Steep Ravine Cabins and Campground

Cabins

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Perched on a blufftop with superb views of the remarkably scenic Marin coast, Steep Ravine’s cluster of little cabins is one of the most extraordinary places to camp in California.

The cabins feel more homey and have a lot more windows than typical state park cabins, although they’re still pretty basic. Each cabin can accommodate up to 5 people on one or two big sleeping platforms and two small platforms that are more like benches. You have to provide your own beddings and (importantly) padding for the hard wooden platforms. There’s also an indoor picnic table, a wood stove, an outdoor barbeque grill, and an absolutely stunning view from the picture windows. Although there are separate bedrooms there aren’t any doors separating them, and there aren’t any curtains on the windows to give you privacy from neighboring cabins. There’s no bathroom or kitchen and no electricity or lights of any kind; outside are two shared, well-maintained outhouses with sinks and flush toilets but no showers.

The Steep Ravine Cabins and Campground on Rocky Point
Click any photo to enlarge

You’re only allowed to bring one car into the campground and will need a combination to open the gate to the entrance road.

The cabins were built in 1938 by congressman William Kent, who also donated the land for Muir Woods. From the end of World War II until 1974 they were rented out as beach houses (initially $450 for a 1-year lease), mainly to William Kent’s friends and family. The photographer Dorthea Lange rented one of the cabins from 1957 through 1964 and drove out from her home in Berkeley for stays of a few hours to a few days at a time. The state park acquired the property in 1960 with the intent of demolishing the structures, and it did in fact remove 3 of the most dilapidated cabins.

Cabins 7, 8, 9, and 10 have the most stunning, unobstructed views from their picture windows, closely followed by cabin 4. They also have the longest walk to the parking lot. The other cabins aren’t exactly bad, either; their views just include some of the other cabins. Cabin 1 is an ADA cabin and should only be booked if you have a disability placard, otherwise they’ll kick you out of the cabin after you arrive. Cabin 3 is not available for booking.

Just below the cabins is a private little cove. Among the rocks north of the beach there used to be a hot spring that was exposed at exceptionally low tides, although since 2017 it’s apparently been covered up by shifting sand or a landslide.

Some outstanding hikes to Stinson Beach or Steep Ravine can be started from the campground.

The cabins are one of the most sought-after reservations in the entire California State Park system, only rivaled by the similar Crystal Cove Cottages in Southern California. Reservations become available 6 months before the arrival date, at 8:00 am every day, and typically sell out within a few minutes. The maximum stay length is 5 nights, so Saturday nights can sell out 6 months before the preceding Tuesday.

Cabin 4

Links

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• Make reservations with Reserve California; search for Mount Tam and look for “S Rav Camp Area” in the results.
• If you like the Steep Ravine cabins, you might also like the Crystal Cove Beach Cottages, which are part of Crystal Cove State Park in Newport Beach.
• Yeslek Travel has a blog entry on the cabins with some nice pictures.
• Here’s an article from KQED about how bots are making it more difficult to make online reservations, and an article from the Orange County Register about how the parks have tried to crack down on the use of bots.
• Dorthea Lange’s snapshots of Steep Ravine can be seen at Calisphere. Interestingly, her cabin had a loft and a kitchen sink with running water; both of these amenities have since been removed from the cabins.
• Jennifer Frederick’s blog has a good description of the hot spring back in its heyday.