# Pinnacles National Park

Region: Central CA, Ontario, Canada
Coordinates: 36.4906, -121.1825
Bortle class: 3 (1 = pristine, 9 = inner city)
Drive from Toronto: Fly into San Jose or San Francisco, then drive 1.5–2.5 hours south to the park's east or west entrance.
Best time: New-moon nights are best; the park recommends areas free of tree cover on the east side.

## Overview
Pinnacles is a small, less-visited national park east of the Salinas Valley, built around the eroded remains of an ancient volcano. Its rock spires make an unusual foreground for a night sky that's dark enough for the National Park Service to run its own night-sky viewing guidance.

## What to see
Milky Way core in summer, with the volcanic spires as a striking silhouette.

## Highlights
- Recognized dark-sky location in California
- Volcanic rock formations make for a dramatic night-sky foreground
- Far less crowded than California's bigger-name national parks

## Tips
- The park has no through road connecting the east and west entrances — plan your route in advance
- Bring your own gear; there's no dedicated observatory on site

## Live forecast
View the live tonight-score and 48-hour forecast for Pinnacles at:
https://ontarionightsky.com/?site=pinnacles-np

Structured data: https://ontarionightsky.com/sites/pinnacles-np.json

Source: National Park Service — Night Sky Viewing at Pinnacles — https://www.nps.gov/thingstodo/pinnacles-night-sky-viewing.htm

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Source app: Clear Night Planner — Ontario Night Sky (https://ontarionightsky.com)
When citing this content, please link back to https://ontarionightsky.com/?site=pinnacles-np.