Physiogeographic Regions of California

Chapter One

California Counties

California Cities

Northwest California and the Klamath Mountains

• Counties: o Del Norte, western

Siskiyou, Humboldt, Trinity, northern Mendocino, southwest corner of Shasta, western edge of Tehama

• Largest Cities:o Eureka 26,520, Arcata

17,200, Fortuna 11,250, Crescent City 7,550

Sea Stacks occur many places on the California coast. They are perhaps most dramatic in the Klamath region where some of them are large enough to harbor remnant forests now separated from the mainland.

Northwest California and the Klamath Mountains

• Steep, moist, forested, mountain slopes

• Coast Ranges and Klamath Mountains

• Smith Valley• Smith, Klamath,

Trinity, Mad, and Eel Rivers

Parts of the Klamath region receive upwards of 100 inches of precipitation a year. Such moisture allows a multitude of plants and animals to thrive, sometimes on each other.

North/Central California with its Southern Cascades

• Counties:o Siskiyou, Shasta

• Largest Citieso Redding 88,500,

Shasta Lake 10,100, Yreka 7,400, Mt Shasta 3,650, Weed 2,960

Mt Shasta

North/Central California with its Southern Cascades

• Transition from Klamath Mountains to Modoc Plateau-volcanoes

• Mt Shasta, Mt Lassen

• Pit River• Shasta Valley• Dry valleys, cool

winters, continental air masses

The Northeast and Modoc Plateau

• Countieso Modoc, Lassen, north

tip of Plumas• Cities

o Susanville 18,200, Alturas 2,840

The Northeast and Modoc Plateau• Volcanoes and Lava

Flows• Fault block valleys

(Basin and Range)• Warner Mtns• Honey Lake, Alkali

Lakes• Surprise Valley• Pit River• Rain Shadow of

Klamaths and Cascades

Pit River

Isolated Cultures and Economies of the Northeast

• Residents are isolated• Dry climate: ranching in

Modoc’s Valleys• Hunting, fishing, tourism• Culturally conservative• Does not attract industry,

business, or people• Susanville exception-tied

to Reno & HWY 395• Tribal Casinos in

Susanville and Alturas

Basin and Range

• Counties:o Mono, Inyo

• Cities:o Bishop 3,650,

Mammoth Lakes 7,900,

Lone Pine

Basin and Range• East of the Sierra Nevada

throughout the state of Nevada• High mountain ranges-parallel

north/south ranges• White, Inyo, Coso and Argus

Ranges, Panamint Mountains• Playas• Volcanoes• Rain Shadow very dry, sparse

vegetation• Bristlecone Pines• Mono Lake, Owens River,

Owen Lake, Los Angeles Aqueduct

• Tourism, Mammoth

Sierra Nevada

• Counties: Plumas, Sierra, eastern edges of Butte and Yuba, Nevada, eastern Placer, El Dorado, Amador, Alpine, Calaveras, Tuolumne, Mariposa, eastern portions of Madera, Fresno, and Tulare, northeastern Kern, western fringes of Mono and Inyo

• Cities:o Paradise 26,750, South Lake

Tahoe 23,700, Truckee 15,500, Auburn 12,850, Grass Valley 12,500 Near Bishop Pass

Sierra Nevada

• Physiogeographic province and landform

• 400 mi long, 70 mi wide• Many +14,000 ft peaks• West more rounded,

wetter, catches orographic precipitation

• East steeper, drier• Varied climates

Sierras meet the Mojave Desert

People Invade the Sierra Nevada

• Mining towns• Agricultural and timber

service centers• Tourists• Suburbs• National Parks-

Yosemite 3.5 million visitors per year

• Lake Isabella Kern River South Lake Tahoe

Southern California Deserts: Transmontane Southern California

• Counties: o southeast corner of Kern,

northeastern corner of Los Angeles, nearly all of San Bernardino, much of Riverside

• Cities:o Palmdale 133,500, Lancaster

129,500, Victorville 80,000, Hesperia 72,000, Apple Valley 62,500 Joshua Trees in the snow

Southern California Deserts: Transmontane Southern California

• Older mountain ranges, desert plains

• High desert with deep valleys, salty playas

• “Cooler” and “wetter” than other deserts

• Mining• Military• Transportation• Suburbs Creosote Bush

The Colorado Desert

• Counties:o Imperial, southern and

eastern portions of Riverside, far eastern edge of San Diego

• Cities:o Indio 62,000, Cathedral

City 51,000, Palm Desert 46,500, Palm Springs 44,500, El Centro 41,000

California Fan Palms

The Colorado Desert

• Salton Trough• Low desert• Coachella and

Imperial Valleys• Rain shadow of

Peninsular Ranges• Irrigated agriculture• Like Southern Arizona

and Northern Mexico• Snowbirds

Salton Sea

Southern California’s Coast: Cismontane Southern California

• Counties:o San Diego, southwest San

Bernardino, western Riverside, Los Angeles, Orange

• Cities:o San Diego 1,300,000, Chula Vista

210,000, Oceanside 175,000 Escondido 142,000, Riverside 277,000, San Bernardino 200,000, Ontario 170,000, Los Angeles 3,940,000, Long Beach 495,000, Glendale 206,000, Santa Ana 354,000, Anaheim 350,000, Huntington Beach 200,000, Irvine 173,000, Garden Grove 172,000

Los Angeles

Transverse Ranges North of Los Angeles

• Counties:o Santa Barbara,

Ventura, northern Los Angeles

• Cities:o Oxnard 192,000,

Santa Clarita 170,000, Simi Valley 120,000, Ventura 108,000

San Fernando Valley

Transverse Ranges North of Los Angeles

• Ventura-Oxnard plain agriculture

• Suburbanization• Santa Barbara• Canyon Country

commuters-tied to LA• Transverse Range-

protects Southern California from cold snaps

Geographic Pivot Point

• San Andreas fault meets Garlock fault• Corners of five geographic regions: Coast

Ranges, Central Valley, Tehachapi Sierra Nevada, Mojave, and Transverse Range

• Where climate changes, division of northern and southern California

• Both natural and cultural• Frazier Peak, Tejon Pass

The Central Coast and Coast Ranges

• Counties:o Far northern tip of

Santa ,Barbara, San Luis Obispo, Monterey, San Benito, Santa Cruz, Santa Clara, San Mateo, Alameda, San Francisco, Contra Costa, western edges of several San Joaquin Valley counties, Marin, southwestern Solano, Sonoma, Napa, southern Mendocino, Lake, western edges of Glenn and Colusa

• Cities:o Salinas 156,000, Santa Maria

87,500, Santa Cruz 56,400, San Luis Obispo 44,300

Flower Farm near Gilroy

The Central Coast and Coast Ranges

• Western side of Central Valley

• San Andreas fault• North more rain-

redwoods• Salinas Valley agriculture• San Francisco Bay-Delta

salt and fresh water• Moro Bay, Monterey, Big

Sur 2,000,000 touristsMission San Antiono is found in the rugged Santa Lucia Mountains of the Central Coast Ranges.

The Central Coast and Coast Ranges

• San Francisco Bay Area• Cities: San Jose

930,000, San Francisco 795,000, Oakland 414,000, Fremont 211,000, Santa Rosa 158,000, Hayward 146,000, Sunnyvale 133,000

• Many suburbs: North Bay, East Bay, South Bay

Golden Gate Bridge

Central Valley

• Counties:o Southern tip of Shasta, Tehama,

eastern Glenn, western Butte, eastern Colusa, Sutter, western Yuba and Placer, Yolo, Sacramento, northeastern Solano, San Joaquin, Stanislaus, Merced, southwestern Madera and Fresno and Tulare, Kings, western Kern

• Cities:o Fresno 465,000, Sacramento

450,000, Bakersfield 290,000, Stockton 274,000, Modesto 206,000

Central Valley

• Giant valley 400 miles long from Shasta County to the Tehachapis 50 miles wide at widest

• Mostly flat• Sacramento River drains north,

San Joaquin River drains south• Excellent soil• Little rain, dependent on Sierra

runoff• Water engineering-control

flooding and distribute water• AGRICULTURE

Additional Terms

• California• Cismontane• Culture hearth• Cycles• Delta• Diversity, connections, change• Five fundamental geographic

themes• Geographic center• Geographic isolation• Geographic pivot point• History• Human landscape

• Mission, presidio, pueblo• Processes• Regional geography• Renaissance in geography• Scales of study• Six essential elements of

geography• South Coast• Systematic• Systems• Topical• Transmontane• Twenty-first century trends