Salt Point State Park

Permit Information

California State Parks Special Event Permit required. Salt Point is managed by the Russian River Sector office. Base permit fee is $250 $300. Late applications (under 30 days) incur a $200 surcharge; no applications accepted within 14 days of the event. Activity fees are assessed separately based on event size, guest count, duration, location, staffing, and resource impact. Gerstle Cove is a protected underwater marine reserve with no collecting. Email russianriver.specialevents@parks.ca.gov fo…

Planning Your Day at Salt Point State Park

One-Spot Day

Salt Point pairs Gerstle Cove and Stump Beach Cove on opposite ends of a 6,000 acre park along Highway 1. Plan a sunrise ceremony at Gerstle Cove (low tide opens the tafoni rock gardens), drive 5 minutes north to Stump Beach for a mid morning portrait session in the secluded sandy cove, and finish with lunch in Sea Ranch or Jenner. Lodging clusters at Sea Ranch Lodge, Timber Cove, or Salt Point Lodge with all three within 15 minutes of the ceremony spots.

Ceremony + Portraits Split

Russian River Sector permit pricing is $250 to $300 base plus activity fees scaled to event size, duration, and resource impact. Late applications inside 30 days add a $200 surcharge, and applications inside 14 days are rejected outright. Email russianriver.specialevents@parks.ca.gov for the application packet. Gerstle Cove is a protected underwater marine reserve with no collecting of any kind, so brief guests not to pocket shells or rocks as ceremony keepsakes. The park has campgrounds, picnic areas, and pit restrooms but no developed lodging, water, or food inside boundaries.

A Note on Light

Late morning to early afternoon (10am to 2pm) puts the warmest light on the tafoni honeycomb texture and lights the offshore rocks. Marine layer fog from May through August can blank the entire coast until 11am, sometimes all day. Spring through fall the bluffs hold wildflowers (sea thrift in May, lupine in April, ice plant blooms year round). Winter brings the biggest swell for dramatic crashing wave foreground frames but rough access, and Highway 1 closures from rockslides are common from December through March.

Ceremony Spots at Salt Point State Park

• Gerstle Cove — Sheltered rocky cove with honeycomb tafoni sandstone formations and tide pool gardens
• Stump Beach Cove — Secluded sandy beach framed by dramatic sea cliffs and coastal cypress on the Sonoma Coast