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Los Padres National Forest
 
 
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Los Padres National Forest is a forest located in southern
Southern California

Southern California, or So Cal, is defined as the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Its population centers on the cities of Los Angeles, California, San Diego, California, San Bernardino, California, and Riverside, California....
 and central
Central California

California has two regions with "Central" in their names:*Central Valley *Central Coast, CaliforniaThe southern part of the Central Valley and all of the Central Coast are south of the major Northern California urban areas and north of the major Southern California urban area and the Tehachapi Mountains....
 California
California

California is a U.S. state on the West Coast of the United States of the United States, along the Pacific Ocean. It is bordered by Oregon to the north, Nevada to the east, Arizona to the southeast, and to the south the Mexico state of Baja California....
, which includes most of the mountainous land along the California coast from Ventura
Ventura, California

San Buenaventura, commonly referred to as Ventura, is the county seat of Ventura County, California, United States, incorporated in 1866. Ventura has a population of 106,744....
 to Monterey
Monterey, California

The City of Monterey in Monterey County is located on Monterey Bay along the Pacific Ocean coast in Central California. As of 2005, the city population was 30,641....
, extending inland. Elevations range from sea level to .

Geography
The forest is approximately 1,950,000 acres (7890 kmē) in area, of which 1,762,400 acres (7,132.18 kmē) or about 88% are public lands; the rest are privately owned inholding
Inholding

An inholding is private property land inside the boundary of a national park, national forest, state park, or similar publicly owned, protected area....
s.

The forest is divided between two noncontiguous areas.






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Encyclopedia


Los Padres S


Los Padres National Forest is a forest located in southern
Southern California

Southern California, or So Cal, is defined as the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Its population centers on the cities of Los Angeles, California, San Diego, California, San Bernardino, California, and Riverside, California....
 and central
Central California

California has two regions with "Central" in their names:*Central Valley *Central Coast, CaliforniaThe southern part of the Central Valley and all of the Central Coast are south of the major Northern California urban areas and north of the major Southern California urban area and the Tehachapi Mountains....
 California
California

California is a U.S. state on the West Coast of the United States of the United States, along the Pacific Ocean. It is bordered by Oregon to the north, Nevada to the east, Arizona to the southeast, and to the south the Mexico state of Baja California....
, which includes most of the mountainous land along the California coast from Ventura
Ventura, California

San Buenaventura, commonly referred to as Ventura, is the county seat of Ventura County, California, United States, incorporated in 1866. Ventura has a population of 106,744....
 to Monterey
Monterey, California

The City of Monterey in Monterey County is located on Monterey Bay along the Pacific Ocean coast in Central California. As of 2005, the city population was 30,641....
, extending inland. Elevations range from sea level to .

Geography


The forest is approximately 1,950,000 acres (7890 kmē) in area, of which 1,762,400 acres (7,132.18 kmē) or about 88% are public lands; the rest are privately owned inholding
Inholding

An inholding is private property land inside the boundary of a national park, national forest, state park, or similar publicly owned, protected area....
s.

The forest is divided between two noncontiguous areas. The northern division is within Monterey County
Monterey County, California

Monterey County is a county located on the Pacific Ocean coast of the U.S. state of California, its northwestern section forming the southern half of Monterey Bay....
 and includes the beautiful Big Sur Coast
Big Sur

Big Sur is a sparsely populated region of the central California, United States, coast where the Santa Lucia Range rise abruptly from the Pacific Ocean....
 and scenic interior areas. The "main division" of the forest includes lands within San Luis Obispo
San Luis Obispo County, California

San Luis Obispo County is a county located along the Pacific Ocean in the Central Coast of California of the U.S. state of California, between Los Angeles, California and the San Francisco Bay Area....
, Santa Barbara
Santa Barbara County, California

Santa Barbara County is a county located on the Pacific Ocean coast of the Southern California portion of the U.S. state of California, just west of Ventura County, California....
, Ventura
Ventura County, California

Ventura County is a Counties of the United States in the southern part of the U.S. state of California . It is located on California's Pacific Ocean coast, and forms the northwestern part of the Greater Los Angeles Area....
 and Kern
Kern County, California

Kern County is a county located in the southern California Central Valley of the U.S. state of California. Established in 1866, it extends east beyond the southern slope of the eastern Sierra Nevada into the Mojave Desert, and includes parts of the Indian Wells Valley, and the Antelope Valley, and has an area larger than the state of Connec...
 Counties, with a small extension into Los Angeles County
Los Angeles County, California

Los Angeles County is a County in California, and is by far, the most List of the most populous counties in the United States in the United States....
 in the Pyramid Lake
Pyramid Lake (California)

Pyramid Lake is a lake formed by Pyramid Dam on Piru Creek, near Castaic, California. The 180,000 acre-foot reservoir is in the southern portion of the Los Padres National Forest in the northwest corner of Los Angeles County, California....
 area, between Castaic
Castaic, California

Castaic, California and area code 661 is an unincorporated area community in Los Angeles County, California, United States. It lies north of Santa Clarita in Castaic Canyon, a few miles from the Santa Clarita Valley and Six Flags Magic Mountain amusement park....
 and Gorman
Gorman, California

Gorman, California, is an unincorporated community in northwestern Los Angeles County, California, which in 2005 had only 15 homes and just a few registered voters, but through which some tens of thousands motorists travel daily on the Interstate 5 ...
. Mountain ranges within the Los Padres include the Santa Lucia Mountains
Santa Lucia Mountains

The Santa Lucia Mountains or Santa Lucia Range is a mountain range in coastal California, running from Monterey, California southeast for 105 miles to San Luis Obispo, California....
, La Panza Range
La Panza Range

The La Panza Range is a mountain range on the Central Coast of California in central San Luis Obispo County, California, east of the small town of Santa Margarita, California....
, Caliente Range (a small part), Sierra Madre Mountains
Sierra Madre Mountains (California)

The Sierra Madre Mountains are a mountain range in northern Santa Barbara County, California, United States. They are a portion of the Transverse Ranges, which are themselves part of the Pacific Coast Ranges of western North America....
, San Rafael Mountains
San Rafael Mountains

The San Rafael Mountains are a mountain range in central Santa Barbara County, California, United States. They are a portion of the Transverse Ranges, which are themselves part of the Pacific Coast Ranges of western North America....
, Santa Ynez Mountains
Santa Ynez Mountains

The Santa Ynez Mountains are a portion of the Transverse Ranges, part of the Pacific Coast Ranges of the west coast of North America, and are one of the northernmost mountain ranges in Southern California....
, and Topatopa Mountains
Topatopa Mountains

The Topatopa Mountains are a mountain range in Ventura County, California, California, north of Santa Paula, California. They are part of the Transverse Ranges of Southern California....
; the highest parts of the forest are not within named mountain ranges, but are adjacent to the western San Emigdio Mountains
San Emigdio Mountains

The San Emigdio Mountains are a part of the Transverse Ranges in Southern California, extending from Interstate 5 at the Grapevine on the east side, to Highway 33-166 on the west....
 and include Mount Pinos
Mount Pinos

Mount Pinos is a mountain peak located in the Los Padres National Forest, on the boundary between the California counties of Ventura County, California and Kern County, California....
, Cerro Noroeste
Cerro Noroeste

Cerro Noroeste is located in Southern California Kern County, a mile north of the Ventura County border. It is located a few miles southwest of the community of Pine Mountain Club, California, at an elevation of 8,286 ft ....
, and Reyes Peak. The forest is also adjacent to the Angeles National Forest
Angeles National Forest

The Angeles National Forest was established on July 1, 1908, incorporating the first San Bernardino National Forest and parts of Santa Barbara National Forest and San Gabriel National Forests....
, which is in Los Angeles County in Southern California and is nearby Carrizo Plain National Monument in eastern San Luis Obispo County. Forest headquarters are located in Goleta, California
Goleta, California

Goleta is a city located in southern Santa Barbara County, California, USA. It was Municipal corporation as a new city in 2002, after a long time as being the largest Unincorporated area, populated area in the county ....
.

Many rivers in Southern and Central California have their points of origin within the Los Padres National Forest, including the Carmel
Carmel River

The Carmel River is a river, long, on the central coast of Monterey County, California. It is often considered as the northern boundary of Big Sur....
, Salinas
Salinas River

The Salinas River may refer to:*Salinas River , in the United States*Salinas River , in Guam in the United States* Salinas River , in New Mexico in the United States...
, Cuyama
Cuyama River

The Cuyama River is a river in southern San Luis Obispo County, California and northern Santa Barbara County, California. The 85-miles river is a tributary of the Santa Maria River, which is formed when the Cuyama River meets the Sisquoc River....
, Sisquoc
Sisquoc River

The Sisquoc River is a river in Santa Barbara County, California. It is a tributary of the Santa Maria River, which is formed when the Sisquoc River meets the Cuyama River....
, Santa Ynez
Santa Ynez River

The Santa Ynez River is one of the largest rivers on the Central Coast, California of California. It flows from east to west through the Santa Ynez Valley, reaching the Pacific Ocean at Surf, near Vandenberg Air Force Base and the city of Lompoc, California....
, Sespe
Sespe Creek

Sespe Creek is a small stream in Ventura County, California in the United States. The creek starts at Portero Seco, and is formed by more than thirty tributary streams before it empties into the Santa Clara River in Fillmore, California....
, Ventura
Ventura River

The Ventura River is a river in Ventura County, California. The river forms at the confluence of Matilija Creek and North Fork Matilija Creek, 15 miles upstream from the Pacific Ocean....
, and Piru
Piru Creek

Piru Creek is a large stream in Northern Los Angeles County and Eastern Ventura County, California. It is a tributary of the Santa Clara River , the largest stream system in Southern California that is still relatively natural....
.

Several wilderness areas have been set aside within the Los Padres National Forest, including the San Rafael Wilderness
San Rafael Wilderness

The San Rafael Wilderness is a wilderness area in the mountains of north central Santa Barbara County, California, USA. It is completely contained within the Los Padres National Forest, and is north of the city of Santa Barbara, California and east of Santa Maria, California....
, the first primitive area to be included in the U.S. wilderness system after the passage of the Wilderness Act
Wilderness Act

The Wilderness Act of 1964 was written by Howard Zahniser of The Wilderness Society . It created the legal definition of wilderness in the United States, and protected some 9 million acres of federal land....
 in 1964. Another large wilderness created in the 1970s was the Ventana Wilderness
Ventana Wilderness

The Ventana Wilderness is a wilderness area located in the Santa Lucia Mountains along the Central Coast of California. This wilderness was established in 1969 when the Ventana Wilderness Act abolished the Ventana Primitive Area and replaced it with the Ventana Wilderness....
 in the Santa Lucia Mountains.

More recent wilderness areas created in the Los Padres include:

  • Garcia Wilderness ( in the Lucia District)
  • Santa Lucia Wilderness ( in the Lucia District, in the Santa Lucia Mountains
    Santa Lucia Mountains

    The Santa Lucia Mountains or Santa Lucia Range is a mountain range in coastal California, running from Monterey, California southeast for 105 miles to San Luis Obispo, California....
    )
  • Machesna Mountain Wilderness (in the La Panza Range
    La Panza Range

    The La Panza Range is a mountain range on the Central Coast of California in central San Luis Obispo County, California, east of the small town of Santa Margarita, California....
     in San Luis Obispo County)
  • Silver Peak Wilderness
    Silver Peak Wilderness

    The Silver Peak Wilderness is located in the southwestern corner of Monterey County in the Santa Lucia Mountains along the Central Coast of California....
     (in the Monterey District)
  • Dick Smith Wilderness
    Dick Smith Wilderness

    The Dick Smith Wilderness is a wilderness area in the mountains of eastern Santa Barbara County, California, USA, with a portion in Ventura County, California....
     ( in the Santa Barbara Ranger District)
  • Chumash Wilderness
    Chumash Wilderness

    The Chumash Wilderness is a wilderness area in the mountains of Ventura County, California, USA. It is completely within the Los Padres National Forest, and includes most of the highest terrain in Ventura County....
     ( in the Mt. Pinos Ranger District, just west of Mount Pinos
    Mount Pinos

    Mount Pinos is a mountain peak located in the Los Padres National Forest, on the boundary between the California counties of Ventura County, California and Kern County, California....
    )
  • Sespe Wilderness (in both the Ojai and Mt. Pinos Ranger Districts)
  • Matilija Wilderness ( in the Ojai Ranger District)


Wildlife and vegetation


Many threatened and endangered species live within the Forest. Probably most famous among them is the California Condor
California Condor

The California Condor is a North American species of bird in the New World vulture family Cathartidae and the largest North American land bird....
 (Gymnogyps californianus). The American Peregrine Falcon
Peregrine Falcon

The Peregrine Falcon , also known simply as the Peregrine, and historically as the "Duck Hawk" in North America, is a Cosmopolitan distribution bird of prey in the family Falconidae....
 is also entirely dependent on the Forest for its survival. The California Mule Deer
California Mule Deer

California Mule Deer, Odocoileus hemionus californicus, is a subspecies of Mule Deer whose range covers much of the state of California. This species is widespread throughout northern and central California in the California coastal prairie as well as inner coastal ranges and interior mountains, especially the Sierra Nevada ....
 may be the most common large mammal.

Many vegetation types are represented in the Los Padres, including chaparral
Chaparral

Chaparral is a shrubland or Heath plant community found primarily in the U.S. state of California and in the northern portion of Lower California, Mexico....
, the common ground cover of most coastal ranges in California below about 5,000 feet (1500 m), and coniferous forests, which can be found in abundance in the Ventana Wilderness as well as the region around Mount Pinos in the northeastern portion of the Forest.

Researchers estimate the extent of old growth in the forest is . It consists largely of Jeffrey Pine
Jeffrey Pine

Jeffrey Pine , named in honor of its documenter John Jeffrey , is a North American pine related to Ponderosa Pine. It occurs from southwest Oregon south through much of California , to northern Baja California in Mexico....
 (Pinus jeffreyi) forests, although old-growth Coast Redwood (Sequoia Sempervirens), Coast Douglas-fir
Coast Douglas-fir

The Coast Douglas-fir , a Variety of Douglas-fir, is an evergreen conifer native to the coastal regions of western North America, from west-central British Columbia, Canada southward to central California, United States....
 (Pseudotsuga menziesii var. menziesii), and White Fir
White Fir

White Fir is a fir native to the mountains of western North America, occurring at altitudes of 900-3,400 m. It is a medium to large evergreen Pinophyta tree growing to 25-60 m tall and with a trunk diameter of up to two m....
 (Abies concolor) are also found there. In 2008, scientist J. Michael Fay
J. Michael Fay

J. Michael Fay is an United States ecologist and conservationist notable for, among other things, the MegaTransect, in which he spent 455 days walking 2000 miles across Africa and the MegaFlyover in which he and pilot Peter Ragg spent months flying 70,000 miles in a small plane at low altitude, taking photographs every twenty seconds....
 published a map of old growth redwoods in and around Big Sur as a result of his transect
Transect

A transect is a path along which one records and counts occurrences of the phenomenon of study .It requires an observer to move along a fixed path and to count occurrences along the path and, at the same time, obtain the distance of the object from the path....
 of the entire redwood range.

Use restrictions


Los Padres exhibits an extreme risk of forest fires; in 1965, a truck driven by country singer Johnny Cash
Johnny Cash

Johnny Cash was a Grammy Award-winning American singer-songwriter and one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century. Primarily a country music artist, his songs and sound spanned many other genres including rockabilly and rock and roll , as well as blues, folk music and Gospel music....
 caught fire, and burned several hundred acres in Ventura county. Because of this risk, there are many restrictions on building fires in Los Padres National Forest. Some portions of the forest are closed entirely to public entry during the fire season (including the entire San Rafael Wilderness
San Rafael Wilderness

The San Rafael Wilderness is a wilderness area in the mountains of north central Santa Barbara County, California, USA. It is completely contained within the Los Padres National Forest, and is north of the city of Santa Barbara, California and east of Santa Maria, California....
). Normally the fire season extends from June 1 each year until the time of the first autumn rains, which is usually in mid-November.

A National Forest Adventure Pass
National Forest Adventure Pass

The National Forest Adventure Pass is a parking permit issued by the United States Forest Service that permits bearers in the four National Forests in Southern California to park their cars for the purpose of recreation....
 is required for parking in most locations of the Los Padres National Forest, as well as other National Forests in Southern California
Southern California

Southern California, or So Cal, is defined as the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Its population centers on the cities of Los Angeles, California, San Diego, California, San Bernardino, California, and Riverside, California....
, and may be obtained from local merchants, visitor centers, or online. It is not required in the Monterey Ranger District (Ventana Wilderness and Silver Peak Wilderness).

History

Los Padres was named Santa Barbara National Forest
Santa Barbara National Forest

Santa Barbara National Forest was established as the Santa Barbara Forest Reserve by the General Land Office in California on December 22, 1903 with by consolidation of Pine Mountain and Zaka Lake Forest Reserve and Santa Ynez Forest Reserve Forest Reserves....
 until December 3, 1936, and was assembled from a number of smaller National Forests, including:
  • Monterey National Forest
    Monterey National Forest

    Monterey National Forest was established as the Monterey Forest Reserve by the U.S. Forest Service in California on June 25, 1906 with 335,195 acres....
     (est. June 25, 1906) , absorbed by Santa Barbara on August 18, 1919, and which itself absorbed:
    • Pinnacles National Forest
      Pinnacles National Forest

      Pinnacles National Forest was established as the Pinnacles Forest Reserve by the U.S. Forest Service in California on July 18, 1906 with 14,108 acres....
       (est. July 18, 1906)
    • San Benito National Forest
      San Benito National Forest

      San Benito National Forest was established by the U.S. Forest Service in California on October 26, 1907 with 140,069 acres. On July 1, 1908 San Benito was added to Monterey National Forest and the name was discontinued....
       (est. October 26, 1907)
  • San Luis National Forest
    San Luis National Forest

    San Luis National Forest was established by the U.S. Forest Service in California on July 1, 1908 from part of San Luis Obispo National Forest with 355,990 acres....
     (est. July 1, 1908), which had absorbed part of:
    • San Luis Obispo National Forest
      San Luis Obispo National Forest

      San Luis Obispo National Forest was established as the San Luis Obispo Forest Reserve by the U.S. Forest Service in California on June 25, 1906 with 363,350 acres....
       (est. June 25, 1906)
  • San Gabriel National Forest
    San Gabriel National Forest

    San Gabriel National Forest was established as the San Gabriel Forest Reserve by the General Land Office in California on December 20, 1892 with 555,520 acres....
     (part) (est. December 20, 1892)
  • Pine Mountain and Zaka Lake Forest Reserve
    Pine Mountain and Zaka Lake Forest Reserve

    The Pine Mountain and Zaka Lake Forest Reserve was established by the General Land Office in California on March 2, 1892 with 1,644,594 acres. On December 22, 1903 the entire forest was combined with Santa Ynez Forest Reserve to create Santa Barbara Forest Reserve and the name was discontinued....
    , (est. March 2, 1898) combined with Santa Ynez on December 22, 1903 to create Santa Barbara Forest Reserve
  • Santa Ynez Forest Reserve
    Santa Ynez Forest Reserve

    The Santa Ynez Forest Reserve was established by the General Land Office in California on October 22, 1899 with 145,280 acres. On December 22, 1903 the entire forest was combined with Pine Mountain and Zaka Lake Forest Reserve to create the Santa Barbara Forest Reserve and the name was discontinued....
    , (est. October 2, 1899)


See also

  • Angeles National Forest
    Angeles National Forest

    The Angeles National Forest was established on July 1, 1908, incorporating the first San Bernardino National Forest and parts of Santa Barbara National Forest and San Gabriel National Forests....
  • Ponderosa Campground
    Ponderosa Campground

    Ponderosa Campground is a United States Forest Service campground in the high country of Big Sur, on the central coast of California in the Los Padres National Forest....


External links

  • - a nonprofit organization working to protect and restore the natural and cultural heritage of the Los Padres National Forest
  • - dedicated to the preservation of wilderness areas and other public lands in the Monterey Ranger District of the Los Padres National Forest
  • - a website with maps, descriptions & links of various routes through the Forest for wilderness camping on a mountain bike