Central California Coast Travel Guide
California region along the central Pacific Ocean coast directly west of Los Angeles and encompases the cities of Malibu, Santa Barbara, Ventura, Pismo Beach, San Luis Obispo and Morro Bay
Places to See in Central California Coast
Antelope Valley California Poppy Reserve State Natural Reserve
State-protected reserve of California, harboring the most consistent blooms of California poppies, the state flower
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Carrizo Plain National Monument
Largest single native grassland remaining in California
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Channel Islands National Park
Protected marine and island ecosystem featuring endemic wildlife, sea caves, hiking trails, and underwater reserves across five isolated islands.
La Purisima Mission
Currently the only example in California of a complete Spanish Catholic mission complex, and was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1970
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Malibu, CA
Beach city in the Santa Monica Mountains region, situated about 30 miles west of Downtown Los Angeles, known for its Mediterranean climate and its 21-mile strip of the Malibu coast
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Mission San Fernando Rey de España
Spanish mission in the Mission Hills community of Los Angeles and was the seventeenth of the twenty-one Spanish missions is the namesake of the nearby city of San Fernando and the San Fernando Valley
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Mission Santa Ines
Home to the first learning institution in Alta California and today serves as a museum
Montaña de Oro State Park
State park consisting of 8,000 acres of cliffs, seven miles of shoreline, sandy beaches, dunes, coastal plains, streams, canyons, and hills, including the 1,347-foot Valencia Peak
Morro Bay, CA
Seaside city located on the Central Coast of California, known for the large estuary that is situated along the northern shores of the bay itself
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Oceano Dunes State Vehicular Recreation Area
State area consisting of five and half miles of beach open for vehicle use and a large area of the sand dunes open for off-highway vehicle (OHV) use
Pismo Beach
City in the Central Coast area of California, and is part of the Five Cities area, a cluster of cities in the area
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San Luis Obispo, CA
City located on the Central Coast of California, is a popular tourist destination, known for its historic architecture, vineyards, and hospitality
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Santa Barbara, CA
Coastal city in California, situated on a south-facing section of coastline, the city lies between the steeply rising Santa Ynez Mountains and the Pacific Ocean
Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area
National recreation area containing many individual parks and open space preserves, located primarily in the Santa Monica Mountains of Southern California
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Vasquez Rocks Natural Area and Nature Center
932-acre park known for its rock formations, the result of sedimentary layering and later seismic uplift and has often been used as a location for films and television shows
Ventura, CA
Officially San Buenaventura, city is a coastal site, set against undeveloped hills and flanked by two free-flowing rivers on the Central California Coast
Overview
San Diego is a city on the coast of the Pacific Ocean and immediately adjacent to the United States-Mexico border. San Diego is the second most populous city in California (after Los Angeles). The city is known for its mild year-round climate, natural deep-water harbor, extensive beaches and parks, long association with the United States Navy and Marine Corps, and recent emergence as a healthcare and biotechnology development center.
Historically home to the Kumeyaay people, San Diego is frequently referred to as the "Birthplace of California", as it was the first site visited and settled by Europeans on what is now the West Coast of the United States. Upon landing in San Diego Bay in 1542, Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo claimed the area for Spain, forming the basis for the settlement of Alta California 200 years later. The Presidio and Mission San Diego de Alcalá, founded in 1769, formed the first European settlement in what is now California. In 1821, San Diego became part of the newly declared Mexican Empire, which reformed as the First Mexican Republic two years later. California became part of the United States in 1848 following the Mexican-American War and was admitted to the union as a state in 1850.
San Diego's main economic engines are military and defense-related activities, tourism, international trade, research, and manufacturing. The primary border crossing between San Diego and Tijuana, the San Ysidro Port of Entry, is the busiest international land border crossing in the world outside of Asia.
The city lies on approximately 200 deep canyons and hills separating its mesas, creating small pockets of natural open space scattered throughout the city and giving it a hilly geography. Traditionally, San Diegans have built their homes and businesses on the mesas, while leaving the urban canyons relatively wild. Thus, the canyons give parts of the city a segmented feel, creating gaps between otherwise proximate neighborhoods and contributing to a low-density, car-centered environment.
Notable peaks within the city limits include Cowles Mountain, the highest point in the city at 1,591 feet; Black Mountain at 1,558 feet; and Mount Soledad at 824 feet. The Cuyamaca Mountains and Laguna Mountains rise to the east of the city, and beyond the mountains are desert areas.
San Diego has one of the top-ten best climates in the United States, according to the Farmers' Almanac and has one of the two best summer climates in the country as scored by The Weather Channel. San Diego's climate is characterized by warm, dry summers and mild winters, with most of the annual precipitation falling between December and March. The city has a mild climate year-round, with an average of 201 days above 70 °F.
San Diego's broad city limits encompass a number of large nature preserves, including Torrey Pines State Reserve, Los Peñasquitos Canyon Preserve, and Mission Trails Regional Park. Torrey Pines State Reserve and a coastal strip continuing to the north constitute one of only two locations where the rare species of Torrey Pine, Pinus torreyana, is found.
Due to the steep topography that prevents or discourages building, along with some efforts for preservation, there are also a large number of canyons within the city limits that serve as nature preserves, including Switzer Canyon, Tecolote Canyon Natural Park, and Marian Bear Memorial Park in San Clemente Canyon, as well as a number of small parks and preserves.
Tourism is a major industry owing to the city's climate, beaches, and tourist attractions such as Balboa Park, Belmont amusement park, San Diego Zoo, San Diego Zoo Safari Park, and SeaWorld San Diego. San Diego's Spanish and Mexican heritage is reflected in many historic sites across the city, such as Mission San Diego de Alcalá and Old Town San Diego State Historic Park. Also, the local craft brewing industry attracts an increasing number of visitors for "beer tours" and the annual San Diego Beer Week in November; San Diego has been called "America's Craft Beer Capital."
Local sight-seeing cruises are offered in San Diego Bay and Mission Bay, as well as whale-watching cruises to observe the migration of gray whales, peaking in mid-January. Sport fishing is another popular tourist attraction; San Diego is home to southern California's biggest sport fishing fleet.
Many popular museums, such as the San Diego Museum of Art, the San Diego Natural History Museum, the Museum of Us, the Museum of Photographic Arts, and the San Diego Air & Space Museum, are located in Balboa Park, which is also the location of the San Diego Zoo. The Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego (MCASD) is located in La Jolla and has a branch located at the Santa Fe Depot downtown. The downtown branch consists of two buildings on two opposite streets. The Columbia district downtown is home to historic ship exhibits belonging to the San Diego Maritime Museum, headlined by the Star of India, as well as the unrelated San Diego Aircraft Carrier Museum featuring the USS Midway aircraft carrier.
This article uses material from the Wikipedia article "San Diego", which is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share-Alike License 3.0