Welcome to
Friends of Bates Beach
North Rincon Beach (locally known as Bates Beach, named for its access from Bates Road) is at the southern tip of Santa Barbara County, just north of Rincon Point.
The beach is part of Rincon County Park, and it is a safe, family-friendly environment that attracts several hundred people on summer weekends. On the convenient southern end, people come to exercise their dogs and watch the world-class surfers practice their skills.
Beach tourists eat at local restaurants, stay in local hotels, and bring an estimated half-million dollars into the local Carpinteria economy every year. A cooperative live-and-let-live attitude works well for this local beach community, the dog-walkers, paragliders, and the nudists.
At the northwestern tip of Bates Beach, you will find one of California’s most delightfully and secluded spot for traditional clothing optional nude sunbathing, as it has for over 40 years. Friends of Bates Beach has worked to maintain that status and coordinates gatherings and events to continue a nude presence on the beach.
We encourage everyone to enjoy the beach with us, naturally.
Download The Newsletter
Keep in touch with all of the Friends of Bates Beach news and events.
Become A Member
We need your financial support to maintain our beach activities.
We Need Your Help
We need volunteers and financial donations to help achieve our goals!
Your donations help defray organizational expenses including keeping this website up to date.
Thank you for your support!
Sign the Petition
We believe that all beach users should have access to California’s beaches and, where practical, certain sections be set aside for clothing-optional use. Local polls show Carpinteria residents overwhelmingly agree that a designated beach with proper signage is a positive addition to the south county.
Notice:
Due to rising administrative costs, Friends of Bates Beach will begin charging nominal membership dues as of January 1, 2022. These dues will be $10 annually, the cost of one takeout meal per year. We must buy some new beach equipment, produce our newsletter, participate in the annual Independence Day parade through Carpinteria, and cover the anticipated costs of an information booth at the Carpinteria Avocado Festival. If we all pitch in, we can make these nominal dues rates work!
For the past ten years, the Southern California Naturist Association (SCNA) and the American Association for Nude Recreation (AANR) have subsidized these costs, but they want to see more participation from locals and those people actually using the beach. A lot goes on in the background to allow us to sit at the beach on a towel. It is not really free. These dues are separate from any dues you may be already paying to SCNA, AANR, or other local nudist clubs.
Current members of our Meetup group initially will have 90 days to pay their dues before the system automatically deletes their names. You can pay via PayPal or credit/debit card using the button below.
Thank you for understanding and for your continued support.
Gary Mussell, Director, Friends of Bates BeachHow We Help Bates Beach
Clothing-Optional Designated Area
We support the County making official the clothing-optional section of Bates Beach. This will require amending the 1977 county ordinance
Beach Status
FOBB successfully negotiated a return to clothing-optional use at North Rincon (Bates) Beach at the Santa Barbara-Ventura county border.
Beach Ambassador Program
We organized the Beach Ambassador program in 2010 to patrol the beach beyond the limited resources of the county parks and sheriff departments.
Beach Cleanup
FOBB runs a monthly cleanup program during the summer, distributing bags to beachgoers and reminding them to pick up after their pets. Each September we coordinate the annual California Beach Clean-up Day at Bates.
Rincon Trail & Bus Line
Carpinteria is actively planning an extension of the California Coastal Trail above Bates Beach. We also support the extension of the MTA bus lines to include Bates Beach.
Visit Bates Beach
Interactive Map
Get the information you need and directions to Bates Beach.
$2 Bill Campaign
Support Local Merchants
We encourage you to support local shops, restaurants, and hotels.