Northern California's Ranch Near Famous Muir Beach Has Wild Coastal Views From Rustic Campsites

In 2024, one of the largest urban parks in the world beat out the Blue Ridge Parkway to earn the top spot as America's most visited national park site. The place in question, welcoming more than 17 million annual visitors, is Northern California's Golden Gate National Recreation Area. While plenty of travelers show up to see the park's most famous attractions — like Alcatraz Island and the iconic red bridge the recreation area is named after — others gravitate to its quieter corners, like Slide Ranch, a historic nature preserve in the Marin Headlands with a gorgeous oceanfront campground.

Located on the Marin County coast, west of Mill Valley and about a mile north of the Muir Beach Overlook, the ranch was once a farm where milk and butter were made for residents of nearby San Francisco. In 1969, attorney and activist Doug Ferguson purchased the land to protect it from commercial development, and in 1970, he donated the coastal property to the Nature Conservancy. The nonprofit organization became one of the Golden Gate Recreation Area's first Park Partners. Today, Slide Ranch hosts overnight guests at its rustic campground with views of the Pacific. For day-use visitors, the ranch is open every day of the week from dawn to dusk. Admission is free, though donations are appreciated.

In addition to outdoor spaces with hiking trails, gardens, animal pastures, and picnic areas with wild coastal views, Slide Ranch offers a wide range of special events. Family Farm Days ($45 per person) feature hands-on activities like goat milking, crafting, and farm-to-table harvesting. Also available are Morning Bird Walks ($15 per person), Compost 101 workshops ($15 per person), and outdoor watercolor classes ($80 per person). Check Slide Ranch's full calendar of upcoming events for more information.

One of Slide Ranch's top highlights is its campground, named one of Hipcamp's 50 Favorite Places to Camp in the U.S. for 2025. Small and peaceful, with just 18 rustic sites set in a cliffside meadow and cypress grove overlooking the Pacific Ocean, it's only accessible via a 15-minute hike from a parking lot (wheelbarrows are available for transporting equipment).  

The short trek is worth it, according to past visitors. "Always a dream to camp with my family at Slide Ranch," wrote one recent guest. "We set up camp and immediately headed down to the tide pools as the sun set." As another reviewer said, "unbeatable views, location, and wonderful trails." Many also noted that the campground was surprisingly uncrowded — one person mentioned he was the only camper present one night. If you love the idea of camping by the water's edge, there are plenty of lakeside camping spots in California that you can add to your bucket list.

There are no flush toilets or showers, though the campground has taps for refilling water bottles. If you have your own tent, choose between simple Dome Meadow campsites (from $60 per night) and peaceful Upper Meadow Campsites (from $50 per night) with ocean views, or book one of a pair of canvas tents set up in the cypress grove on Quail Hill (from $175 per night). Slide Ranch is less than an hour's drive from San Francisco, depending on traffic, and there are plenty of places to pick up picnic supplies along the short journey. It's slightly further to the San Francisco International Airport, one of the first travel hubs in the country to implement a Quiet Airport Policy.