Schedule:

Saturday, January 18th.

10am - Depart Mitchell Park / Palo Alto

11am - Arrive at Waddell Beach Camping Area

Noon - Prepare lunch with Patrols

1pm - Drive to Ano Nuevo State Park

1:45pm - Guided Elephant Seal Walk

4pm - Return to camp and spend evening with Troop. Dinner, Campfire, Overnight.

Sunday, January 19th.

8am - Breakfast with Patrols then Depart for Palo Alto

11am - Arrive home.

About the Elephant Seal Walk:

Explore Año Nuevo with a Docent

The park offers guided walks lead by volunteer docent naturalist to see the northern elephant seals in their natural habitat inside the Año Nuevo Coast Natural Preserve. Año Nuevo docents go through extensive training and are highly knowledgeable in the natural and cultural history of the park. Elephant seal activities and population counts can vary widely throughout the guided walk season.

General Information

When: Guided walks begin December 15 and continue every day until March 31 with exceptions on December 25 (Christmas) and the last weekend in January for an annual fundraising event, Seal Adventure.

Who: During the guided walk season, walks are offered daily for families, individuals, or groups. Children age 17 and under require one adult chaperone for each 10 children. Each walk has a capacity of 20 people, including chaperones.

Length: The trail to see the elephant seals includes a 3-4 mile hike and is considered moderate with varied terrain including sand dunes.

Time Needed: Guided walks run 2.5 hours from start to finish and operate daily from early morning to mid-afternoon, rain or shine.

Price: $7.00 + $3.99 reservation fee for public walks.