Moss Landing

https://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=574 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moss_Landing_State_Beach Moss Landing State Beach is on Monterey Bay, in Monterey County, California. The beach and park is about 16 miles (30 km) north of the city of Monterey via Highway 1, about 5 miles (8.0 km) south of Watsonville. Among the most popular activities are offshore fishing, surfing, windsurfing and horseback riding. However, the strong rip currents make the water recreation (swimming, wading, etc.) dangerous. Moss Landing State Beach is also popular for picnicking because the dunes block out strong afternoon winds from blowing into the picnic area.

Fort Ord Dunes State Park Monterey Bay Area State Beaches Our Mission The mission of California State Parks is to provide for the health, inspiration and education of the people of California by helping to preserve the state’s extraordinary biological diversity, protecting its most valued natural and cultural resources, and creating opportunities for high-quality outdoor recreation. Where the land meets the ocean, sheltered Monterey Bay forms a huge arc lined with sand, unbroken for miles. California State Parks supports equal access. Prior to arrival, visitors with disabilities who need assistance should contact the district office well in advance at (831) 649-2836. This publication can be made available in alternate formats. Contact interp@parks.ca.gov or call (916) 654-2249. CALIFORNIA STATE PARKS P.O. Box 942896 Sacramento, CA 94296-0001 For information call: (800) 777-0369 (916) 653-6995, outside the U.S. 711, TTY relay service www.parks.ca.gov Discover the many states of California.™ Monterey Bay Area State Beaches Along Highway 1 From Monterey north to Moss Landing, CA (831) 649-2836 © 2014 California State Parks M onterey Bay’s unique scenic qualities place it among the world’s most beautiful locales. Six California state beach parks in Monterey County are aligned in the crescent fronting the natural wonders of Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary. At Zmudowski, Moss Landing, Salinas River, Marina and Monterey state beaches and Fort Ord Dunes State Park, stroll along more than 20 miles of beach or just sit on the sand and watch the waves crest. The beaches along the half-moon of Monterey Bay afford sublime opportunities to watch wildlife, take photographs or merely inhale the bracing ocean air. Coastal fog and wind are common, with average monthly temperatures ranging from the mid-40s to the low 70s. PARKS AREA HISTORy First People For thousands of years, the Rumsien people moved their villages seasonally throughout the Monterey area to fish, hunt, and collect plants. The arrival of Europeans in California drastically changed the native lifestyle. Traditional food sources were depleted by the newcomers and their imported livestock; the two cultures clashed over native traditions and beliefs. Violence and diseases to which the Rumsien people had no resistance decimated their population. Today’s descendants of the original native group are now working to retain their cultural heritage. European Explorers In 1602, explorer Sebastián Vizcaíno named the natural port Monterey after the Viceroy el Conde de Monterey, commander of New Spain. His party recorded contact with native people in this area. Spanish King Carlos III wanted to expand Spain’s presence in Baja California north to Alta California in the mid1700s. Gaspar de Portolá’s expedition came to Monterey in 1770 to establish a mission and a military presidio. Mexico won its independence from Spain in 1821, so Alta (upper) California also came under Mexican rule. After the mission lands were released from religious control in 1833, large land tracts (ranchos) were granted by the Mexican governor to former Spanish soldiers and others. Mexico ceded Alta California to the U.S. in 1848, and California became a state in 1850. NATuRAL HISTORy Five types of geologic landforms make up these dunes: beach strand, unstabilized active dunes, younger stabilized dunes (from the early to midHolocene period), older stabilized dunes (from the late Pleistocene period), and dissected uplands divided by eroded areas. The dunes support Smith’s blue butterfly two insects of concern — the Smith’s blue butterfly and the globose dune beetle. California legless lizards, resembling thin snakes with eyelids, dwell under the sand. Offshore, the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary protects myriad marine species in a huge submarine canyon. Southern sea otters, seasonally migrating gray and humpback whales, dolphins and some leatherback sea turtles might be spied offshore. Harbor seals and California sea lions may haul up on any handy resting place. Pelicans, grebes, Caspian terns and gulls fly over the sea, hoping to find such prey as surf perch, rockfish, squid and night smelt. Step carefully to avoid the nest of the western snowy plover, a small, threatened bird that blends into the beach sand. The U.S. Government purchased 15,000 acres in 1917 to be used for training troops assigned to the Presidio. “Camp Gigling” was used primarily for drilling soldiers and training cavalry and field artillery units. Its mess halls and cavalry horse stables were the first permanent structures, built in 1938 at Ord. The whole reservation was renamed Camp Ord in 1933. The Works Progress Administration (WPA) partially funded projects that included building Stilwell Hall, a blufftop club for enlisted soldiers. Stilwell Hall was paid for by a variety of means, including soldiers’ donations. Many other WPA infrastructure construction and artistic mural projects were done at Ord bet