Summit of Cerro Cabrillo (Cerro Peak), Morro Bay, CA

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 Mis ...

, on the Central Coast of

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

. 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 riv ...

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, by ...

. The park's Morro Bay State Park Museum of Natural History 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 dynami ...

. 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. Geograph ...

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

Morro Bay State Marine Recreational Management Area and Morro Bay State Marine Reserve 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 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 n ...

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 environ ...

from

. 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, f ...

in Los Osos dating to at least as early as 800 to 1200 AD. Cabrillo first encountered the Chumash in the year 1542.

References

External links

* State parks of California Morro Bay Parks in San Luis Obispo County, California {{SanLuisObispoCountyCA-geo-stub