New Brighton State Beach — Attraction in Capitola

This place is beautiful but unfortunately it was ruined by the very rude camp rangers. We’ve been camping our whole lives and we’ve never dealt with such terrible rangers. It’s sad that we will never go back because of them. If you go there try to have the male ranger assist you because he was very nice and courteous but the 2 blonde women were both very unpleasant and horribly rude to multiple friends of ours throughout the campgrounds. I can only remember one of their names was Katie. The day we were leaving we were almost packed and ready to go and they kept coming by telling us we needed to be out by 12 which we knew. The one named Katie approached our friends son and told him that they needed to be out in 15 minutes, he’s 10 years old. Then when my husband and I were leaving we were trying to pay for our parking fee and they told us we needed to drive back around to the entrance to pay at that exact same booth, my husband was so irritated that he got out of the car and walked to the window to pay and the 2 women started yelling at us to move the car and throwing their hands up telling us it’s a road and we’re blocking it with our tiny car, keep in mind there was absolutely nobody else behind us and my husband was simply trying to give them the cash so we can leave. You would have thought these two were on drugs they were so insane and controlling over the weirdest things. Definitely not people who should be park rangers, so again if you can try to avoid them and you should have...

Overall review: 4.5/5 We had campsite #21 (21 & 22 would be the best campsites, IMO) Time of year visited: Mid March Weather: Nice, 70s F

Pros: Campsite next to beach (Our campsite was surrounded by trees; behind the trees were cliffs, and private property, and then the beach; waves can be heard crashing at night, making comforting natural white noises) Host was nice Firewood available on site for purchase ($5 or $10, I cant remember) Bathrooms: Flushing toilets and Showers readily available Hardly any bugs

Cons: Not that secluded; some neighbors were loud into the night; plenty of neighbors around.

Neutral: We did not encounter rangers at our campsite during our stay. Beach temp was a bit cold (mid-March). Waves were mellow. Good for swimming. Light wind. Tide begins to rise around 4pm. Beach trail was closed, due to a landslide, I believe. Near civilization Cell phone reception available

Tips: . Bring quarters for showers. Its about $1.25 for 5 min. . The Chevron at Soquel and Park (about 3 min drive) is also a nice natural foods store. Fresh foods, fruits, meats, wine, beer, ingredients, toiletries, and essentials are readily available. No need to drive to Capitola for forgotten essentials...

We had a wonderful time at the New Brighton State Beach this past Saturday. Despite the beach being abuzz with people, the atmosphere remained cheerful and invigorating. With fish biting enthusiastically, there was an air of anticipation as we were all set to reel in a Halibut.

The sight of sportfishing boats dotting the horizon, nestled close to the shore, added to the whole beach experience. And it wasn't just us landlubbers enjoying the day; plenty of kayakers had also joined the fun. Most notably, the majority of fishermen seemed to be aiming for Halibut, which made for some friendly competition.

In all, it was a day well spent. Whether you're an avid fisherman or just love a lively beach scene, New Brighton State Beach is certainly a place...