Between the El Portal beach access and Linda Lane, the bluff above the tracks now ends at a wall nearly 1,400 feet long. It runs between 10 and 20 feet tall and is colored to blend with the hillside. The walkway on the ocean side of it has been rebuilt beside the railroad. The steel-and-wood Mariposa bridge is gone, replaced by a new pedestrian bridge at Mariposa Channel with handrail fencing and landscaping.
The trail reopened with a ribbon cutting on Friday, October 9, 2026, and for the first time since early 2024 it is open the full distance from Calafia State Beach to North Beach, with the San Clemente Pier at the halfway point. The new section was paid for and designed as protection for the railroad, with the walkway rebuilt as part of that job, and the officials at the ceremony described the beach below it as the next phase.
What the $93 million built, and what the trail's share was
The Orange County Transportation Authority's announcement puts the whole Mariposa Point project at about $93 million. The trail portion was estimated at about $24 million, paid for mostly with state and federal money. The rest went to the catchment wall, which is there to stop falling rock, soil and debris from the coastal bluff before they reach the tracks.
Much of the work was never visible from the sand. OCTA Chief Executive Officer Darrell Johnson told the San Clemente Times that construction took about 13 months, and that "it was a lot of underground work, a lot of drainage work." Crews also had to work around existing sewer, electrical and drainage lines before the wall and trail improvements went in.
The trail runs where the railroad's protection put it. According to the same report, the rebuilt trail is elevated and runs alongside the tracks, which keeps the ocean views and reconnects North Beach to the rest of the route.
How the bluff kept closing the trail
This stretch has failed repeatedly, which is why the fix is a long wall. In January 2024 a landslide from private property above the railroad dropped soil and debris onto the tracks at Mariposa Point and destroyed the city's pedestrian bridge. That cut the trail and halted passenger rail service again. OCTA and Metrolink first built a 200-foot protective wall, and regular passenger service resumed in March 2024. The Mariposa Point wall finished this fall is roughly seven times that length.
Mariposa was not the only trouble spot. The Orange County Register reported on November 28, 2025, that another active landslide had closed the trail from the North Beach parking lot to the Dije Court beach accesses. In February 2026, The Log reported a closure on the south part of the trail because of concerns about slope movement. Since 2021, landslides, beach loss, erosion and failing shoreline protection have interrupted rail operations through San Clemente several times, the Register noted at the reopening.
Councilmember Victor Cabral put the wait into numbers. "San Clementeans have been waiting for three long years," he told the San Clemente Times.
The full walk, north to south
California State Parks lists the multi-use trail at 2.3 miles from North Beach to Calafia Beach, with stops at the Pier and T-Street. Here is the route from the north end, with the rebuilt section near the start.
| Stop | What is there | Worth knowing |
|---|---|---|
| North Beach | Metrolink's San Clemente station; Miramar Food Hall at 150 W Avenida Pico | The food hall's tenants include Immersion Coffee Co., Egg&Out, Cosmos Burger and El Puerto Street Tacos |
| Linda Lane to El Portal | The new catchment wall at Mariposa Point | The rebuilt trail runs beside the tracks, with a new bridge at Mariposa Channel |
| The Pier | Bear Coast Coffee at 618 1/2 Avenida Victoria; The Fisherman's on the pier | Bear Coast lists daily hours of 6 a.m. to 4 p.m.; the Pier train station is open on weekends only |
| T-Street | Beach access and a stop on the trail | Listed by State Parks as one of the trail's stops |
| Calafia | The south end at San Clemente State Beach | State Parks lists hours of 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily |
Because the train runs beside the trail, a one-way walk works. Metrolink lists both the San Clemente station at North Beach and the San Clemente Pier station along the trail, and notes that the Pier station is open only on weekends. The Pier station page lists 144 parking spaces at $1.50 an hour from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. every day, holidays included, and Amtrak as a connection.
State Parks' rules for San Clemente State Beach cover dogs and wheels:
- Leashed dogs are allowed on the multi-use trail and in the parking lots
- Pets are not allowed on the sand or in the water
- Bicycles are allowed on the trail
- E-bikes and other motorized vehicles are not allowed on the trail
These rules are posted by State Parks for the state beach. High surf has shut this corridor before, including a rail closure that started September 6 and lasted until passenger service resumed on September 14, Voice of OC reported. After a winter storm, check with the city or State Parks before walking.
What officials called a down payment
Johnson described the reopening in terms of what comes next. "I consider this a down payment on the future of our investment in the rail corridor in San Clemente," he told the San Clemente Times. Orange County Fifth District Supervisor Katrina Foley, who also sits on the OCTA board, said the next phase is about the beach:
"This is just the beginning of a big project that's going to protect the rail, save our beaches and pour more than 700,000 cubic yards of sand onto our beaches."
That figure looks much larger next to the amounts placed so far. OCTA reports that its first sand placement at North Beach totaled about 2,500 cubic yards. The city's September 2026 draft coastal plan proposed a fall 2026 placement of about 5,000 cubic yards of quarry sand to form winter storm berms. The next rail project, which OCTA calls Area 4, covers engineered shore protection, riprap repairs and sand nourishment between mileposts 206.00 and 206.70. Two earlier phases, Areas 1 and 2, added riprap between North Beach and Mariposa Point and were finished in June 2025.
Foley praised the wall's design in the same interview. "I love that we hired local contractors to design the wall and make it fit like it's just part of the natural environment," she said.
December dates at the halfway point
Several December events are near the Pier, the trail's halfway point, so the walk and the holiday calendar overlap.
- Friday, December 4, 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. The San Clemente Pier Conservancy lists a holiday tree lighting on the pier with caroling, cocoa and candy canes. It falls on a Friday, when the Pier train station is closed, so riders would get off at North Beach and walk south.
- Saturday, December 5, 4 to 9 p.m. Puttin' on the Glitz fills Avenida Del Mar, and the San Clemente Downtown Business Association expects Santa to drive down the avenue starting between 4 and 4:30 p.m. The city's Santa's Village by the Sea runs the same evening, 4:30 to 9 p.m., at the Community Center, 100 N. Calle Seville.
- Saturday, December 12, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The Village Art Faire returns to the library and Community Center lawns at 242 Avenida Del Mar.
Walking from North Beach along the new section at Mariposa Point to the Pier comes to roughly half of the trail's 2.3 miles.
If you'd like to talk through how San Clemente's coastal work affects a home near the trail, or just compare notes on the new Mariposa section, Adam Nelson is happy to help. Let's Connect.
