Coastal California, also known as the California Coastline and the Golden Coast, refers to the coastal regions of the U.S. state of

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

. The term is not primarily geographical as it also describes an area distinguished by cultural, economic and political attributes.

Geography

Three Arch Bay Photo Taken by pilot Don Ramey Logan

The area includes the North Coast,

San Francisco Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a List of regions of California, region of California surrounding and including San Francisco Bay, and anchored by the cities of Oakland, San Francisco, and San Jose, California, S ...

, Central Coast, and South Coast. The coastline is slowly eroding due to natural processes accelerated by climate change, though much more slowly in other places in the United States. In the last 100 years, the water line has risen less than along the coast of California. In the next 100 years, the water is expected to surge as much as , bringing into question the fate of the many million dollar homes settled right on the edge of the sea.

Climate

Coastal California is heavily influenced by east–west distances to the dominant cold California Current as well as microclimates. Due to hills and coast ranges having strong meteorological effects, summer and winter temperatures (other than occasional heat waves) are heavily moderated by ocean currents and fog with strong

seasonal lag Seasonal lag is the phenomenon whereby the date of maximum average air temperature at a geographical location on a planet is delayed until some time after the date of maximum daylight (i.e. the summer solstice). This also applies to the minimum ...

s compared to interior valleys as little as away. Point Conception tends to divide the Coastal region by mid-summer into warmer (south and east) and cooler zones (north). Peak and often intense hea
tends to arrive in September much later
than the rest of the nation or state. Over time, droughts and

wildfires A wildfire, forest fire, or a bushfire is an unplanned and uncontrolled fire in an area of Combustibility and flammability, combustible vegetation. Depending on the type of vegetation present, a wildfire may be more specifically identified as a ...

have increased in frequency and become less seasonal and more year-round, further straining the region's water security. Furthermore, extended droughts and decadal changes in land use are causing severe shoreline retreat to the coast of the Gulf of Santa Catalina.

Counties

The counties commonly seen as constituting coastal California are: ; South Coast *

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

* Orange *

San Diego San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...

; Central Coast * Monterey * San Benito *

San Luis Obispo ; ; ; Chumashan languages, Chumash: ''tiłhini'') is a city and county seat of San Luis Obispo County, California, United States. Located on the Central Coast (California), Central Coast of California, San Luis Obispo is roughly halfway betwee ...

* Santa Barbara * Santa Cruz * Ventura ;

* Alameda * Contra Costa * Marin * Napa *

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

* San Mateo * Santa Clara * Solano * Sonoma ; North Coast * Del Norte * Humboldt * Mendocino

Demographics

During the 2000 Census, roughly a third of households had incomes exceeding $75,000, compared to 17.6% in the Central Valley and 22.5% at the national average. While the area has always been relatively expensive, when compared to inland regions and the national average, the recent real estate boom has left it as the most expensive housing market in the nation. An October 2004 CNN Money publication found that a home in a "middle management neighborhood" would cost an average of $1.8 million.

References

External links