Getting There Is None of the Fun

Is it possible to find a secret beach in a county that’s home to 3 million people? In Orange County, a handful of people may be able to answer in the affirmative.

Hungry for clear water, they go to Salt Creek Beach in Dana Point and walk north along the shore, past the St. Regis resort’s beach club, and then, even though it seems they can’t continue farther, they climb onto the gray rocks that hug the shore and forge forward.

Finally, they land on a small, pebbly swath. And most likely, they are alone. From this little-known nook, even Coast Highway seems remote.

On Labor Day, when most beaches were packed, only a few people arrived on this strip of shore.

“It’s nice because it’s isolated. Beaches are too crowded these days,” said Niles Ford, 22, who painstakingly climbed the rocks to the beach with his surfboard.

“Here, you feel like you’ve found something no one else has.”

This beach, nestled among the bluffs and rocks of Laguna Beach, isn’t significant enough to have a name. But it happens to be publicly owned.

The only problem is, there is only limited public access. Getting there means a treacherous rock climb or a long swim from the adjacent public beach.

The county acquired the beach in the 1920s and shortly after, the private community of Three Arch Bay was developed above it, said Eric Jessen, chief of acquisition, planning and development for Orange County Harbors, Beaches and Parks.

Residents then used a private road and stairway to access the beach. Others were granted permission by the private community. As late as the 1970s, members of the public could ask the community’s guard for access and get it, he said.

But some time later, the staircase fell apart and was never replaced by the homeowners association, Jessen said.

“The county tried to see how it could get access, but you can’t force your way into a private community,” Jessen said.

Perhaps, Jessen says, it’s just as well that rocks make access so difficult.

“It’s probably the last of the biologically pristine beaches in Orange County because of the light usage and because it’s so remote,” Jessen said.

Henry Reardon, 43, of Laguna Niguel found the beach one day while he was snorkeling.

“It was choppy and difficult, frankly. By land or sea, it’s tough to get to,” he said.

James Cox was spearfishing when he accidentally swam back to the unnamed beach instead of where he began on Salt Creek Beach. Without shoes, he struggled on the rocks to get back to his gear.

“I wasn’t really thinking about how I had gotten to a secret beach,” he said. “I was just thinking about how to get back.”

Kiran Nair and a friend ventured across the rocks by foot to seek seclusion, but found themselves spending most of their time picking up cans and bottles they believe were brought to the beach by the tides.

And then, when they got into the water, the surf propelled the tiny pebbles from the beach against them.

“It’s not nice to see the pollution. And it’s not a fun swim, but it’s fun to check out a place where you can be alone,” said Nair.

“That’s hard to find these days.”