There are numerous scenic beaches within a couple hours of the Bay Area, many of which I have described on this blog. The following is a list of over fifty of the best beaches (in my opinion, non-exhaustive list) from north to south categorized by county.
Sonoma:
- Salt Point
- Goat Rock
- Furlong
- Shell
- Sonoma Coast various others
- Salmon Creek/Bodega
Marin:
- McClures
- Kehoe
- Tomales Bay State Park
- Point Reyes Beach – aka Great Beach
- Drakes
- Limantour
- Santa Maria
- Secret
- Sculptured
- Kelham
- Wildcat
- Palomarin
- Stinson
- Muir
- Tennessee
- Rodeo
- Kirby Cove
San Francisco:
- Marshall
- Baker
- China
San Mateo:
- Gray Whale Cove
- Montara
- Cowell Ranch
- San Gregorio
- Pomponio
- Pescadero
- Bean Hollow
- Pigeon Point
- Gazos
- Ano Nuevo
Santa Cruz:
- Waddell
- Grayhound Rock
- Scott Creek
- Davenport
- Shark Tooth
- Bonny Doon
- Panther & Hole in the Wall
- Wilder Ranch/Ohlone Bluffs
- Natural Bridges
Monterey:
- Asilomar
- Carmel River
- Monastery
- Garrapata
- Andrew Molera
- Pfieffer
- McWay Falls
- Sand Dollar