Sample Wistbound Itinerary

A Slow Weekend in Half Moon Bay

👨‍👩‍👧 Family with kids 📅 Sat–Sun · Jul 25–26 🌿 Slow & relaxed 🥐 Foodie 🥾 Hikes

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Day 1 · Saturday

Coastside easing-in
9:00 AM

Breakfast: Arcangeli Grocery Co. (Norm's Market) Food Must-do

Order the warm artichoke-garlic bread straight from the oven — the coastside legend. Grab sandwiches here for your picnic later.

🅿️ Navigate to: Street parking on Stage Rd (free, directly in front; overflow lot behind the church next door)
🥖 You're going to: Arcangeli Grocery Co. (Norm's Market), 287 Stage Rd
🎟️ No reservations — but the garlic bread sells out; arriving at 9 AM beats the rush.
🚌 No public transit serves Pescadero — car or rideshare only for this stop.
🚗 Leave by 10:00 AM
Drive: Pescadero → Moss Beach · 27 min via Hwy 1 North (33 mi)
10:30 AM

Tide pools: Fitzgerald Marine Reserve Kid favorite Must-do

Low tide is 10:52 AM — perfect. Crabs, anemones, sea stars at toddler eye-level on flat reef rock.

🅿️ Navigate to: Fitzgerald Marine Reserve lot, California Ave & North Lake St (free, ~40 spaces; fills by 11 on summer Saturdays — another reason to arrive at 10:30). Restrooms at the lot.
🦀 You're going to: Fitzgerald Marine Reserve tide pools — flat 2-minute path from the lot to the reef.
🚌 By transit: SamTrans Route 117 along Hwy 1 — get off at Carlos St & Virginia Ave (Moss Beach), then a level 10-minute walk down California Ave to the reserve. Runs roughly hourly — check the SamTrans app for the next bus.
💡 Docents run free tide-pool walks summer Saturdays at low tide — check the kiosk by the lot. Water shoes for the little one.
🚗 Leave by 12:15 PM
Drive: Moss Beach → your stay in Half Moon Bay · 12 min via Hwy 1 South (7 mi)
12:30 PM

Picnic + quiet hour at your stay

Norm's sandwiches + built-in nap window. The afternoon stays unhurried on purpose.

3:30 PM

Half Moon Bay Coastal Trail from Poplar Beach Easy walk OK to skip if running late

Flat, paved-then-packed-gravel blufftop path, stroller-friendly, ocean the whole way. Walk north toward the Ritz bluffs; turn around whenever small legs give out (1–3 miles round trip, your call).

🅿️ Navigate to: Poplar Beach parking lot, end of Poplar St ($10/day city lot, pay station takes cards; porta-restrooms).
🥾 You're going to: Half Moon Bay Coastal Trail — starts at the lot's south end at the brown Coastal Trail marker; head north toward the Ritz bluffs.
🚌 By transit: SamTrans 117 to Main St & Kelly Ave, then a flat 15-minute walk down Kelly Ave to the Coastal Trail (join it at Kelly Ave beach access instead of Poplar).
🚗 Leave by 5:10 PM
Drive: Poplar Beach → Princeton Harbor · 10 min via Hwy 1 North (5 mi)
5:30 PM

Early dinner: Barbara's Fishtrap Food Must-do

Classic harborside fish & chips shack — outdoor picnic tables over the water, boats to watch, zero pressure on table manners. Cash-friendly, no reservations; at 5:30 you'll walk right in.

🅿️ Navigate to: Pillar Point Harbor free lot, directly across Capistrano Rd.
🍽️ You're going to: Barbara's Fishtrap, 281 Capistrano Rd
🎟️ No reservations taken — walk-in only. At 5:30 PM you'll be seated right away; by 6:30 there's a line.
🚌 By transit: SamTrans 117 to Capistrano Rd & Prospect Way — the restaurant is a 2-minute walk toward the water.
If it's foggy or cold: swap Poplar Beach for storytime & toys at Ink Spell Books, 500 Purissima St (free street parking), then hot chocolate at Half Moon Bay Coffee Co., 315 Main St (free 2-hr street parking on Main).

Day 2 · Sunday

Redwoods & farewell
9:30 AM

Purisima Creek Redwoods — Lower Purisima Creek Trail Hike Must-do

Shaded creekside out-and-back under old redwoods: flat first mile with wooden bridges and banana slugs to count. Go as far as the second bridge (~1 mi) and turn around — about 2 easy miles total.

🅿️ Navigate to: Higgins Canyon Rd trailhead lot — take Main St south; it becomes Higgins Canyon Rd; the lot is at the road's end, ~4.5 mi (10 min) from downtown. Small free lot (~10 cars) — that's why we start at 9:30. Vault toilet here.
🌲 You're going to: Lower Purisima Creek Trail — begins at the green gate PC01 at the back of the lot.
🚌 No transit reaches this trailhead — car or rideshare only (allow extra pickup time for the return; cell signal is weak in the canyon, so schedule your ride before heading in).
💡 If anyone in your group needs ADA access: use the Redwood Trail from the North Ridge/Skyline entrance instead (Skyline Blvd, 4.5 mi south of Hwy 92) — a designated wheelchair-accessible redwood loop with an accessible parking pad and vault toilet.
🚗 Leave by 11:40 AM
Drive: Higgins Canyon Rd → Pescadero · 30 min via Hwy 1 South (20 mi)
12:15 PM

Lunch + pie: Duarte's Tavern Food Must-do

Order the artichoke soup and take a whole olallieberry pie to go — it's the coastside classic since 1894.

🅿️ Navigate to: Street parking on Stage Rd (free).
🥧 You're going to: Duarte's Tavern, 202 Stage Rd
🎟️ Reservations recommended for Sunday lunch — call ahead; walk-ins wait 20–40 min at noon. Pie to-go needs no reservation.
🚌 No public transit serves Pescadero — car or rideshare only.
1:15 PM

Harley Farms Goat Dairy Kid favorite OK to skip if running late

Say hi to the goats in the pasture, browse the farm shop cheese. A sweet 30-minute stop, not a commitment.

🅿️ Navigate to: Harley Farms gravel lot (on site) — 3-minute drive from Duarte's.
🐐 You're going to: Harley Farms Goat Dairy, 205 North St
🎟️ Farm shop & pasture viewing: no reservation. Guided farm tours: book ahead on their site.
🚗 Leave by 1:50 PM
2:00 PM

Home by naptime

About 45–75 min back to the Bay Area via Hwy 92 or Hwy 84. Trip ends on a high note, not a meltdown. That's by design.

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