About this permit
Little Jackass Creek Camp is a hike-in environmental camp on the roadless section of the Lost Coast Trail between Usal Beach and Bear Harbor. Environmental camps do not offer drive-in access.
The defining feature is the wildlife. The beach at Little Jackass Creek is a haul-out site for migrating California sea lions. Keep your distance from hauled-out animals.
The park's 2006 Preliminary General Plan records four sites here, and states that environmental campsites along the Lost Coast Trail are equipped with a fire ring and vault toilets nearby.
Fees are $5 per person per night, payable at Jones Beach gate or Needle Rock, or by mail. There is no online reservation for any Sinkyone camp. The park has no potable water, you haul out your own trash, and its roads are impassable for passenger cars when wet.
The route
Wheeler Camp, Little Jackass Creek Camp and Anderson Gulch Camp are environmental camps located along the Lost Coast Trail, between Usal Beach and Bear Harbor. Environmental camps do not offer drive-in access, and no road reaches this camp.
The beach at Little Jackass Creek is a haul-out site for migrating California sea lions, and Northport Gulch beach is a haul-out site for harbor seals.
The park's 2006 general plan records four sites here and notes that environmental campsites along the Lost Coast Trail are equipped with a fire ring and vault toilets nearby. The Lost Coast Trail runs 22 miles within Sinkyone and, in the agency's words, though beautiful, this trail is rugged, strenuous, and not recommended for beginner backpackers or hikers.
Why it matters
The beach at Little Jackass Creek is a haul-out site for migrating California sea lions. It is a working wildlife site rather than a scenic one, and the sea lions are the reason to be quiet here.
