Jug Handle Beach, Sand beach in Mendocino County, United States.
Jug Handle Beach is a sandy shore in Mendocino County with coastal bluffs and rock outcrops sculpted by wave action over time. The adjoining protected reserve contains multiple marine terraces that step down toward the ocean.
The beach forms part of a state natural reserve created to protect marine terraces shaped over millions of years of coastal uplift and erosion. These formations reveal the long geological history of the Pacific coastline.
The reserve incorporates traditional lands where Indigenous communities gathered marine resources and conducted ceremonies for generations before European settlement.
You can reach the beach using hiking trails that start from the parking area near Highway 1 and offer varying difficulty levels. Good footwear is recommended since the paths cross uneven ground.
The site is known for its coastal pygmy forest with dwarf oaks and other plants adapted to the acidic, nutrient-poor soils of the oldest terraces. This rare vegetation exists in only a few places worldwide.
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