California's Central Coast Bioregion

Central Coast Bioregion -- an Overview

Vineyard

The Central Coast Bioregion features some of California's most beautiful coastal scenery, blessed with a mild, seasonally moist, and sometimes foggy climate that favors rich farmland and vineyards. This highly agricultural region is famous for artichokes, garlic, and an array of fruits and vegetables. Other industries include wine-making and dairy and cattle ranching. The coast supports a brisk fishing industry, and oil production along the southern end of the bioregion.

Tourism and Industries

Pool at Hearst Castle

The bioregion extends some 300 miles from just north of Santa Cruz to just south of Santa Barbara, and inland to the floor of the San Joaquin Valley. lt encompasses the counties of Santa Cruz, Monterey, San Benito, Santa Barbara, and portions of Los Angeles, San Luis Obispo, Fresno, Merced, Stanislaus, Ventura. The region includes such popular tourist attractions as the Monterey Bay area and Aquarium, Big Sur, the Hearst Castle, and the beaches of Santa Barbara, plus many state parks and other recreational attractions. The region also is the home of such well-known military installations as Fort Ord, Camp Roberts, and Vandenburg Air Force Base. The geography offers coastal mountain ranges including the Santa Lucia and Santa Ynez, and coastal sand dunes. vegetation includes chaparral, mixed hardwood and redwood forests in the bioregion's northern coastal area, and oak woodlands. the Los Padres National Forest covers much of the southern portion of the bioregion. The Salinas and Cuyama rivers feed the bioregion's two major watersheds.