# Camp Hydle

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**Camp Hydle**, also called **Drakes Bay Range**, was a large training center during [World War II](/source/World_War_II), located at [Drakes Bay](/source/Drakes_Bay), on what is now [Point Reyes National Seashore](/source/Point_Reyes_National_Seashore) on the coast of northern [California](/source/California) in the [United States](/source/United_States). The camp had several training sites: Camp Hydle, **Drakes Bay Air to Ground Gunnery Range**, **Drakes Bay Dive Bombing Target**, **Camp Murphy's Ranch**, **Camp Hydle Maneuver Area**, and **Camp Hydle Skip and Dive Bombing Range**. Also at the camp were [landing craft](/source/Landing_craft) training and [air sea rescue](/source/Air_sea_rescue) training. The site was 10,532 acres (4,262 ha) of [Marin County, California](/source/Marin_County,_California) land on the [West Coast of the United States](/source/West_Coast_of_the_United_States). The complete area from [Stinson Beach](/source/Stinson_Beach,_California) to the south and [Dillon Beach](/source/Dillon_Beach,_California) to the north was called the **Point Reyes Gunnery Range** at [Point Reyes](/source/Point_Reyes). The Gunnery Range also included: two radar towers, horse stable, two lifeboat Stations, the [Point Reyes Lighthouse](/source/Point_Reyes_Lighthouse), lookout towers, and land strafing targets (rake). The [dive bomber](/source/Dive_bomber) [airplanes](/source/Airplane) came from [Hamilton Army Airfield](/source/Hamilton_Army_Airfield) (AAF), [Santa Rosa Army Airfield](/source/Santa_Rosa_Army_Airfield) (AAF), and [Naval Air Station Alameda](/source/Naval_Air_Station_Alameda) (NAS). In addition to Drakes Bay the planes also training using the nearby [Abbotts Lagoon](/source/Abbotts_Lagoon), and [Tomales Bay](/source/Tomales_Bay). The landing craft training used Limantour Beach and Limantour Spit. [Anti-aircraft gun](/source/Anti-aircraft_gun) training was important training for the [Pacific War](/source/Pacific_War). Camp Hydle base was inland 1⁄2 mi (0.80 km) east of Limantour Beach. For gunner training planes towed targets across Drakes Bay. Ships also trained at the base, like the [USS *Walton*](/source/USS_Walton) and [USS *Nevada (BB-36)*](/source/USS_Nevada_(BB-36)). The Navy's Camp Hydle took over the [Point Reyes Lifeboat Station](/source/Point_Reyes_Lifeboat_Station) during the war. The 50 men at the Station were air sea rescue pilots, dropping rafts to plane crew that landed in the ocean during training. The first troops arrived at the site on December 7, 1941. The site was also used as a [coast defense](/source/United_States_civil_defense#World_War_II) spot, looking out for [Japanese subs](/source/California_during_World_War_II#Attacks_on_California) and ships. Most of the land was leased from Leland Murphy (Murphy Ranch), after the war in 1962, the site became Point Reyes National Seashore.[1][2][3][4][5]

## See also

- [California during World War II](/source/California_during_World_War_II)
- [List of beaches in California](/source/List_of_beaches_in_California)
- [List of California state parks](/source/List_of_California_state_parks)

## References

1. ["Historic California Posts, Camps, Stations and Airfields : Drakes Bay Range"](https://www.militarymuseum.org/DrakesBayBombingTarget.html). *California State Military Museums Program*. 8 April 2016.

1. ["Table C-2 Status of Installations With FY02 To Completion Cost Estimate Less Than or Equal to $5,000,000"](https://www.denix.osd.mil/arc/previous-years/derpfy2001/unassigned/table-c-2/C2.pdf). *DENIX*

1. ["Walton (DE-361)"](https://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/w/walton.html). *NHHC*. Apr 18, 2016.

1. Havern, Christopher B. Sr. (12 December 2016). ["Nevada II (Battleship No. 36)"](https://www.history.navy.mil/content/history/nhhc/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/n/nevada-ii.html). *NHHC*

1. ["Then & Now: U.S. Life-Saving Service"](https://www.nps.gov/pore/learn/photosmultimedia/photogallery_thenandnow_uslss.htm). *Point Reyes National Seashore (U.S. National Park Service)*. May 11, 2020.

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Camp Hydle](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camp_Hydle) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camp_Hydle?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.