Pinnacles National Park – West side

• Visitors, including astronomers, must pay day use fees (unless you have a national park pass). Fees are currently $30 for a vehicle.

• West side entrance has an automatic gate that closes to incoming traffic at 8pm, but allows leaving at any time.

• Directions: Take US 101 south to Soledad, take highway 146 to Pinnacles.

• https://www.nps.gov/pinn/planyourvisit/maps.htm is a handy map for the whole park.

• setup areas on west side include the parking lot near the Visitors Center, as well as the Chaparral Trailhead at the end of the road.

• GPS Coordinates of Visitor Contact Station Parking: 36.478179, -121.226261 Elevation: ca 2,000 ft.

• Access is from Soledad on highway 101, take state route 146 to the park.

• stay away from the Visitor Contact Station building after dark, it has some blindingly bright motion sensor floodlamps that won’t shut off for 20 minutes.

• If you’re told you can’t be there at night, it’s not true, we have ongoing permission. You can invoke the name of the Chief Ranger, Patrick Kneimar. You used to be able to sleep in your car, now you can’t. Also new, don’t set up gear or furniture on the paved surface. Park in a slot, set up on the grassy area right there.