Five great locations for ATV riding on the beach!
Plus, they also offer a variety of other fun activities for both adults and children like swimming and fishing. They all have camping and/or easy access to motels, so it makes it easy to plan a visit.
For the best experience, avoid the weekend crowds. Ride Monday – Friday and make sure to avoid major holidays including Spring Break (March) especially in Daytona Beach.
ATV On The Beach
Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area (Florence, Oregon)
Florence Dunes = The Best Place To ATV On The Beach
The Oregon Dunes Recreation Area has the best beach riding in the US – hand down. This recreation area is comprised of 31,500 acres of the Siuslaw National Forest with about half of it open to ATV and motorized off roading.
Running from Florence Oregon to North Bend Oregon, this 40 miles of coast line is an off roading paradise.
The dunes are broken up into three separate areas with separate parking and staging areas. Each section has it’s own special beauty and unique riding conditions, so it’s perfect for all riders and skill levels. (*The sections do not connect)
The Umpqua Dunes/Winchester Bay section has a large free riding area with dunes up to 500 feet high. This is the most challenging/aggressive riding area of the dunes and also the most popular and dangerous.
If you’re looking for something a bit more relaxing, check out the 5.5 mile beach front Coast Guard North OHV Trail in the North Section from Siltcoos to South Jetty.
Whether you camp on the beach, stay in one of the developed campsites or choose a local motel, the Oregon Dunes are the perfect place for your next ATV adventure.
Forest Service Website: Florence Oregon Sand Dunes
Silver Lake State Park (Mears, Michigan)
Silver Lake Dunes = Only OHV Sand Dunes East Of The Mississippi
This state park is located on Lake Michigan with four miles of Michigan Lake shoreline. Located on 3,000 acres, this is a sand dune paradise – 2,000 acres of the park are sand dunes with 450 acres of these dunes open to OHVs in the “scramble area”.
Silver Lake State Park also includes a campground on the smaller inland Silver Lake which has a soft sand swimming beach. There are also beaches and swimming areas on the Lake Michigan shoreline part of this park. In addition to off roading, you can also enjoy plenty of other activities like boating, hiking and fishing.
During the busy season, there’s a food truck serving up burgers and snacks.
These are the only ATV sand dunes east of the Mississippi, so this makes it a popular, crowded area – plan accordingly.
Oceano Dunes SVRA (Oceano, California) / Pismo Dunes
Oceano Dunes = Year Round Sunshine In The Golden State
The Oceano Dunes Special Vehicle Recreation Area is still known to a lot of people by it’s previous name Pismo Dune SVRA.
This state park has 1,500 acres of sand dunes with 5 miles of beach open to off roading. With beach front camping and riding plus year round perfect weather, it doesn’t get much better than this. This park is close to a lot of big towns, so it gets about 2 million visitors a year.
Well, It Finally Happened
The California Coastal Commission voted to prohibit off-highway vehicle use at Oceano Dunes State Vehicular Recreation Area by 2024. The agency may choose to phase out use, or prohibit it all at once.
Sand Lake Recreation Area (Sand Lake, Oregon)
Sand Lake OHV Area = Natural Beauty On The Oregon Coast
Although not as large as the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area to the south, these dunes still have a lot to offer with just over 1,000 acres available for off roading. Surrounded on three sides by conifer forest with 3.5 miles of Pacific coastline on the fourth side, these dunes are rich with rugged beauty.
A lot of people pass these dunes by on their way to the Florence Dunes, so they’re not nearly as busy. Sand Lake OHV Area still gets plenty of visitors, but it’s not quite as busy or aggressive, so it’s a good choice for families and riders looking for a more relaxed atmosphere.
Oregon may not have the year round sunny weather that California is famous for, but for me, the Oregon coast has a lot more going for it. You’ll still find sandy beaches, high craggy cliffs and cute towns, but it’s a lot more down to earth and a whole lot more affordable.
You can camp on the beach or visit the adjacent estuary for hiking, fishing, birding, swimming, kayaking and crabbing.
With two ocean front dune areas that allow you to ATV on the beach, the mid Oregon coast makes for a great location for an ATV vacation. When you go, be sure to make time for a visit to the Tillamook Cheese Factory tour!
*This section of the coast is in a Tsunami Zone, so they do a 3 minute siren test on the second Monday of each month.
Forest Service Website: Sand Lake OHVA
Daytona Beach (Florida)
Daytona Beach = Casual Family Fun
This is a fun destination for families with young children looking for some low stress ATV riding. The wide open, hard packed sand makes it ideal for ATV riding on the beach. Soak up the sun and enjoy everything that this vibrant beach town has to offer.
Daytona Beach has 23 miles of wide open beach, 11 miles which are open to motorized vehicles including ATVs. Maximum speed allowed is 10 MPH.
The beaches are open to pedestrian traffic 24/7 but motorized traffic is only allowed from sunrise to sunset. The beaches are divided up in sections with Driving Zones and Traffic-Free Zones.