Park · Sonoma Coast, Sonoma County

Stillwater Cove Regional Park picnic guide

Picnics welcomeWine allowed$8/vehicle

Waves crashing on rocky headlands and sea stacks at Stillwater Cove on the Sonoma Coast — Photo: David R. Ingham · CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Can you picnic at Stillwater Cove Regional Park?

Yes — Stillwater Cove Regional Park has picnic areas open to the public. No reservation is needed for the picnic area. Fee: $8 day-use parking per vehicle (free for Sonoma County Regional Parks members). Wine and other alcohol are allowed (see the rules below).

Checked September 2026 from parks.sonomacounty.ca.govStated on the venue's own website

Picnic rules at a glance

Picnicking: Picnics welcome
Bring your own food: Allowed
Alcohol: Allowed
Purchase required: No
Reservation: Not required
Fee: $8 day-use parking per vehicle (free for Sonoma County Regional Parks members)
Groups: Tables are first-come, first-served; there's no reservable group picnic site. Sonoma County Code §20-20 requires a permit for any picnic or gathering of 25 or more people.
Dogs: Leashed dogs (6-ft max) are welcome in all areas of the park, including the trails and the cove.
Hours: Daily 7 a.m. to sunset
Season: Open year-round, 7 a.m. to sunset.
House rules: Alcohol: Allowed. Stillwater Cove is not on Sonoma County Regional Parks' list of parks that ban alcohol, and under Sonoma County Code §20-13 drinking is prohibited only where the park authority orders and posts a ban. No glass rule was found. The campground well tested positive for E. coli, so there's an active boil-water notice: bring your own drinking water. Charcoal and wood fires are allowed only in provided fire rings or BBQs and are banned on Red Flag, high-wind and Spare the Air days. No fires on the beach; gas stoves are OK unless posted. Black bears have been seen in and around the park, so keep food packed away. Cross Highway 1 with care, and watch for surges on the cove rocks.

What the picnic area is like

Picnic tables sit by the day-use parking lot on the inland side of Highway 1, where the forest begins and the Canyon Trail follows Stockhoff Creek up a fern-filled redwood canyon. The cove itself, a small crescent of beach and rocky tide pools popular with divers and kayakers, is a 0.3-mile walk down the Cove Trail and across the highway.

Picnic tables
Restrooms
Parking
Hiking trails
Shade trees

Good for: Dogs · Quiet · Budget-friendly

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About Stillwater Cove Regional Park

A small, low-key county park between Fort Ross and Salt Point that mixes a forest picnic with a small ocean cove. Walk off lunch on the redwood Canyon Trail, which passes the one-room 1885 Fort Ross Schoolhouse, or head down to the cove for tide-pooling. It's one of the few spots on this coast where dogs can go almost everywhere.

Tables at the forested day-use lot; cove beach a 0.3-mile walk away
1.6-mile Canyon Trail loop through redwoods along Stockhoff Creek
Historic one-room Fort Ross Schoolhouse on a short spur trail
Dogs on leash allowed throughout
Alcohol permitted; boil-water notice, so bring your own water

More dog-friendly spots in Sonoma County More free spots in Sonoma County More parks that allow wine spots in Sonoma County

Make a day of it

Pair it with a picnic spot close by.

Stillwater Cove Regional Park (this park)
Park · Sonoma Coast
Salt Point State Park
Park · Sonoma Coast · about 3.1 mi away

More picnic spots nearby

Park

Salt Point State Park

Sonoma Coast· 2 mi

Bring your own foodNo reservationWine allowedDogs OK

Six miles of wild, rocky coastline about 20 miles north of Jenner. Gerstle Cove's tide pools, kelp beds and sculpted sandstone make one of the most scenic table picnics on the North Coast. Pair it with Fort Ross, whose day-use receipt covers entry here the same day, or a spring walk among the rhododendrons at Kruse next door.

Salt Point State Park

Bring your own foodChecked Sep 2026

Own food: yes
Wine allowed: yes
Reservation: Not needed
Dogs: Outside
Fee: $10/vehicle

Nearest picnic food: Dry Creek Peach & Produce · 22 mi

Details

Park

Fort Ross State Historic Park

Sonoma Coast· 3 mi

Bring your own foodNo reservationWine allowedDogs OK

The reconstructed 1812 Russian-American Company outpost on the Kashia Pomo homeland of Metini sits on a marine terrace 12 winding miles north of Jenner. It's one of the few Sonoma Coast stops that pairs a picnic with real history, and you can eat at tables right inside the stockade. Bring everything with you, since the park sells no food.

Fort Ross State Historic Park

Bring your own foodChecked Sep 2026

Own food: yes
Wine allowed: yes
Reservation: Not needed
Dogs: Outside
Fee: $10/vehicle

Nearest picnic food: Dry Creek General Store · 20 mi

Details

Park

Goat Rock Beach (Sonoma Coast State Park)

Sonoma Coast· 12 mi

Bring your own foodNo reservationWine allowedDogs OK

The dramatic, easy-to-reach beach at the mouth of the Russian River, just south of Jenner, with free parking, tables and restrooms. It's a natural stop for anyone driving River Road and Highway 116 out from the Russian River wineries: eat lunch watching the harbor seals, then walk the Kortum Trail bluffs south toward Shell Beach.

Goat Rock Beach (Sonoma Coast State Park)

Bring your own foodChecked Sep 2026

Own food: yes
Wine allowed: yes
Reservation: Not needed
Dogs: Outside
Fee: Free entry

Nearest picnic food: Wild Flour Bread · 13 mi

Details

Wide sandy beach, gentle surf and offshore rocks at Wright's Beach on the Sonoma Coast

Park

Wright's Beach (Sonoma Coast State Park)

Sonoma Coast· 15 mi

Bring your own foodNo reservationWine allowedDogs OK

A beachfront picnic spot between Bodega Bay and Jenner with tables, restrooms and a beach where leashed dogs are allowed. The Kortum Trail heads north along the bluffs from here if you want a walk after lunch.

Wright's Beach (Sonoma Coast State Park)

Bring your own foodChecked Sep 2026

Own food: yes
Wine allowed: yes
Reservation: Not needed
Dogs: Yes
Fee: $10/vehicle

Nearest picnic food: Wild Flour Bread · 10 mi

Details

All picnic spots in Sonoma Coast →

Frequently asked questions

Can you picnic at Stillwater Cove Regional Park?

Can you bring your own food to Stillwater Cove Regional Park?

Yes. Outside food is allowed at Stillwater Cove Regional Park.

Can you drink wine at Stillwater Cove Regional Park?

Yes, alcohol is allowed at Stillwater Cove Regional Park. Alcohol: Allowed. Stillwater Cove is not on Sonoma County Regional Parks' list of parks that ban alcohol, and under Sonoma County Code §20-13 drinking is prohibited only where the park authority orders and posts a ban. No glass rule was found. The campground well tested positive for E. coli, so there's an active boil-water notice: bring your own drinking water. Charcoal and wood fires are allowed only in provided fire rings or BBQs and are banned on Red Flag, high-wind and Spare the Air days. No fires on the beach; gas stoves are OK unless posted. Black bears have been seen in and around the park, so keep food packed away. Cross Highway 1 with care, and watch for surges on the cove rocks.

Do you need a reservation to picnic at Stillwater Cove Regional Park?

No reservation is needed to use the picnic area. Tables are first-come, first-served; there's no reservable group picnic site. Sonoma County Code §20-20 requires a permit for any picnic or gathering of 25 or more people.

Is there a fee to picnic at Stillwater Cove Regional Park?

$8 day-use parking per vehicle (free for Sonoma County Regional Parks members).

Are dogs allowed at Stillwater Cove Regional Park?

Leashed dogs (6-ft max) are welcome in all areas of the park, including the trails and the cove.

Sources & accuracy

We last checked this listing in September 2026 (freshest source: Park page live Sept 2026 (active campground boil-water notice); park map v7.0 dated 11/5/24; County Code Ch. 20 codified through Nov 2025). Policies change — especially for groups and holidays — so confirm with Stillwater Cove Regional Park before you go. How we verify.

Suggest an update to this listing