There Is a Malibu Beach for Every Inclination

BY BILL KOENEKER

Malibu is blessed with a plethora of beaches. Almost every one of them can be viewed as a “specialty” beach. Each seems to have a different use or feature that makes them attractive for special activities.

Starting at the western end, Leo Carrilllo State Park is a showcase unto itself, offering camping, kayaking, scuba diving, surfing, windsurfing and just old-fashioned surf and sand.

Leo Carrillo is about as close to having it all as one could wish. Surf breaks and (late afternoon) wind conditions make it beloved by water sport enthusiasts and the close-in kelp beds and rocky reefs are favored destinations of the scuba set. On calm mornings, kayakers can paddle a stretch of water leading to perfect fishing opportunities or dive spots.

Additionally, the low tides along this 1.5 mile stretch of white sand offer remarkable tidepools and sculpted rock formations, including arches, ledges and sea stacks, secluded coves and ample marine and bird life.

Adjacent to Leo Carrillo is another stretch of wild seashore known as Nicholas Canyon County Beach. Locals sometimes choose this beach when the rest of the shoreline in Malibu is crowded with visitors.

Quite often beachgoers will find few other people at this beach, though there is ample parking and restrooms. A sense of solitude often can be experienced by beachgoers at this particular shore and surfers who call the point break there “zeroes,” know that good waves are a staple here.

Just beyond Nicholas is a series of “pocket” beaches collectively known as the Robert H. Meyer Memorial State Beach. Individually, the three beaches are known as El Pescador, El Matador and La Piedra.

The blufftop sites, with stairs or paths down to the sand, are often described as offering some of the most scenic stretches of shoreline in Malibu with rock formations, secluded coves, sea stacks and sea caves reminiscent of the Northern Coast.

The small beaches, which are interspersed between private beaches, have become a favorite with not only locals, but also visitors from all over Los Angeles, including foreign tourists.

Besides their scenic charm, the offshore waters are still rich with kelp beds and marine life and are a favorite for fishermen who occasionally ply their small craft to angle along the rock-reefed coast.

Zuma Beach has become the all-time favorite of locals and visitors alike with summertime crowds swelling the population on the beach by the thousands.

No wonder the stretch of white sand is so popular. In the summertime, the water is often clear and clean and when the waves are not too big, or the riptides are not present, the ocean can be an inviting place even for landlubbers.

The beach is also popular for boogie boarding and surfing and it offers more than two miles of shoreline for great beach walks. Locals have also discovered that a recently installed boardwalk along the sea wall is ideal for an early-morning exercise regime. Plenty of restrooms and a couple of food booths are also in full operation during summertime.

The adventurous can walk to Westward Beach from Zuma, sometimes known as Free Zuma, where Westward Beach Road takes visitors right up to the sand and also offers them free parking.

The aptly-named beach is a great place for surfers who find good swells when waves crash on west facing beaches. Boogie boarders also like the near shore break. Whale watchers know that, during winter, Westward offers some of the best near shore sightings of the behemoths that love to play in the surf zone.

Adjacent to Westward Beach is Point Dume State Beach. A stretch of Malibu that includes a sandy shoreline, rocky bluff point, headlands and a hidden cove where some locals swear the best diving and snorkeling can be found.

The Point Dume headlands offer a little something for everybody, especially during the different seasons when whale watching is a favorite pastime of visitors.

During summer months, the waters of Big Dume Cove can sometimes provide a clarity and visual experience that rival any other underwater adventure.

Rock reefs, small patches of kelp, sea grasses and a rich marine habitat, all located near an underwater marine canyon, can provide numerous underwater visuals for divers and snorkelers alike.

Some locals are convinced the sandy curvature of the shoreline of Big Dume, located just below the bluffs of Point Dume, is the best beach in Malibu. That would be a difficult assertion to argue against.

Several coves away is Paradise Cove, a small private beach where a fee for beach entrance and parking is charged. The restaurant located nearby is open and offers service on the sand. The remnants of a pier remain at one end of the beach.

Known by many as Corral Beach, despite being named Dan Blocker State Beach, this is a roadside stretch of shoreline that is a favorite of motorists and commuters who can easily access the picturesque strand of sand. It is said, often times, good diving can be found on the offshore reefs.

The most famous of all Malibu’s beaches is inarguably, Malibu Surfrider Beach, one of only a few beaches where only surfing is permitted. The area is adjacent to Malibu lagoon, the Adamson House and the nearby pier that is open and slowly coming back to life.

One of the world’s famous point breaks—actually three point breaks—has made Surfrider one of the most well-known in all of California. Caution should be exercised in these waters because of the frequent problem of biological pollution. Just west of the pier is considered an excellent launch site for kayaks, especially during calm water. The other public beaches along the eastern end of Malibu include Las Tunas State Beach and Topanga State Beach.