Morro Bay State Park is a
state park
State parks are parks or other protected areas managed at the sub-national level within those nations which use "state" as a political subdivision. State parks are typically established by a state to preserve a location on account of its natural ...
on the
Morro Bay
Morro Bay (''Morro'', Spanish for "Hill") is a seaside city in San Luis Obispo County, California. Located on the Central Coast of California, the city population was 10,757 as of the 2020 census, up from 10,234 at the 2010 census. The town ...
lagoon, in western
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 ...
, on the
Central Coast of
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 ...
. On the lagoon's northeastern and eastern edges in the park, there are saltwater and
brackish marsh
Brackish marshes develop from salt marshes where a significant freshwater influx dilutes the seawater to brackish levels of salinity. This commonly happens upstream from salt marshes by estuaries of coastal rivers or near the mouths of coastal r ...
es that support thriving bird populations.
Recreation
There are opportunities for sailing, fishing, hiking, and
bird watching
Birdwatching, or birding, is the observing of birds, either as a recreational activity or as a form of citizen science. A birdwatcher may observe by using their naked eye, by using a visual enhancement device like binoculars or a telescope, ...
. The park's
Morro Bay State Park Museum of Natural History
The Morro Bay State Park Museum of Natural History is a natural history museum in Morro Bay State Park, Morro Bay, California, United States, opened in 1962.
The museum sits on a hill overlooking the Morro Bay estuary, midway between Los Angeles ...
has exhibits covering natural features, cultural history, Native American life, geology, and
oceanography
Oceanography (), also known as oceanology and ocean science, is the scientific study of the oceans. It is an Earth science, which covers a wide range of topics, including ecosystem dynamics; ocean currents, waves, and geophysical fluid dynamic ...
. The park also has a marina and a public golf course.
Two of the
Nine Sisters
The Nine Sisters or the Morros are a chain of twenty-three, although typically only nine are included, volcanic mountains and hills in western San Luis Obispo County, Southern California. They run between Morro Bay and San Luis Obispo.
Geography
...
chain of volcanic peaks,
Black Hill and
Cerro Cabrillo, are within the park. Black Hill has a trail through the
Monterey Pine (''Pinus radiata'') trees in Flemings Forest.
Marine Protected Areas
are marine protected areas offshore from Morro Bay. Like underwater parks, these marine protected areas help conserve ocean wildlife and marine ecosystems.
History
The first settlers of the local area were of the
Millingstone Horizon
Millingstone Horizon is an archaeological period of Native American dominance denoting a period in California, United States involving extensive use of manos and other grinding technology. The interval is a subset of the Archaic Period; specif ...
culture, early
Chumash Chumash may refer to:
*Chumash (Judaism), a Hebrew word for the Pentateuch, used in Judaism
*Chumash people, a Native American people of southern California
*Chumashan languages, indigenous languages of California
See also
* Chumash traditional ...
Native American peoples. These peoples relied partially on the harvesting of fish and
shellfish
Shellfish is a colloquial and fisheries term for exoskeleton-bearing aquatic invertebrates used as food, including various species of molluscs, crustaceans, and echinoderms. Although most kinds of shellfish are harvested from saltwater envir ...
from
Morro Bay
Morro Bay (''Morro'', Spanish for "Hill") is a seaside city in San Luis Obispo County, California. Located on the Central Coast of California, the city population was 10,757 as of the 2020 census, up from 10,234 at the 2010 census. The town ...
. One of the closest local settlements of Chumash to Morro Bay State Park is the Back Bay site, a large Chumash
archaeological
Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscap ...
site on a stabilized
sand dune
A dune is a landform composed of wind- or water-driven sand. It typically takes the form of a mound, ridge, or hill. An area with dunes is called a dune system or a dune complex. A large dune complex is called a dune field, while broad, fl ...
in Los Osos dating to at least as early as 800 to 1200
AD.
Cabrillo first encountered the Chumash in the year 1542.
See also
*
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 tied is ...
*
Black Hill
*
Cerro Cabrillo
*
Montaña de Oro State Park
*
List of beaches in California
This list of California beaches is a list of beaches that are situated along the coastline of the State of California, USA.
North to South
The beaches are listed in order from north to south, and are grouped by county. The list includes all of ...
*
List of California state parks
This is a list of parks, historic resources, reserves and recreation areas in the California State Parks system.
List of parks
See also
*California State Beaches
*List of California State Historic Parks
* Parks in California
* California Depa ...
References
External links
*
State parks of California
Morro Bay
Parks in San Luis Obispo County, California
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