Shelter Cove is an isolated community located on Point Delgada on the Lost Coast, between Deadman Gulch to the south and Telegraph Creek to the north, about 54 miles (87 km) south of Eureka and 43 miles (69 km) north-northwest of Fort Bragg, California. The US Coast Survey named the small natural harbor south of the headland in 1854 during a hydrographic survey, as it offered anchorage from northwest winds along an otherwise exposed coastline. The harbor remains a refuge for vessels in heavy weather off Cape Mendocino. Point Delgada, meaning “narrow point,” was initially applied to Point Arena, about 78 miles (126 km) to the south-southeast, by Juan Francisco de la Bodega y Quadra in 1775. He was on the sailing vessel Sonora during an expedition chartered by New Spain to map the north coast of Alta California, under Lieutenant Bruno de Heceta‘s command. In 1792, Captain George Vancouver renamed that headland Barra de Arena. Subsequent cartographers placed Point Delgada near 40 degrees north latitude, and in 1841, Lieutenant Charles Wilkes of the US Exploring Expedition affixed the name to its current location. The narrow headland is located where the King Range, part of the Northern Coast Ranges, runs parallel to the coast, with its western slopes descending steeply to the Pacific Ocean. Point Delgada is a volcanic and sedimentary marine terrace about 1,300 feet (400 m) wide, bordered on the east and west by major branches of the San Andreas Fault. It is buried under Pleistocene debris flows and landslides. The terrace mainly consists of basaltic pillow lavas, pillow breccias, and sills, interlayered with mudstone, sandstone, and conglomerate. The landslides appear to have originated from the steep, retreating scarp of uplifted sedimentary rocks, part of the Franciscan Complex of the King Range. The Franciscan Complex is a late Mesozoic terrane found throughout the California Coast Ranges. It is dominated by greywacke sandstones, shales, and conglomerates that have undergone low-grade metamorphism.

The exposed, tectonically active coastline of Point Delgada, backed by rugged mountains prone to landslides, made it inhospitable for human settlement. Despite this isolation, the area was the territory of the Sinkyone tribe, an Athabascan people who lived there for at least 4,000 years. The Sinkyone of Shelter Cove were terrestrial hunter-gatherers but also hunted seals and sea lions, which they speared or clubbed from large redwood canoes and towed to shore. These canoes were likely river canoes, used on the ocean only for limited distances in calm weather. Before the California Gold Rush, it is estimated there were 20 Sinkyone villages near the coast and 50 along interior rivers, with a total population of over 4,000. Initially, direct contact between the Sinkyone and Euro-Americans was contained to coastal areas. Starting in 1850, the northern coast experienced a surge of gold seekers, loggers, and ranchers. These settlers caused disputes over resources and brought diseases that decimated the Sinkyone population. By the end of the 1860s, only a few Sinkyone survivors remained. The first documented settlers in Shelter Cove were cattle ranchers Hamilton and Oliver, who arrived in 1850 and established Shelter Cove Ranch. When some cattle went missing, the ranchers followed trails to a gap in the mountains above Shelter Cove, where they engaged in a battle with the Sinkyone people. Mr. Oliver was killed, but Mr. Hamilton escaped. He subsequently met the brothers John, William, and James Ray, who were traveling north along the Mendocino Coast with cattle, seeking land. They traded Mr. Hamilton a herd of oxen for the entire Shelter Cove Ranch. In 1884, the Robart brothers formed the Shelter Cove Warehouse Company. A year later, they built a 960-foot (290-m) wharf to accommodate steamers from San Francisco. The Redwood Highway portion of State Route 1 was constructed between 1900 and 1949 but bypassed Shelter Cove due to steep terrain. As a result, the village remained isolated until 1948, when a local resident built an airstrip. Soon after, the wagon road to Garberville was upgraded for vehicle traffic.

In 1936, due to increased activity by commercial fishing boats anchoring in the cove, the US Coast Guard installed a bell on Point Delgada. A tower was constructed for the bell, which rang continuously in foggy conditions. In July 1960, the Cape Mendocino light station was offered for sale to the highest bidder, with the stipulation that everything be removed. When no buyers came forward, the wooden structures were burned, and the remains were pushed over the cliff. The abandoned lighthouse slowly succumbed to rust until a citizens’ group initiated an effort to save the tower and relocate it 35 miles (56 km) south to Shelter Cove as a historical attraction. In the first week of November 1998, a helicopter from the Army National Guard removed the lantern room from the tower and airlifted it to Shelter Cove. The remaining pieces of the lighthouse were numbered, dismantled, and transported to a construction yard for renovation. In the summer of 1999, the Cape Mendocino Lighthouse Preservation Society restored, painted, and fitted it with new glass. The lighthouse was then reassembled at its new location at Point Delgada in Mal Coombs Park and opened to the public on Memorial Day in 2001. Mal Coombs Park, named after a local mill operator, is managed by the US Bureau of Land Management and located on the west side of Shelter Cove. The park is part of the King Range National Conservation Area, which surrounds Shelter Cove. This conservation area encompasses over 68,000 acres (27,518 ha) of public land, offering diverse recreational and wilderness opportunities, including the Lost Coast Trail, which is part of the California Coastal Trail. Read more here and here. Explore more of Shelter Cove and Point Delgada here: