Location: Victoria Beach – Laguna Beach, California (Parking Address)
Time: 1 hour
Season: All seasons, but visiting must align with a low tide
Foot Traffic: Low to Moderate
Date Visited: Friday, June 8, 2023
Overview
Tucked away in Laguna Beach, California is the very popular and unique 60 foot pirate tower at Victoria Beach. Surely its popularity has been driven by the many photos on social media. However, as I have visited the pirate tower over the years not a single time has it ever felt crowded or “touristy”. Actually, it has been just the opposite feeling. Most visits have coincided with us being one of only a few people walking up to it. So despite its popularity and notoriety, the tower still seems to stay rather low key in todays ever growing onslaught on outdoor recreation.
There are a few reasons for this. One is due to the parking conditions. You will have to park a reasonable distance from the beach access and navigate your way through the neighborhoods. The second reason why visiting is difficult is because of the tides. Visitors must check the tide levels and understand that the pirate tower is only accessible at lower tides (any tide 1 foot or higher should make visitors think twice about visiting).
Although the pirate tower is not hard to reach, for those not familiar with the area it can be a little difficult and frustrating to find. In addition, there is relatively little “good” information out there on exactly how to get here (in my opinion). There is no parking on the neighborhood streets surrounding the beach access to Victoria Beach. The streets are very narrow and would not be able to accomodate visitors as well as would cause a huge strain on local residents trying to find parking themselves.
On my first few visits, I googled Victoria Beach and then looked for parking somewhere nearby. Google maps took me to obscure places that were nowhere close to getting me to the pirate tower. As I drove around and on subsequent visits I ended up finding what has become my family’s favorite place to park to visit. It only takes us a few minutes to reach the beach from here and is very non intrusive to the local residents.
Trail Description and Scout’s Story
Exactly one month ago today, the day after our daughter Scout’s 2nd birthday, we received the news that Scout’s cancer was in remission. On April 24, 2023, Scout underwent a nearly 4 hour surgery to remove cancerous tumors in her pelvis and rectum. Two weeks later Scout would turn 2 and the following day we would find out that her surgery was successful and that Scout was in remission.
After almost a year of treatment and watching Scout fight this horrible disease, our family was ready to take our next steps in this journey. Scout has been battling fevers and with her still having her central line still in her chest, we have been incredibly worried and spending a lot of time at the hospital still. Finally, her fevers subsided in the past week or so. Tomorrow is a huge day for us, as Scout would go into surgery to have her central line removed and within a week can resume playing in the water and sand.
Getting to the Pirate Tower
As we arrived in Laguna Beach and parked, we had one final thing to do before heading down to Victoria Beach. My wife and I would place Scout in the backseat and give her an injection in her thigh. This has been standard protocol for us, twice a day, for the past year. However, on this morning we would be giving Scout this shot for the very last time. We held her down and she kicked and screamed and before she knew it, it was over. Down the street we headed and we were on Victoria Beach within five to ten minutes. Once on the beach we headed right and towards the cliffs. The tide was still relatively low but was starting to rise, so we picked up our pace.
The walk to the “Pirate Tower” is incredibly short. The path follows along the side of the cliffs, with visitors being able to scramble along the rocks or just walk along the sand when the tide is low enough (which it should be, if you are visiting at a safe time).
We elected to stop at a few small tide pools along the way to let Scout poke around.
Finally, we reached the “Pirate Tower” and surprisingly, little Scout wasn’t all that impressed.
I however, was. Every time I visit here I find the tower truly magical. It feels so out of place but as if it’s in the perfect spot all at the same time.
We took a few pictures and let Scout collect some shells to play with on the sand for some time.
Eventually the tide had risen quite a bit and we decided to make our way back to the beach. Just being outside with Scout and seeing the joy on her face absolutely made me and my wife’s day. We still had a full day of fun ahead of us before the big day tomorrow, after which Scout would be free of her central line.
Parking and Getting to Victoria Beach
Victoria Beach – Laguna Beach, California (Parking Address)
Victoria Beach Pirate Tower (Physical Address)
I typically just type Victoria Beach pirate tower into google maps as a reference point. As I drive along highway 1 with the ocean to my right, I take a left at the stop light onto Nyes place. The street almost immediately heads steeply uphill. I park here at the bottom of the hill just before the houses come in. The street is extremely steep here so making sure that your parking brake is on and that your tires are pointing away from the curb is important. After exiting the car I head downhill in the direction that I had just come from.
I make a right onto Victoria Drive and head under the short overpass. As soon as I exit the overpass, I take an immediate left on Dumond Drive and head steeply down the street. Following Dumond Drive all the way to the bottom will lead to a public access that will deposit visitors directly onto Victoria Beach. From here, the Pirate Tower is around the cliffs, to the right.
Please recreate responsibly. Respect hikers and all visitors and wildlife. Help make everyone’s experience better by keeping the nature experience as authentic as possible. Leave no trace and pack out everything that you pack in. Please remember that we are visitors and stewards of these special places. Help keep these places as wild as possible while not diminishing the outdoor experience of others.
