Chadbourne Gulch Beach offers many fun activities including sunbathing, beach driving, beachcombing, fishing, wildlife watching, swimming, surfing, kitesurfing, windsurfing, boogie boarding, bodysurfing, kayaking, canoeing, boating, and jet skiing. The water near Chadbourne Gulch Beach is one of the few Mendocino County spots that is known to have occasionally consistent and good surfing waves. However, if you are planning to go into the water near Chadbourne Gulch Beach, we recommend being careful as it has an extremely low temperature and dangerous currents. The water near the beach is home to many animals including seals, sea lions, and migrating grey whales (between December and April). Another popular activity near the beach is fishing - depending on the time of the year, you can catch many kinds of fish in the water near the beach including salmon, steelhead trout, and cabezon. However, if you are planning to fish in the water near Chadbourne Gulch Beach, we recommend complying with the local fishing regulations.
If you like beachcombing, we recommend visiting the beach during low tide as during high tide the narrower southern and northern portions of the beach can be significantly submerged, resulting in less area to explore for beachcombers. A popular activity in Chadbourne Gulch Beach is driving vehicles right on the beach in order to have a thrilling and memorable oceanfront beach-driving session. However, it is important to note that certain portions of the beach, especially around the creek, have very soft sand which can result in your vehicle getting stuck.