Unit 10: Scenic America

The Pacific Coast

To the west of the Rocky Mountains, towards the Pacific coast, there is in the south a stretch of desert area that suddenly becomes verdant in the Imperial Valley of California. In the north, after leaving Salt Lake City behind, until one reaches the coastline one encounters foothills and a few isolated mountains such as Mt. Hood, overlooking Portland, Oregon. In the very northern part of the Pacific coast region is the city of Seattle located on Puget Sound and neighbored by the Olympic Peninsula, on which is located Olympia National Park, the location of a completely fascinating temperate rain forest, and the Cascade Range, where Mt. Rainier stands. Not too far away from the city is the site of the St. Helens eruption, where visitors can observe the ecological recovery from that devastating explosion.

Olympia Peninsula Cascade Rang
	Mt Rainier

The coastline towards the south is quite rugged, with precipitous cliffs and boulder strewn beaches. Only occasionally is there a sand beach suitable for picnicking and swimming, and these are usually found at the mouths of rivers emptying into the Pacific Ocean. It is not until one reaches Los Angeles that one finds long stretches of sandy beaches occasionally interrupted by a sheer cliff now and then.

Before then, the city of San Francisco remains an important center of urban sight-seeing, with Berkeley and its University across the Bay, and Stanford University a short distance south of San Francisco. Farther south is

UC Berkeley	Stanford University

Yosemite National Park with its spectacular scenery of valleys carved out by glaciers, and numerous magnificent waterfalls. And even farther south is Monterey, the scene of many John Steinbeck stories, as well as lovely

Big Sur

Carmel-by-the-Sea, home of the famous Pebble Beach Golf course. The coast road continues south through Big Sur, a picturesque retreat for such authors as Henry Miller, Jack Kerouac, and poet Robinson Jeffers, until it reaches San Simeon, the fabulous home of the publishing tycoon, William Randolph Hearst. It is only a short distance farther south until Los Angeles is reached.

There are few places of natural beauty in Southern California. Most of the interest lies in human creations such as Hollywood and Disneyland. Yet for surfboard riders, sunbathers, and ocean swimmers, there are few places in the United States that can match the beaches stretching from Los Angeles to San Diego. The weather is always temperate and there is little rain. People spend most of their leisure time outdoors, and outdoor grilling is the usual mode of preparing food.

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