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I feel as if I stumbled on an absolute hidden gem here and I am SO excited to share this with you! I recently learned about Ormond Beach Wetlands while I was researching local Birding areas near me. I'm not that familiar with Oxnard, and Pt Hueneme even less, and had no idea what this area looked like. I did my research online and found a map. I had a few extra hours yesterday late afternoon, so I decided to head out and check it out. Arnold Road basically ends into the Eastern entrance parking lot-there's one other entrance on another street, I would like to try that entrance out on my next visit. There was plenty of signage and I decided to take the trail that goes along the canal and then out to the dunes along the beach, and back to the entrance. I saw a lot of little birds, some I knew and some I wasn't familiar with yet, in or around the canal area. When I got to the dunes and the beach I saw more birds, which I was more familiar with. This is a relatively small protected area of wetlands that almost didn't make it because of the neighboring power plant as well as Oxnard's industrial past. The area became protected mainly because it's a nesting ground for the Snowy Plover (such adorable little birds!!) and the Least Tern. It's also a migratory stop for a handful of rare birds. Signage there tells you all about it. Definitely read the signs when you go! I was fascinated to learn the story about Walter Fuller. He's a volunteer, his title is the Steward of Ormond Beach. He has lived here for I think about two decades now? As in, he lives right here at the wetlands. It's amazing. On my visit he came out and greeted me as I was leaving. He introduced himself and talked to me for quite a bit about the history of Ormond Beach, and let me know a bit about the layout of the land. He also told me about when the snowy plover's nest, and some of the bird species that can be found there. Apparently this area used to be pretty rough, with gangs and a lot of illegal dumping activity. Since Walter has been there all of that has gone down tremendously. There are still some rogue off-roaders. The issue with that is some of the birds nest on the sand. When people drive their vehicles through this area, it kills many of those babies in the nests and wipes out entire breeding families. It is a crime to off-road here, so if you happen to see it please get their license plate number so you can report it. Back to Walter. He's a really gentle soul. I really enjoyed speaking with him. You can tell he just loves the beach, and loves the birds, and wants to protect it all. I had a small bag of trash that I had picked up along my walk and he let me know that the two trash cans in the wetlands were finally placed there after years of requesting from the city to do so. I was grateful for those trash cans because it let me throw away the yucky things I had collected on my walk. That included a handful of water bottles, a mask, various bits of plastic, etc. I wonder who will be the steward when he is no longer here? It also amazes me that only one other person reviewed this place, and it was years ago. I know a lot of people know about it because it is on conservation and birding sites. On my visit there was a handful of other birders on the trail, as well as a few families playing along the beach. Even though the base is to one side and the power plant is to your other, there is a certain tranquility here that is soothing and yet a little bit mystical at the same time. I think anybody that lives in this area locally should be concerned for the upkeep of this very special place. If you do visit, please don't bring your dog. Animals can scare away some of the very special birds that come here to feed, rest, or nest. I take my dog Twinkle with me almost everywhere, but I did not bring her here with me out of respect for the conservation efforts. Also, if you come alone keep in mind that just beyond the power plant there is quite a bit of homeless encampment . So you probably don't want to walk that way alone or at any time other than in very bright sunlight. They usually don't mess with people, but it's just good to be cautious. I really fell in love with this special piece of land and ocean. Will definitely return for more birding!
It's amazing that there's such a long stretch of unobstructed and nearly devoid-of-humans beach on public property in Southern California. I've been visiting since 2011 and it hasn't changed much. Start at the small parking lot at the end of Arnold Rd, next to Walter (official caretaker) the Birdman's trailer. If he's there, he'll probably greet you & supply useful information. My favorite hike: Just beyond the gate, take a right turn between the snowy plover reserve fence and the brackish canal. Observe white herons and sometimes 1-1/2' carp in the canal. Hike past the power plant. Each time I've been there, some lights were on and faint mechanical sounds were heard. Continuing by, you'll know when to turn left into the dunes to emerge at the ocean. As often as not, there are interesting things washed up. Finds can range from dolphins, seals/sea-lions, to crabs, lobsters, pismo clams, scallops, snails, jellyfish, odd seaweed tangles, etc... There's surprisingly little human produced detritus. A left turn at the water leads to the military base fence that can be followed back to parking. Or, a right turn toward the pier will lead to more people. The round trip to the pier & back to parking is 7.2 miles. That can be hard on your feet depending on how much of the hike you walk on loose sand. I hiked to the pier & back (7/09/22) but did NOT see homeless activity, except a few tents far inland, just short of the pier.
4 months ago
8 months ago
My dog was disappointed. I would go back without her. Small parking lot at end of Arnold Road. Seems easy enough to walk to beach. This is a bird sanctuary so no dogs allowed. read more
Nice beach near Oxnard. Very little in the way of services and the water is typically cold. But its fairly quiet and has decent bird watching. There is a parking area and its about a 1/4 mile walk to the dunes. The beach is fine sand and there seems to always be a nice breeze. The pop that the peaker plant makes when It fires up can be loud but most of the time it is quiet The main reason we were here is that the wind had shifted and the various USAF, USMC, Royal Air Force, and USN F/A-18's, E/A-18s, F-35A,B and C's, and F-15E's were coming in from the ocean side to land. I also got to spend some time talking to a nice pair of NCIS officers (yes like the show) who were looking into the photography going on. They were polite and professional and did not impede my photography. (full disclosure there are competing reviews for this beach so most of my review mirrors the other) read more
I feel as if I stumbled on an absolute hidden gem here and I am SO excited to share this with you! I recently learned about Ormond Beach Wetlands while I was researching local Birding areas near me. I'm not that familiar with Oxnard, and Pt Hueneme even less, and had no idea what this area looked like. I did my research online and found a map. I had a few extra hours yesterday late afternoon, so I decided to head out and check it out. Arnold Road basically ends into the Eastern entrance parking lot-there's one other entrance on another street, I would like to try that entrance out on my next visit. There was plenty of signage and I decided to take the trail that goes along the canal and then out to the dunes along the beach, and back to the entrance. I saw a lot of little birds, some I knew and some I wasn't familiar with yet, in or around the canal area. When I got to the dunes and the beach I saw more birds, which I was more familiar with. This is a relatively small protected area of wetlands that almost didn't make it because of the neighboring power plant as well as Oxnard's industrial past. The area became protected mainly because it's a nesting ground for the Snowy Plover (such adorable little birds!!) and the Least Tern. It's also a migratory stop for a handful of rare birds. Signage there tells you all about it. Definitely read the signs when you go! I was fascinated to learn the story about Walter Fuller. He's a volunteer, his title is the Steward of Ormond Beach. He has lived here for I think about two decades now? As in, he lives right here at the wetlands. It's amazing. On my visit he came out and greeted me as I was leaving. He introduced himself and talked to me for quite a bit about the history of Ormond Beach, and let me know a bit about the layout of the land. He also told me about when the snowy plover's nest, and some of the bird species that can be found there. Apparently this area used to be pretty rough, with gangs and a lot of illegal dumping activity. Since Walter has been there all of that has gone down tremendously. There are still some rogue off-roaders. The issue with that is some of the birds nest on the sand. When people drive their vehicles through this area, it kills many of those babies in the nests and wipes out entire breeding families. It is a crime to off-road here, so if you happen to see it please get their license plate number so you can report it. Back to Walter. He's a really gentle soul. I really enjoyed speaking with him. You can tell he just loves the beach, and loves the birds, and wants to protect it all. I had a small bag of trash that I had picked up along my walk and he let me know that the two trash cans in the wetlands were finally placed there after years of requesting from the city to do so. I was grateful for those trash cans because it let me throw away the yucky things I had collected on my walk. That included a handful of water bottles, a mask, various bits of plastic, etc. I wonder who will be the steward when he is no longer here? It also amazes me that only one other person reviewed this place, and it was years ago. I know a lot of people know about it because it is on conservation and birding sites. On my visit there was a handful of other birders on the trail, as well as a few families playing along the beach. Even though the base is to one side and the power plant is to your other, there is a certain tranquility here that is soothing and yet a little bit mystical at the same time. I think anybody that lives in this area locally should be concerned for the upkeep of this very special place. If you do visit, please don't bring your dog. Animals can scare away some of the very special birds that come here to feed, rest, or nest. I take my dog Twinkle with me almost everywhere, but I did not bring her here with me out of respect for the conservation efforts. Also, if you come alone keep in mind that just beyond the power plant there is quite a bit of homeless encampment . So you probably don't want to walk that way alone or at any time other than in very bright sunlight. They usually don't mess with people, but it's just good to be cautious. I really fell in love with this special piece of land and ocean. Will definitely return for more birding! read more
4 years ago
It's amazing that there's such a long stretch of unobstructed and nearly devoid-of-humans beach on public property in Southern California. I've been visiting since 2011 and it hasn't changed much. Start at the small parking lot at the end of Arnold Rd, next to Walter (official caretaker) the Birdman's trailer. If he's there, he'll probably greet you & supply useful information. My favorite hike: Just beyond the gate, take a right turn between the snowy plover reserve fence and the brackish canal. Observe white herons and sometimes 1-1/2' carp in the canal. Hike past the power plant. Each time I've been there, some lights were on and faint mechanical sounds were heard. Continuing by, you'll know when to turn left into the dunes to emerge at the ocean. As often as not, there are interesting things washed up. Finds can range from dolphins, seals/sea-lions, to crabs, lobsters, pismo clams, scallops, snails, jellyfish, odd seaweed tangles, etc... There's surprisingly little human produced detritus. A left turn at the water leads to the military base fence that can be followed back to parking. Or, a right turn toward the pier will lead to more people. The round trip to the pier & back to parking is 7.2 miles. That can be hard on your feet depending on how much of the hike you walk on loose sand. I hiked to the pier & back (7/09/22) but did NOT see homeless activity, except a few tents far inland, just short of the pier. read more
3 years ago
8 years ago
I have known and read in news articles about the area for some time. This last weekend (15JUL2018), I took a visitor from Denmark to the area. To my surprise, the features I had read about were not available to the public. Those impressive features are behind lightweight fencing. I had brought my dogs. I based my knowledge off a picture that was here on Yelp. Well I have posted new pictures, dogs are not permitted. Parking was easy with plenty of places. For being a weekend mid-day, the access to the beach's surf was an easy walk. Felt as if I was in a cattle run, as to the left was the military chain-link fencing with warning signs, to the right was the perimeter fencing to the protective area. There are a few locations that have signage of the birds one may encounter. Not much direction or mapping for a stroll through the area. After we had spent some time there, a caretaker appeared and explained that it was a circle path and visitors should make the immediate right after passing through the entrance. Walk the path, it takes you to the surf, follow the surf back to the military fencing, then return to the parking lot. The surf had a few birds on it. Sadly while there, a group of off-road motor bikes came through, followed by the loud exhaust noise from the military base air strip just southeast. I would say, if you like to walk in a quite tranquil location, you might find it here; the beach had only four people on it. Some agency must do housekeeping routinely there. Other than twine, rope, and fishing line mixed in with the seaweed, is was a clean walk. It is a shame to see what debris washes a shore, it had no place in the ocean to begin with. This was my first visit, and my last one, to the site. read more
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End Of Arnold Rd
Oxnard, CA 93033
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