East County is a region of

San Diego County, California San Diego County (), officially the County of San Diego, is a county in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 3,298,634, making it California's second-most populous county and the fi ...

, east of

San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the List of United States cities by population, eigh ...

Geography

East County does not have an official geographic definition, although East County boundaries are unofficially drawn by the County of San Diego for its second district. It commonly includes El Cajon, La Mesa, Lemon Grove and

Santee Santee may refer to: People * Santee Dakota, a subgroup of the Dakota people, of the U.S. Great Plains * Santee (South Carolina), a Native American people of South Carolina Places * Lake Santee, Indiana, a reservoir and census-designated place * ...

, as well as suburban and rural unincorporated communities such as

Lakeside Lakeside or Lake Side may refer to: Places Australia * Lakeside College, Pakenham, Victoria * Lakeside Joondalup Shopping City, Joondalup, Western Australia * Lakeside, near Reservoir, Victoria * Lakeside International Raceway, Pine Rivers, Quee ...

, Spring Valley, Jamul, and

Alpine Alpine may refer to any mountainous region. It may also refer to: Places Europe * Alps, a European mountain range ** Alpine states, which overlap with the European range Australia * Alpine, New South Wales, a Northern Village * Alpine National Pa ...

. Many sources also include vast swaths of the backcountry of San Diego County also known as the

Mountain Empire The Mountain Empire is a rural area in southeastern San Diego County, California. The Mountain Empire subregion consists of the backcountry communities in southeastern San Diego County. The area is also sometimes considered part of the East Coun ...

, including communities along

Interstate 8 Interstate 8 (I-8) is an Interstate Highway in the southwestern United States. It runs from the southern edge of Mission Bay at Sunset Cliffs Boulevard in San Diego, California, almost at the Pacific Ocean, to the junction with I-10, ...

such as Pine Valley and

Descanso Descanso may refer to: * Descanso (roadside memorial) * ''Descanso'' (spider), a genus of jumping spider * Descanso, California, an unincorporated community in the United States * Descanso, Santa Catarina, a town and municipality in Brazil * Des ...

, and communities along the rural section of

California State Route 94 State Route 94 (SR 94) is a state highway in the U.S. state of California that is long. The western portion, known as the Martin Luther King Jr. Freeway, begins at Interstate 5 (I-5) in Downtown San Diego and continues to the end of the fr ...

such as Potrero, Boulevard, and

Jacumba Jacumba Hot Springs ( ) is an unincorporated community in the Mountain Empire area of southeastern San Diego County, California, United States. For statistical purposes, the United States Census Bureau defined Jacumba Hot Springs as a census-des ...

. Other sources consider communities within the entire eastern two-thirds of the county to be East County, thereby encompassing places like Ramona,

Julian Julian may refer to: People * Julian (emperor) (331–363), Roman emperor from 361 to 363 * Julian (Rome), referring to the Roman gens Julia, with imperial dynasty offshoots * Saint Julian (disambiguation), several Christian saints * Julian (give ...

, and Borrego Springs, The Ramona area—Ramona,

San Diego Country Estates San Diego Country Estates, commonly referred to as ''the Estates'', is a valley resort populace composed of several neighborhoods associated with the unincorporated community of Ramona, California. The Estates are a census-designated place in No ...

and Barona Mesa—is often considered part of inland North County due to its association with Rancho Bernardo, Escondido and other North County Inland communities. The populace of East County primarily dwells in the interior valleys east of San Diego proper while some development encroaches on the coastal foothills. A broader definition of East County exists that includes the

Cuyamaca Mountains The Cuyamaca Mountains ( Kumeyaay: ''‘Ekwiiyemak''), locally the Cuyamacas, are a mountain range of the Peninsular Ranges System, in San Diego County, southern California. The mountain range runs roughly northwest to southeast. The Laguna Mount ...

and the Laguna Mountains, as well as the desert area of

Anza-Borrego State Park Anza-Borrego Desert State Park (, '' AN-zə bə-RAY-goh'') is a California State Park located within the Colorado Desert of southern California, United States. The park takes its name from 18th century Spanish explorer Juan Bautista de Anza and ...

. Yet, this definition, when used by SANDAG, excludes the ''East Suburban'' centers. Prominent geologic formations include

El Cajon Mountain El Cajon Mountain, commonly known as El Capitan or El cap, is a mountain in the Cuyamaca Mountains, and prominent natural landmark in the East County of San Diego. Geography The summit of El Cajon Mountain is at . The mountain is almost comple ...

, a large, dome-shaped mountain overlooking Santee and Lakeside, as well as Iron Mountain and Mount Woodson that overlook Poway.

Demographics

East County is the fourth most populous region in the San Diego metropolitan area, though its population is close to that of South Bay.

Populated places

Populations listed are 2010 Census populations:

Incorporated cities

* El Cajon – 99,478 * La Mesa – 57,065 *

– 53,413 * Lemon Grove – 25,320

Unincorporated CDPs

* La Presa – 34,169 * Spring Valley – 28,205 *

Rancho San Diego Rancho San Diego is a census-designated place (CDP) in San Diego County, California. The population was 21,208 at the 2010 census, up from 20,155 at the 2000 census. The area was developed as subdivisions beginning in the 1970s. Geography Rancho ...

– 21,208 *

– 20,648 * Winter Gardens – 20,631 *

Casa de Oro-Mount Helix Casa de Oro-Mount Helix is a census-designated place (CDP) in the East County, San Diego, East County region of San Diego County, California, San Diego County, California. The CDP encompasses several unincorporated neighborhoods near the cities of ...

- 18,762 *

– 14,236 * Jamul – 6,163 *

Harbison Canyon Harbison Canyon is a census-designated place (CDP) in San Diego County, California. Harbison Canyon had a population of 3,841 as of the 2010 census, up from 3,645 as of the 2000 census. Geography According to the United States Geological Survey (U ...

– 3,841 *

Granite Hills Granite Hills is a census-designated place in San Diego County, California, San Diego County, California. The name is also applied to a neighborhood within the city limits of El Cajon, California, El Cajon in the eastern part of that city. The popu ...

– 3,035 *

Crest Crest or CREST may refer to: Buildings *The Crest (Huntington, New York), a historic house in Suffolk County, New York *"The Crest", an alternate name for 63 Wall Street, in Manhattan, New York *Crest Castle (Château Du Crest), Jussy, Switzerla ...

– 2,593 * Pine Valley – 1,510 *

– 1,423

Education

Primary and secondary schools

East County is served by

Santee School District Santee School District (Santee Elementary School District) is the district that governs all public elementary schools in Santee, California. The two high schools in Santee, Santana and West Hills are part by the Grossmont Union High School Dist ...

Grossmont Union High School District The Grossmont Union High School District (GUHSD) is a public school district located in eastern San Diego County, California, and serves high school, adult school, and Regional Occupational Program (ROP) students in the cities of El Cajon, Lem ...

, Cajon Valley Union School District, Lakeside Union School District, Lemon Grove School District, Poway Unified School District.

Higher education

Grossmont College, located in El Cajon, and Cuyamaca College, located in Rancho San Diego, are two

community college A community college is a type of educational institution. The term can have different meanings in different countries: many community colleges have an "open enrollment" for students who have graduated from high school (also known as senior sec ...

s in the East County region. San Diego Christian College is located in Santee. Berean Bible College is located in Poway.

Landmarks

Important landmarks in East County included

El Capitan El Capitan ( es, El Capitán; "the Captain" or "the Chief") is a vertical Rock formations in the United States, rock formation in Yosemite National Park, on the north side of Yosemite Valley, near its western end. The El Capitan Granite, granit ...

, Mt. Helix,

Santee Lakes Santee may refer to: People * Santee Dakota, a subgroup of the Dakota people, of the U.S. Great Plains * Santee (South Carolina), a Native American people of South Carolina Places * Lake Santee, Indiana, a reservoir and census-designated plac ...

, Sweetwater Reservoir, Poway's Tony Gwynn Statue, Lake Poway, and Lake Cuyamaca. Image:View_of_El_Capitan_from_Santee's_Sky_Ranch.jpg, El Capitan Image:Sweetwaterriver1.jpg, Sweetwater Reservoir

References

External links

{{California * . Regions of California . . . . .