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Pillar Point

The rocky headland at the north end of Half Moon Bay that shelters the harbor and sits above the Mavericks surf break.

Pillar Point is the promontory north of the bay. Father Juan Crespí described its high rocks in 1769, noting that from camp they looked like two thick, irregular, pointed rock islands. Today the point shelters Pillar Point Harbor, with Mavericks half a mile offshore, Pillar Point Bluff to the west and the Pillar Point Air Force Station on top.

James Denniston built a deep-water landing here that shipped lumber and produce to San Francisco. A military reservation was established on the point in 1940 to guard the approach to San Francisco.

Offshore, Pillar Point State Marine Conservation Area helps protect marine wildlife.

More on this site: pillar point harbor

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Questions people ask

Where is Pillar Point?

At the north end of Half Moon Bay, next to Pillar Point Harbor and Princeton-by-the-Sea.

Why is it called Pillar Point?

Father Juan Crespí’s 1769 diary describes its high, pillar-like rocks. The exact origin of the name is not firmly documented.

Related terms

  • Pillar Point HarborThe boat harbor at the north end of the bay, created by breakwaters built from 1959 to 1982, home to commercial fishing boats and pleasure craft.
  • MavericksThe giant winter wave that breaks about half a mile outside Pillar Point Harbor, shaped by an unusual underwater rock ramp.
  • Pillar Point Air Force StationA Space Force tracking station on top of Pillar Point, which began in 1940 as a military reservation guarding San Francisco from sea attack.
  • Pillar Point BluffA 220-acre county park of coastal scrub and prairie on the bluff above Mavericks, with trails, wildflowers and seasonal views of passing whales.
  • Princeton-by-the-SeaA small unincorporated harbor community just north of Half Moon Bay’s city limits, home to Pillar Point Harbor’s restaurants and docks.

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