Glass Beach is just as amazing as you imagine.

Glass Beach is quite a phenomenon. It started out as dump sites in 1906 and some remained active until 1967. Who would have guessed such an environmental disaster has become such a beautiful display.

Upon our research on visiting Glass Beach I noticed quite a bit of controversy. I remember searching Is there still glass at Glass Beach Fort Bragg? and reading many articles to see if  it was worth making the stop. Many people were saying that there was little to no glass left at Glass Beach in Fort Bragg, California. Some were saying that it was diminishing quickly from the constant shrinking from the waves and the rocks grinding the glass down. But, others said there was still a decent amount.

Regardless of the controversy I was determined to view some glass on glass beach and expected I’d have to search for it.

Before we get to our 5 tips on Visiting Glass Beach check out our Glass Beach Video from our Explore California Series!

Here are our 5 Tips on Visiting Glass Beach!

 

A photo posted by Family Travel Go-Myers Family (@familytravelgo) on Apr 17, 2016 at 3:35pm PDT

5. Best place to view the Glass.

We thankfully went to Noyo Headlands Park where we found a beautiful display of the glass along the beach. Once we arrived we were unsure if we were at the right place. There was nothing specifically stating Glass Beach other than the road being glass beach drive. I was unsure we were at the correct place until we parked and walked closer to the beach. We consider it the best place to view the glass because we saw large amounts of it and we believe there will still be a large amount of glass for you to visit at this location in the near future.

4. Go ahead and go left to the “Difficult Path”

My pregnant wife was weary when reading the sign but thankfully all the “Difficult Path” had was a set of stairs to walk down. My 4 year old son, wife and I made it down easily and safely and there were elderly men and women who made it safely as well. Fellow tourists had walked the “Easy” trail and thought they were at the wrong place, one asked me “Where is the Glass Beach at?” Because the easy path had none. I pointed her towards the “difficult trial” and told her not to worry.

3. Make sure to use the bathroom in the parking lot before making the journey to the beach.

Our son Cash decided he HAD to go to the bathroom as soon as we got to the good spot of the beach. So we had to journey back up the steps, along the trail and passed the parking lot to the restroom’s. There are two bathroom doors, one seemed to be locked up but the other was accessible so if you have to go try both doors before giving up.

 

2. Be weary of the waves!

The Pacific Ocean can be pretty chilly and the waves can splash up farther than you expect depending on the time of day or year. I got partially soaked a few times thinking I’d find cooler pieces of glass closer to the water. Realistically there are amazing pieces all over, some of the coolest I found after making my first step onto the beach off the last step of the stairs. Also in general Pacific Coast waves can knock over little ones so keep an eye on the children. With that being said our 4 year old Cash had fun running towards and away from the waves and didn’t get knocked over or soaked.

1. Spend some time looking closely at the glass, you may find more than just glass!

Grab a handful and look through to see what you have and imagine what it used to be. Many pieces seem to be clear or white, some brownish red, green and even some tiny blue and purple pieces. We thought they could have been from milk jugs, root beer bottles, beer bottles and soda bottles. We also found small pieces of what seemed to be China dinnerware or vases because they were solid white with small blue designs.

 Here is the location of Noyo Headlands Park to help you on your adventure!

 

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Below is our Snapchat Story from our day we visited Glass Beach in Fort Bragg in 2016. It also has clips form other nearby beaches and sights to be seen along California Highway 1!

 

Have you visited Glass Beach in Fort Bragg? What did you think about the experience? Please comment and let us know! 🙂