Fort Ross State Historic Park is now open EVERY DAY! The Visitor Center and the Fort Compound is open from 10am to 4:30pm. The park grounds are open from sunrise to sunset. Call House Museum tours and Windmill Demonstrations are on the first weekend of each month from 1pm to 4pm. Reef campground is closed for repairs until further notice. Please call 707/847-3437 for updates. For reminders and updates on FRC's 2019 events please email Sarjan at sarjanh@fortross.org.
Open Enrollment for the Fort Ross Environmental Living Program (ELP/ELDP) begins April 1st. ELP provides hands-on learning which allows children to experience the joys of history as active participants, exploring the interaction between people and their environment. To reserve your group's spot on the calendar apply here.
Please consider supporting Fort Ross Conservancy to ensure that we can provide another wonderful year of educational and interpretive opportunities at Fort Ross and Salt Point Parks. We are a small grass roots operation and your donation sincerely makes a difference.
The Cemetery Commemoration celebrated the collaboration to improve the historic cemetery. Joining California State Parks were Governor Brown, Russian Ambassador Antonov, Alaska Natives, Kashia Pomo, and Coast Miwok, Russian Orthodox Church officials, Fort Ross Conservancy, and researchers.
Our park's history is complex and multi-layered. Learn about the Kashia, Alaska Native, Russian, and Ranch peoples who lived at Fort Ross / Metini.
Check out the options here.
Environmental Living Program
The Environmental Living Program provides an amazing overnight or day experience with hands-on learning, allowing children to experience the joys of history as active participants, exploring the interaction between people and their environment.
Marine Activities at Fort Ross
Fort Ross offers over six miles of pristine, diverse coastline. Learn about our programs and activities:
Marine Ecology Program
Beach Watch Survey
Doghole Ports Project
Marine Mammal Monitoring
Rocky Intertidal Species of Fort Ross,
add your pictures and species finds to
our iNaturalist project.
Looking to work at a beautiful Sonoma coastal park? State Parks has a great seasonal job opportunity!
Discovering Russian History on the California Coast: Click here to watch the Fort Ross, California Coastal Trail video featured on KCET.
Making Outdoor Education Accessible
We are happy to announce our Fort Ross Education Fund to ensure all students have access to Fort Ross' wonderful youth programming. We offer scholarships for students to attend either our Environmental Living Program or our Marine Ecology Program. Please consider making a donation to FRC today to ensure all students can experience the joy of outdoor learning
American Ranch Era Video
FRC has released a 22-minute film documenting the Call House museum. Author and FRC Volunteer Extraordinaire Lynn Rudy takes us for a joyful walk through the Call House Museum while describing early-California life on the farm during the American Ranch period.
FRC Digital Library
FRC has launched Fort Ross Digital Library Project -- we've digitized and made available more than 100 manuscripts unique to our park, with more to come!
FRC Tours
FRC offers private tours in English and Russian -- see our Tours description for more information.
SURF at Fort Ross
Since 2011, the Stanford U.S.-Russia Forum delegation has traveled to Fort Ross as part of the Capstone Conference at Stanford. Program delegates learn about our shared Russian American history at Fort Ross, engage in community service activities, and also participate in team building exercises. See our webpage for more information.
Common Earth, Common History
In 2014, the historic Izborsk museum, received a US State Department Peer to Peer grant. The goal of this grant was to partner the Russian museum with an American museum to learn best practices and create projects that were beneficial to both institutions. Each museum created an online exhibition to showcase the crafts and trade that thrived in their respective settlements. Fort Ross' exhibit covers the most prevalent 19th century crafts practiced during the Russian era.
2019 Calendar
Plan your next visit by checking out our scheduled 2019 events!
About Fort Ross
Fort Ross, one of the main tourist attractions between Bodega Bay and Fort Bragg, is a California State Historic Park showcasing a historic Russian-era fort compound that has been designated National Historic Landmark status. Located eleven miles north of Jenner on California Highway One, one of the most scenic coastal routes in the world, Fort Ross is surrounded by sandy beaches, panoramic coves, and redwood forests, with breathtaking views of the Pacific Ocean.
The 3,400 acre park offers pristine natural landscapes as well as historic structures and exhibits that bring
to life the former Imperial Russian settlement, early California Ranch era, and Kashaya territory. The park
is approximately 45 minutes north of Bodega Bay and about 25 miles or an hour’s drive from one of
San Francisco's oldest retreats, the Russian River.
Full Circle - Fort Ross Introductory Video
Enjoy footage and music from our fabulous bicentennial celebrations while learning more about Fort Ross Conservancy's work on the ground.