and seals made it worth it. There were maybem 1-3 cars at the many long pull-outs here as the sun went down with cars arriving and leaving but it died down after sunset with perhaps 1 car a spot. Pretty close to the road with occasional cars still passing at 10-11pm. Got pretty foggy. We felt comfortable popping up the top on the Westy and weren’t bothered. There are steep trails that go down to the beach with driftwood forts. No dogs allowed on the beach. It’s a popular area so help pick up some trash if you see some like we did to help guarantee they don’t shut it down.

July 11th, 2020 by maggie.q.75

gorgeous location where the Russian River met the Pacific ocean! road noise does die down at night. Love this spot.

July 5th, 2020 by tsipporah87

Stunning view. Didn’t get bothered. Do get a bit noisy with cars driving by.

June 25th, 2020 by manon.schock

Pretty overlook and safe place to sleep for the night. No problems at all.

December 30th, 2019 by hhawkins

Amazing place, just as described. Pulled in after dark the night before, went to sleep after star gazing with waves crashing in the background and woke up to beautiful beach view. Stayed one night in our car and nobody bothered us. There are public restrooms by the Jenner visitor center just down the street (south bound) across the street from the gas station.

December 28th, 2019 by jtaylorths

Nice spot, right on the road but traffic died down after 8pm. No one bothered us all night. Woke up to seals playing in the estuary.

July 10th, 2019 by Winnebegas

Beautiful views, waves crashing. Right where the Russian River meets the Pacific Ocean. Seal pups learning to swim in the river before venturing to the ocean (May-July). Minimal traffic at night, popular spot to sightsee during the day. Wonderful sleep - listening to the waves all night!

June 7th, 2019 by TG_Ltd

SECOND turn-off (when going north from Jenner)

Look for a sign on the northern end of pull off saying "Harbor Seal Nursery". It's a huge turnout, big enough several rigs. GORGEOUS views overlooking the ocean and seals.

No "no" signs whatsoever.