The Central Coast is an area of California, roughly spanning the coastal region between Point Mugu and Monterey Bay. It lies northwest of

Los Angeles County Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles, and sometimes abbreviated as L.A. County, is the most populous county in the United States and in the U.S. state of California, with 9,861,224 residents estimated as of 2022. It is the ...

and south of San Mateo and Santa Clara counties, and includes the rugged, undeveloped stretch of coastline known as

Big Sur Big Sur () is a rugged and mountainous section of the Central Coast of California between Carmel and San Simeon, where the Santa Lucia Mountains rise abruptly from the Pacific Ocean. It is frequently praised for its dramatic scenery. Big Sur ha ...

. From south to north, there are six counties that make up the Central Coast: Ventura, Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, Monterey, San Benito, and Santa Cruz. The Central Coast is the location of the Central Coast American Viticultural Area. Geographically, the actual midpoint of the California coast lies north of Santa Cruz, near Año Nuevo State Park in San Mateo County. Neither the popular use of the term Central Coast nor that of the California North Coast include the San Francisco Peninsula counties of San Mateo and San Francisco.

History

Big Sur, Central Coast California (9390860723)

The Central Coast area was originally inhabited by Chumash and other Native American people since at least 10,000 BC. Many of these communities were coastal, where the people utilized marine resources and dwelt near freshwater inflows to the Pacific Ocean. For example, there were significant communities near the mouth of Morro Creek and Los Osos Creek.

Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo ( pt, João Rodrigues Cabrilho; c. 1499 – January 3, 1543) was an Iberian maritime explorer best known for investigations of the West Coast of North America, undertaken on behalf of the Spanish Empire. He was the firs ...

visited the Central Coast, landing in Santa Barbara County in 1542, having sailed from the south.

Overview

Central Californian Coastline, Big Sur - May 2013

The region is known primarily for agriculture and tourism. Major crops include wine grapes, lettuce,

strawberries The garden strawberry (or simply strawberry; ''Fragaria × ananassa'') is a widely grown hybrid species of the genus '' Fragaria'', collectively known as the strawberries, which are cultivated worldwide for their fruit. The fruit is widely ap ...

, and artichokes. The Salinas Valley is one of the most fertile farming regions in the United States. Tourist attractions include Cannery Row in Monterey, the Monterey Bay Aquarium, the theatres, galleries and white sand beaches of Carmel-by-the-Sea, the golf courses of Pebble Beach and the Monterey Peninsula, the rugged coastline of

and Hearst Castle in San Simeon. Further south is

Morro Rock Morro Rock ( Salinan: ''Le'samo; '' Chumash: ''Lisamu; Spanish: ''El Morro'') is a volcanic plug in Morro Bay, California, on the Pacific Coast at the entrance to Morro Bay harbor. A causeway connects it with the shore, making it a tie ...

and the port city of Morro Bay, which is adjacent to college town San Luis Obispo. The Santa Ynez Valley is home to the Central Coast Film Society, which celebrates filmmakers, cinema and media arts that are from the region, also known as "Hollywood's Backyard." The area is not densely populated. The largest city in the region is Oxnard in Ventura County, with a population estimated at 203,007 in 2013. University of California campuses are found in Santa Barbara and Santa Cruz, near the south and north edges of the region respectively. California State University, Monterey Bay, founded in 1994, uses facilities donated when Fort Ord was converted from military to civilian uses. California Polytechnic State University, in San Luis Obispo, California, San Luis Obispo, was founded in 1901. California State University Channel Islands opened in Camarillo, California, Camarillo in 2002, as the 23rd campus in the California State University system.

Population

The six counties that make up the Central Coast region had an estimated population of 2,348,601 according to the 2020 census.

Counties by population

Major cities

The following cities had a population over 20,000 as of the 2020 census: * Oxnard - 202,063 * Salinas, California, Salinas - 163,542 * Thousand Oaks, California, Thousand Oaks - 126,966 * Simi Valley, California, Simi Valley - 126,356 * Ventura, California, Ventura - 110,763 * Santa Maria, California, Santa Maria - 109,707 * Santa Barbara, California, Santa Barbara - 88,665 * Camarillo, California, Camarillo - 70,741 * Santa Cruz, California, Santa Cruz - 62,956 * Watsonville, California, Watsonville - 52,590 * San Luis Obispo, California, San Luis Obispo - 47,063 * Lompoc, California, Lompoc - 44,444 * Hollister, California, Hollister - 41,678 * Moorpark, California, Moorpark - 36,284 * Goleta, California, Goleta - 32,690 * Seaside, California, Seaside - 32,366 * Paso Robles, California, Paso Robles - 31,490 * Santa Paula, California, Santa Paula - 30,657 * Monterey - 30,218 * Atascadero, California, Atascadero - 29,773 * Soledad, California, Soledad - 24,925 * Marina, California, Marina - 22,359 * Port Hueneme, California, Port Hueneme - 21,954

Transportation

Travel is almost entirely by private automobile. Because of its position roughly halfway between the major cities of Los Angeles and San Francisco, San Luis Obispo is home to Motel Inn of San Luis Obispo, America's first motel. The major highway is U.S. Route 101 (California), U.S. Route 101, which runs north-south from Los Angeles, through most of the major communities of the Central Coast, to San Francisco. California State Route 1, State Route 1, a smaller but much more scenic route, connects the coastal communities, running through San Simeon, Morro Bay, and

. Amtrak maintains train service with the Coast Starlight and Pacific Surfliner routes along the Union Pacific Railroad Coast Line (UP), Coast Line that also transports freight. There are no major airports, although Monterey, Santa Barbara, Santa Maria and San Luis Obispo have regional airports with commuter service. Greyhound Lines, Greyhound buses serve most of the region. Monterey-Salinas Transit (MST) operates bus services throughout Monterey County as far south as

on the coast and King City, California, King City in the Salinas Valley. MST also offers connection service to San Jose Diridon Station, downtown Santa Cruz, and Paso Robles, California, Paso Robles and Templeton, California, Templeton in Northern San Luis Obispo County, California, San Luis Obispo County via regional routes. Santa Cruz Metropolitan Transit District, Santa Cruz Metro offers services within Santa Cruz County, California, Santa Cruz County, including connections to San Jose, California, San Jose and San Jose State and connection to MST service in Watsonville, heading south to Salinas.

References

External links

Central California Coast Guide with Photos A comprehensive guide to California's Central Coast
{{California Regions of California West Coast of the United States Geography of California Northern California Southern California Tourism regions of California