Santa Cruz County, California
Davenport Landing Beach
Davenport Landing Beach is a small Santa Cruz County beach on Highway 1, about 10 miles north of Santa Cruz proper.
- Day use
- LGBTQ-friendly
About this place
Davenport Landing Beach is a small Santa Cruz County beach on Highway 1, about 10 miles north of Santa Cruz proper. The main section is a textile beach used by surfers and families. The north end, separated from the main beach by a stretch of cliffs and rocks, has a long-standing informal clothing-optional reputation. The C/O status is by tradition, not by official designation — visitors who use the north section quietly do so, and the area's relative inaccessibility from the main entrance keeps the textile and naturist communities respectfully separate. The setting is classic Northern California coast: dramatic cliffs, cool Pacific water, a small protected beach pocket flanked by rock formations. The water temperature stays in the 50s°F most of the year — colder than Southern California, and unforgiving even in summer. Surfers regularly use the main break. Parking is on the highway side with a short trail down to the sand. The walk to the north C/O area requires either a low-tide scramble around the rocks or a more involved walk along the bluffs above. Time your visit around the tides; the route around the rocks is impassable at high tide. Davenport Landing is best treated as a quieter alternative to nearby Bonny Doon Beach, which has a more established C/O culture and a more straightforward layout. Both beaches operate within the same Santa Cruz County tradition of tolerated clothing-optional use at certain cove sections.
Etiquette & ground rules
The clothing-optional area is the north end only, past the rock outcrop. The main beach and the area around the parking access are textile — keep wraps or swimsuits on until you've cleared the rocks. The C/O culture here is informal, so behave with extra discretion compared to managed beaches like Haulover. Photography is unwelcome anywhere on the beach. Tides matter: the rock passage between sections is impassable at high tide.
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