Hobson Beach Park - Ventura

Great place to camp or for everyday use. the parking spaces are free..surf can also get fun.

If the beach access was sandy all the time I would give these 5 stars. but Mother Nature has her own plans! rest. easy. Food-kack has a great pizza. showers were hot and clean. and the prospect of the sea cannot be beaten.

A great place to visit, very nice and quiet. the grill has excellent eating great service and wonderful people. it made a good boxing stop for me and my club brothers who were for a ride on their motorcycle. highly recommended!

Hidden gem in Ventura if you can reserve a spot in the summer. Only negative is when high tide there is no beach.

A pirate ship loaded with more than 80 pounds of gold, 26 tons of silver and an additional $10 million dollars worth of Peruvian pesos passed within sight of this beach in June, 1579.On a secret mission for Queen Elizabeth I, Captain Francis Drake and his crew of Sea Dogs had just spent the last nine months raiding virtually undefended Spanish ports all up the west coast of South and Central America.After sailing half way around the world, his ship, The Golden Hind, was sorely in need of repair. As they sailed up the coast the crew looked for a spot where they could pull the boat out of the water and make it seaworthy again.Historians disagree on exactly where Drake and his men stopped and repaired his ship. Anxious to avoid openly antagonizing the King of Spain, Elizabeth had sent Drake on this mission sworn to silence. Further obscuring the exact location, the ship 's log and nearly all first hand accounts were lost many years after the voyage in a palace fire.What we do know is that this Lost Harbor was somewhere north of Point Loma (San Diego). For a couple weeks in the Summer of '79, as the sailors careened their ship, Drake and his men camped out, sleeping every night under the stars on a warm California beach.Interestingly, Drake and his men were well received by the natives. They feasted together, exchanged gifts and parted amicably. Before he left, Drake claimed the land on behalf of the Queen and proclaimed this land Nova Albion (New England). Before departing California and continuing his circumnavigation of the world, Drake is said to have left a bronze plaque nailed to a tree recording his claim.While most historians insist it was much farther north, some have suggested Drake 's Lost Harbor was here in Southern California. This notion is based on surviving accounts from the voyage that mention cliffs along the coastline near the Lost Harbor that reminded the homesick sailors of the White Cliffs of Dover.At Hobson Beach Park, with the right kind of eyes, you can look north toward Santa Barbara and see cliffs that just might remind you of those famous English cliffs. Check out my attached photos.Although tiny, this park has some nice amenities! Internet access, for example (WiFi Network: Hobson-2, no password required). There are a few full RV hookups, plenty of room for smaller trailers, and some spots for tent camping. There are a few free parking spots with a 20 minute time limit as well as Day Use parking that you have to pay for.There is very cool snack shop with breakfast items, as well as pizza, burgers and other good stuff. Signs on the front of the shop indicate firewood is available next door. There was also a soft drink vending machine.There are picnic tables and fire pits, but they are expressly reserved for those that pay the campsite fees.Hobson Beach Park is at the end of a long stretch of campgrounds that extend all along the coast as you leave Ventura and head north. This seems to be a top destination for RV owners, and I can see why. At only $65 a night for RV hook up sites (50, 30, 20 amp), and $43 for non hook up sites right on the ocean in Ventura, this is a steal! They even allow (on leash) dogs! (Dogs cost an extra $2.50 per dog, per day, and are limited to two per campsite). Visits are limited to 14 consecutive days.As far as the actual beach itself goes, there isn 't any sand adjacent to the camping area. It 's all rock. I doubt you will be tempted to lay out on these jagged rocks. There 's a slim slice of sand slightly south of the camping area.Better campsites and better beaches can be found further south, too.The park is open from 7 am to sundown.