About this permit
The kayak-accessible group campsite at West Garrison is a single group tent site on the western shore of Angel Island State Park, the largest natural island in San Francisco Bay. ReserveCalifornia carries it as one unit with a maximum stay of seven nights, which means one group per night and no overflow.
Reservations go through ReserveCalifornia. California State Parks says visitors can reserve campsites six months in advance from the current date, and bookings may extend from the arrival date to the desired departure date based on availability and the park's maximum stay rules. Reserve online or on 1-800-444-7275. This is a California State Park and Recreation.gov does not carry it.
Water on the island is not a given. As of 9 August 2026 the park had an active advisory: due to water system repairs, water was not available in the Camp Reynolds area or at water sources along Perimeter between Camp Reynolds and Four Corners through about 15 August, with affected campsites in the Camp Reynolds area supplied with water containers daily and portable restrooms placed next to both Camp Reynolds restroom buildings. Camp Reynolds is West Garrison. Check the park's current restrictions page before you launch and plan to carry your own water.
Dogs are not allowed anywhere on Angel Island, and the park is open sunrise to sunset for day use.
The route
West Garrison sits on the island's western shore looking out toward the Golden Gate and the Marin Headlands. ReserveCalifornia books this as a single group tent campsite with a maximum stay of seven nights. The island's Perimeter Trail links the campsites, Ayala Cove where the ferries land, and the Immigration Station on the east side, and the road and trail system climbs to Mount Livermore in the middle. Angel Island is open sunrise to sunset for day use, and dogs are not allowed anywhere on the island.
Why it matters
Angel Island has a handful of campsites and a ferry timetable wrapped around them. Every other camping option on the island puts you on someone else's schedule. The kayak group site at West Garrison is the one that does not: paddle across, land, camp, and leave when you choose. ReserveCalifornia carries it as a single unit, so exactly one group has it on any given night.
The feeling
You are two miles from downtown San Francisco and the skyline is right there across the water, lit up, while you are sitting on a dark island in the middle of the Bay. Container ships pass. The fog comes through the Golden Gate in the evening and takes the city away, then gives it back in the morning.
