How do you get down to Black's Beach, and what should you know first?
Walk the paved road off La Jolla Farms Road, or walk the sand at low tide from La Jolla Shores or Torrey Pines. The Gliderport trail has collapse warnings. Black's is remote, the surf is powerful, and the north end is clothing-optional.
- Cliffs
- ~300 ft
- Easiest way
- Paved road
- Gliderport trail
- Posted unsafe
- Surf
- Experts
Torrey Pines bluffs
Off La Jolla Farms Rd, on foot
Collapses in 2023 and 2024
Submarine canyon focuses swell
The short version
- Black's Beach sits below roughly 300-foot bluffs between La Jolla Shores and Torrey Pines.
- The easiest way down is a pedestrian-accessible paved road near La Jolla Farms Road and Blackgold Road; car access is controlled.
- The trail from the Torrey Pines Gliderport has city warning signs after bluff collapses in January 2023 and August 2024.
- At low tide you can walk about 2 miles from Torrey Pines State Beach or about 3 miles from La Jolla Shores.
- A submarine canyon makes it one of Southern California's most powerful surf breaks; the northern, state-managed section is known as clothing-optional, while the City banned nudity on its part in 1977.
Black's Beach is the closest thing San Diego has to a secret beach in plain sight: two miles of sand under towering cliffs, no road to the water, no snack bar, and some of the heaviest surf on the coast. Getting there is half the trip.
Access
Beach
Gliderport pin from OpenStreetMap; others approximate. Checked October 6, 2026.
See these on the full San Diego mapYour options
| Route | Trade-off | |
|---|---|---|
| Paved road (La Jolla Farms Rd) | Walkable paved descent | Steep climb back; 2-hour weekday street parking |
| Gliderport trail | Shortest from the free lot | City has posted warnings after bluff collapses |
| From Torrey Pines State Beach | About 2 miles on the sand | Low tide only; paid lot |
| From La Jolla Shores | About 3 miles past Scripps Pier | Low tide only |
SOURCES
Everything above traces back to one of these. Follow them — if one has changed and we haven't, that's our mistake, not yours.
- BackgroundBlack's Beach
Wikipedia · Checked October 6, 2026
Cliffs, surf, nudity history
- BackgroundBlack's Beach San Diego guide
La Jolla Mom · Checked October 6, 2026
Access routes, collapses, parking