Santa Cruz Mountains | Vibepedia

The Santa Cruz Mountains are a mountain range in central and Northern California, constituting a part of the Pacific Coast Ranges. They form a ridge down the San Francisco Peninsula, south of San Francisco, and separate the Pacific Ocean from the San Francisco Bay and the Santa Clara Valley. The range stretches for approximately 100 miles, covering an area of 1,500 square miles, and passes through the counties of San Mateo, Santa Clara, and Santa Cruz. With a highest peak of 3,786 feet at Loma Prieta, the Santa Cruz Mountains are home to a diverse range of flora and fauna, including the endangered [[mountain-lion|mountain lion]] and the [[california-condor|California condor]]. The range has a rich cultural and geological history, with evidence of human habitation dating back over 10,000 years to the [[ohlone-people|Ohlone people]], who considered the mountains a sacred place. Today, the Santa Cruz Mountains are a popular destination for outdoor recreation, with over 200,000 acres of protected land, including [[big-basin-redwoods-state-park|Big Basin Redwoods State Park]] and [[henry-cowell-redwoods-state-park|Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park]].