Moss Beach is a coastal census-designated place in San Mateo County, California, with a year 2020 census population of 3,214. Located in Moss Beach are the Fitzgerald Marine Reserve, a marine sanctuary; the Half Moon Bay Airport, the historic Moss Beach Distillery; and the Seal Cove Inn, a destination lodging property. Moss Beach is a cool coastal microclimate that gives one a sense of separation from the nearby metropolitan San Francisco Bay Area and assures that summer temperatures are generally mild.
Moss Beach shoreline, April 2007. Part of the Franciscan formation is visible near the beach
Beach within Fitzgerald Marine Reserve looking south
Monterey cypress trees atop coastal bluff
Typical Moss Beach Streetscape
San Mateo County, California
San Mateo County, officially the County of San Mateo, is a county in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 764,442. Redwood City is the county seat, the third-most populated city in the county after Daly City and San Mateo.
Image: Mount Diablo from SF Bay Discovery Site 10 2 2011 4 24 09 PM
Image: San Mateo County government center
Image: Año Nuevo State Reserve
The Santa Cruz Mountains cross through San Mateo County. In comparison to the rest of the county, the area is quite rural and forested.