Morro Bay Harborwalk

California

2 Reviews

The Morro Bay Harborwalk has all the beauty you'd expect from a southern California trail: sparkling surf, sandy beaches and rugged cliffs in the distance. But the best sight is unique to the city: Morro Rock, a volcanic formation rising more than 500 feet above the water, and you've got a prime view of it from the trail. Sea lions and sea otters can be seen around the rocky island, as well as peregrine falcons and other types of birds.

From Morro Rock, the trail continues along the bay and passes through Coleman Park, a nice place to picnic and take in the scenery. As you wind your way to trail's end, the three stacks of the city's power plant dominate the skyline. The pathway ends at the doorstep to the Embarcadero, where there are many options for shopping, eating and entertainment.

Parking and Trail Access

A large parking lot is available just off Coleman Drive at Morro Rock.

Great Views

March 2020 acewickwire

Location: Morro Bay, CA
Parking: Azure St. Ocean Access parking area north end of Cloister Walk trail.
Trail Condition: This is a “double” trail. Ocean side is walking path and then a separate asphalt surface for bikes. Both are plenty wide enough for lots of traffic and in great condition.
Signage: Informational signs but no directional signs, which aren’t needed.
Comments: Began from town out towards the rock. Short but nice. Stopped to watch sea otters near the shore line. Coming back from the rock took left hand turn on to bike path along Embarcadero to loop back to the Cloister Walk, our starting point. This trail and Cloister Walk trail gave us a short 6 mile ride. Great scenery and fun seeing sea otters.

Morro Bay Harborwalk

March 2019 thejake91739

For beautiful panoramas and photo ops, the Morro Bay Harborwalk is tough to beat. The path is usually full of tourists, but that's OK. It makes you slow down to enjoy the majesty of Morro Rock, the shimmering waters of the bay, and the antics of frolicking sea otters.
To make this into a lengthier and more substantial bike ride, we parked and unloaded our bikes up the coast a bit at the Morro Bay Sunset parking lot on Azure Street. We then enjoyed a leisurely ride down a Class I bike path for maybe a couple of miles. You'll pass through a park and go by Morro Bay High School.
Eventually you'll come to quiet Atascadero Road where you'll turn right. The road will dogleg into Embarcadero which leads straight to the Harborwalk. Yes, you have to ride on the road for a mile or two, but the roads had little to no traffic.
All in all, a fun time was had by all on these mini bike paths, perfect for a couple of sixty year olds.
BTW: If you're looking for something a bit more substantial near Morro Bay that's not on R-T-T, then go down the coast to Montana de Oro State Park and hike or ride your bike along the bluffs on a wide, hard packed dirt path overlooking the ocean. Talk about spectacular photo ops!