Año Nuevo State Park on the Pacific coast south of San Francisco centers on Año Nuevo Point and Island, where a rugged shoreline meets old-growth forest, marshes, streams, and other habitats that support salmon, steelhead, and rare amphibians and reptiles. The area preserves a long human story, from the Quiroste Ohlone to Spanish exploration, when Sebastián Vizcaíno’s party named the point in 1603 and the Portolà expedition later camped nearby. It is especially renowned for one of the largest mainland breeding colonies of northern elephant seals, a species that recovered after severe overhunting. The park also helps connect and protect a broader coastal conservation corridor.

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