Magnificent reef to visit for first-time tidepoolers and experienced naturalists alike.
Great selection of tide-pools with an excellent visitors center. Fitzgerald Marine Reserve is a 3-mile stretch of protected beach, tide pools, marshes and bluffs.
The volunteer docents are super knowledgeable and on weekends and holidays you’ll find them on hand about the reef to answer any questions and point out the really cool critters that live in the tidepools!
Adjacent to and possibly within the reserve is an endangered species of butterfly, the San Bruno elfin butterfly.
From the Fitzgerald website: at the sheltered sandy cove at the south end of the Reserve, take the trail to the bluff tops to return to the parking lot. Walk through the tangled garden of an old estate and through a century-old forest of wind-sculpted Monterey cypress trees. In the spring, California gray whales migrate north offshore. In the summer and fall, brown pelicans skim wave tops.
Good times to visit in the next 30 days
To get the most out of tidepooling, you'll want to go when the tide is low so that the rocks of the beaches are visible and as the ocean tide gets lower it leaves behind little pools of water in which you can see lots of fun critters!
Try to arrive before the lowest tide time, so that you can have some fun on the tidepools before the tide rises again. Below are the four best low tides for Magnificent reef to visit for first-time tidepoolers and experienced naturalists alike. in the next 30 days during daylight hours.
Thursday 9th May 2024 at 6:30am for a low tide of -1.66ft.
Friday 10th May 2024 at 7:18am for a low tide of -1.50ft.
Saturday 11th May 2024 at 8:12am for a low tide of -1.18ft.
Saturday 25th May 2024 at 6:54am for a low tide of -1.12ft.
Low tides today
The lowest tide in daylight today is 1.62ft at 4:30pm
What you could see
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Ochre Sea Star
Pisaster ochraceus
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Harbor Seal
Phoca vitulina
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White-crowned Sparrow
Zonotrichia leucophrys
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Great Blue Heron
Ardea herodias
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California Thrasher
Toxostoma redivivum
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Spotted Towhee
Pipilo maculatus
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Spotted Dorid
Triopha maculata
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Pacific Purple Sea Urchin
Strongylocentrotus purpuratus
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Song Sparrow
Melospiza melodia
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Giant Green Anemone
Anthopleura xanthogrammica
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Bat Star
Patiria miniata
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Sunburst Anemone
Anthopleura sola
Tidepooling tips
Stay safe
- Never turn your back on the ocean.
- Wear water shoes and watch your step.
- Pack water and sunscreen.
Respect the reef
- Don't take anything from the reef, leave it for others to enjoy.
- Leave the reef as you found it, careful where you step and try not to break the reef or step on living things'
- Take all your litter back home with you.
Have fun!
- Take lots of photos, upload to iNaturalist for help identifying.
- If you don't see anything, sit very still, wait and watch!