SS Dominator Shipwreck — Attraction in Palos Verdes Estates

Coastal trek to the site of a shipwreck. It’s not so much a hiking trail as it is walking over rocks on the beach trying not to twist your ankle. Hiking boots with ankle support are strongly recommended. Came here with a friend on a Saturday around 10:30am and it was very sunny - make sure to wear sunscreen and sunglasses! There’s no shade. No bathrooms are available on the trail. Street parking is available and if you come in the late morning, it won’t be too hard to find a spot. There were a ton of surfers that were heading back up the trail as we went down, so we must’ve came after the morning rush.

It got a bit monotonous after a while going over the rocks, but the ocean breeze felt nice and the view was nice. My friend and I decided to climb up one of the cliff side trails and head back to our cars via the street, so you can get a variety of paths. You’ll also get a look at quite a few pretty houses. Definitely take some time at the site of the shipwreck to sit and watch the little crabs and fish...

The shipwreck itself is quite dilapidated, but it's still worth visiting at least once. If you're comfortable with walking on rocks, getting to the shipwreck will be trivial.

There are essentially 3 ways to get down to the shipwreck:

1. The official way on AllTrails says to start from the Palos Verdes Coastline Trail, which will take 4.6 miles round trip. It's the most comfortable way to get to the rocky beach, but then you have to walk on the rocky beach for quite some distance.
2. The second option is to come down from Blufftop Trail at PV Cliff. It is a little over 2 miles round trip. The approach to the rocky shoreline is probably the sketchiest, but it has the most beautiful view as you come down. I would only recommend it for those who are comfortable with scrambling on loose terrain.
3. The last option is probably the easiest. You walk down along a massive half buried drain pipe called the Drain Pipe Trail on Maps. This is about 1.5...

Sharing the entrance info for others because I appreciated the help from a local. My 7 year old and I drove over an hour and a half to realize the address on Google Maps, though accurate in the location, is not where you can enter the trail.

The trail begins across the street of residence address 2501 Paseo Del Mar. You can find FREE street parking right around there as well. As others suggest, ankle support hiking shoes are the best, however we made it with minor discomfort in (my son) Crocs rain boots and (me) ankle Adidas 🤦🤣!

We climbed down slowly but easily since we didn't wear the right shoes. But it wasn't hard, we just had to go slow.

Little to no shade, so hats and sunblock highly suggested!

Good luck, have fun...