Diablo Canyon Power Plant from Port San Luis

Avila Beach (

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...

: ''Ávila'') is an unincorporated community in

San Luis Obispo County San Luis Obispo County (), officially the County of San Luis Obispo, is a county on the Central Coast of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 282,424. The county seat is San Luis Obispo. Junípero Serra founded the Mission ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

, United States, located on

San Luis Obispo Bay San Luis Obispo Bay is a bay on the Pacific Ocean coast of San Luis Obispo County, California, about 160 miles (257 km) northwest of Los Angeles, and about south of San Francisco. The bay is located between Point San Luis and Shell Beach, ...

about 160 miles (257 km) northwest of

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

, and about south of

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

. The population was 1,576 at the 2010 census. For statistical purposes, the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...

has defined Avila Beach as a

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counterparts of incorporated places, such ...

(CDP).

History

The name Avila commemorates Miguel Ávila, who was granted

Rancho San Miguelito Rancho San Miguelito was a Mexican land grant in present-day San Luis Obispo County, California given in 1842 by Governor Juan Alvarado to Miguel Ávila, and an addition granted in 1846 by Governor Pio Pico. The grant extended along the Pacific ...

in 1842. The town was established in the latter half of the 19th century, when it served as the main shipping port for

San Luis Obispo San Luis Obispo (; Spanish for " St. Louis the Bishop", ; Chumash: ''tiłhini'') is a city and county seat of San Luis Obispo County, in the U.S. state of California. Located on the Central Coast of California, San Luis Obispo is roughly halfwa ...

. Around this time, Luigi Marre built a honeymoon hotel here and steamboats brought customers from San Francisco and Los Angeles. Although Avila Beach still has a working commercial fishing pier and the inland areas have extensive apple orchards, tourism is now the main industry. There are few historical structures remaining; among the oldest is the Point San Luis Light, built in 1890 after a series of shipping accidents. During World War II the beach and port were used for the

Amphibious Training Base Morro Bay Amphibious Training Base Morro Bay also called Camp Morro Bay and Morro Bay Section Base was a US Navy training base for amphibious beach assault during World War II. The base opened in 1941 to train troops for the Pacific theater of operatio ...

. In the late 1990s,

Unocal Union Oil Company of California, and its holding company Unocal Corporation, together known as Unocal was a major petroleum explorer and marketer in the late 19th century, through the 20th century, and into the early 21st century. It was headqu ...

began the cleanup of decades old oil seepage discovered years earlier from corroding pipes under the township, and which had caused a massive

oil spill An oil spill is the release of a liquid petroleum hydrocarbon into the environment, especially the marine ecosystem, due to human activity, and is a form of pollution. The term is usually given to marine oil spills, where oil is released into th ...

under the town. Over 6,750 truckloads of contaminated material was sent to a

Bakersfield Bakersfield is a city in Kern County, California, United States. It is the county seat and largest city of Kern County. The city covers about near the southern end of the San Joaquin Valley and the Central Valley region. Bakersfield's populat ...

landfill, and replaced with clean Guadalupe Dunes sand. Many of the town's homes and businesses, including several blocks of Front Street, were razed as a result of the quarter-mile-wide excavation. New buildings, homes, businesses, modern walkways and sea motif walls and benches have been constructed.

Geography

The beach is less than 0.5 miles (0.8 km) long and sheltered in San Luis Bay, which is formed by Point San Luis on the west and Fossil Point on the east. Avila Beach faces south and the 600 foot elevation of Point San Luis breaks the prevailing northwesterly winds. It is therefore usually warmer than the other

beach A beach is a landform alongside a body of water which consists of loose particles. The particles composing a beach are typically made from rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle, pebbles, etc., or biological sources, such as mollusc shel ...

es on the Central Coast. Most of Avila Beach is undeveloped, except for a few blocks adjacent to the beach with homes, hotels, and small businesses, and a few upscale housing developments inland near a golf course. Avila Beach is also known for its

hot spring A hot spring, hydrothermal spring, or geothermal spring is a spring produced by the emergence of geothermally heated groundwater onto the surface of the Earth. The groundwater is heated either by shallow bodies of magma (molten rock) or by circ ...

s, which are used for resort

spas Spas or SPAS may refer to: * Spa, a therapeutic water treatment Geography *Spas, Russia, several rural localities in Russia * Spas, Lviv Raion, Lviv Oblast, a village in Lviv Raion in Lviv Oblast, Ukraine * Spas, Sambir Raion, Lviv Oblast, a vil ...

U.S. Route 101 U.S. Route 101, or U.S. Highway 101 (US 101), is a north–south United States Numbered Highway that runs through the states of California, Oregon, and Washington, on the West Coast of the United States. It is also known as (The Royal Roa ...

and

State Highway 1 The following highways are numbered 1. For roads numbered A1, see list of A1 roads. For roads numbered B1, see list of B1 roads. For roads numbered M1, see List of M1 roads. For roads numbered N1, see list of N1 roads. For roads numbere ...

bypass this part of the coastline to the east in favor of a more direct route from

Pismo Beach Pismo Beach (Chumash: ''Pismuʔ'') is a city in the southern portion of San Luis Obispo County, in the Central Coast area of California, United States. The estimated population was 8,072 at the 2020 census, up from 7,655 in the 2010 census. It ...

north to

. According to the

, the CDP covers an area of 6.0 square miles (15.6 km²), 99.71% of it land, and 0.29% of it water.

Climate

Average temperatures vary little during the year, ranging from to from November through April, and from to from May through October. Average annual rainfall is . Along with much of the California coast, winter is the wet season, with more than 70% of the yearly rain falling from December through March, while summer brings drought conditions.

Demographics

The

2010 United States Census The United States census of 2010 was the twenty-third United States national census. National Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2010. The census was taken via mail-in citizen self-reporting, with enumerators servin ...

reported that Avila Beach had a population of 1,627. The population density was . The racial makeup of Avila Beach was 1,507 (92.6%)

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...

, 13 (0.8%)

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 7 (0.4%) Native American, 33 (2.0%)

Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...

, 0 (0.0%)

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe the original p ...

, 34 (2.1%) from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...

, and 33 (2.0%) from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...

Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

of any race were 111 persons (6.8%). The Census reported that 1,627 people (100% of the population) lived in households, 0 (0%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 0 (0%) were institutionalized. There were 842 households, out of which 115 (13.7%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 416 (49.4%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 39 (4.6%) had a female householder with no husband present, 16 (1.9%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 36 (4.3%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 14 (1.7%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 296 households (35.2%) were made up of individuals, and 108 (12.8%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 1.93. There were 471

families Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Ideall ...

(55.9% of all households); the average family size was 2.45. The population was spread out, with 183 people (11.2%) under the age of 18, 74 people (4.5%) aged 18 to 24, 263 people (16.2%) aged 25 to 44, 597 people (36.7%) aged 45 to 64, and 510 people (31.3%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 56.9 years. For every 100 females, there were 91.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.0 males. There were 1,093 housing units at an average density of , of which 529 (62.8%) were owner-occupied, and 313 (37.2%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 3.1%; the rental vacancy rate was 7.4%. 1,074 people (66.0% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 553 people (34.0%) lived in rental housing units.

Points of interest

Avila Beach has three piers: Avila Beach Pier, in length, is open to tourist strolling and recreational

fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from stocked bodies of water such as ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. Fishing techniques inclu ...

; Harford Pier, which is for commercial fishing boats to offload their wares since 1873; and the

California Polytechnic State University California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo (California Polytechnic State University, Cal Poly"Cal Poly" may also refer to California State Polytechnic University, Humboldt in Arcata, California or California State Polytechnic Univ ...

(Cal Poly SLO) Pier, part of the university's marine research program, is not publicly accessible. In recent years, the pier has become a site for

whale watching Whale watching is the practice of observing whales and dolphins ( cetaceans) in their natural habitat. Whale watching is mostly a recreational activity (cf. birdwatching), but it can also serve scientific and/or educational purposes.Hoyt, E. 2 ...

as numbers of grays and

humpback whale The humpback whale (''Megaptera novaeangliae'') is a species of baleen whale. It is a rorqual (a member of the family Balaenopteridae) and is the only species in the genus ''Megaptera''. Adults range in length from and weigh up to . The hump ...

s come into bays around the pier to feed and draw crowds during the seasons.

Diablo Canyon Power Plant The Diablo Canyon Power Plant is a nuclear power plant near Avila Beach in San Luis Obispo County, California. Since the permanent shutdown of the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station in 2013, Diablo Canyon has been the only operational nuclea ...

, the last remaining

nuclear power Nuclear power is the use of nuclear reactions to produce electricity. Nuclear power can be obtained from nuclear fission, nuclear decay and nuclear fusion reactions. Presently, the vast majority of electricity from nuclear power is produced b ...

plant in California, is located in a remote part of the Avila Beach unincorporated area, about northwest of the beach itself. In 2016, the owner of the plant,

PG&E The Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) is an American investor-owned utility (IOU). The company is headquartered in the Pacific Gas & Electric Building, in San Francisco, California. PG&E provides natural gas and electricity to 5.2 milli ...

decided to allow the licenses for two reactors to expire in 2024 and 2025, which would close the power plant. The Avila Beach Pier was featured in a

Super Bowl The Super Bowl is the annual final playoff game of the National Football League (NFL) to determine the league champion. It has served as the final game of every NFL season since 1966, replacing the NFL Championship Game. Since 2022, the game ...

advertisement on February 7, 2010. Avila Beach was the primary shooting location for the 1979 film ''

California Dreaming "California Dreamin'" is a song written by John Phillips and Michelle Phillips and first recorded by Barry McGuire. The best-known version is by the Mamas & the Papas, who sang backup on the original version and released it as a single in 196 ...

'', which starred

Dennis Christopher Dennis Christopher (born Dennis Carrelli; December 2, 1955) is an American actor. He is best known for his roles in ''Breaking Away'' (1979), '' Fade to Black'' (1980), ''Chariots of Fire'' (1981), '' It'' (1990) and ''Django Unchained'' (2012) ...

Glynnis O'Connor Glynnis O'Connor (born November 19, 1956) is an American actress of television, film, radio, and theater. She first gained wide attention in the mid-1970s with leading roles in the television version of ''Our Town'' and in the short-lived series ...

, and

Seymour Cassel Seymour Joseph Cassel (January 22, 1935 – April 7, 2019) was an American actor who appeared in over 200 movies and television shows, and had a career that spanned over 50 years. Cassel first came to prominence in the 1960s in the pioneering in ...

Gallery

File:Avila Beach pier.jpg, Port San Luis Pier. The pier also has a live fish market and harbor patrol office. Image:Avila-Beach-CA.jpg, Avila Beach and its piers. Image:Avila_Beach_See_Canyon_10-12-07.jpg, See Canyon in Avila Beach, with apple orchards visible in the distance. Image:AvilaTrain.jpg, Avila Beach and Harford Pier, late 19th century. Point San Luis and Whaler's Island are visible in the near distance. File:Humpback Whale off Avila Beach, CA.jpg,

Humpback whale The humpback whale (''Megaptera novaeangliae'') is a species of baleen whale. It is a rorqual (a member of the family Balaenopteridae) and is the only species in the genus ''Megaptera''. Adults range in length from and weigh up to . The hump ...

lunge feeding Aquatic feeding mechanisms face a special difficulty as compared to feeding on land, because the density of water is about the same as that of the prey, so the prey tends to be pushed away when the mouth is closed. This problem was first identifi ...

off Avila Beach, 2012 Image:Diablo_canyon_nuclear_power_plant.jpg, Diablo Canyon Power Plant

References

External links

Avila Beach Community Services DistrictPort San Luis HarborThe Point San Luis Lighthouse
Point San Luis Lighthouse Keepers
Central Coast Aquarium - Avila Beach
{{authority control Populated coastal places in California Census-designated places in San Luis Obispo County, California Spa towns in California Hot springs of California Census-designated places in California Beaches of San Luis Obispo County, California Beaches of Southern California