© 2003 California State Parks Paper State Recycled California on 2003 © Printed Cover Photo by Tom Moss Tom by Photo Cover 831-649-2866 Monterey, CA 93940 CA Monterey, 2211 Garden Road Garden 2211 Monterey Sector Monterey Garrapata State Park State Garrapata www.parks.ca.gov 94296-0001 711, TTY relay service relay TTY 711, Sacramento, CA Sacramento, 916-653-6995, outside the U.S. the outside 916-653-6995, O. Box 942896 Box O. P. 800-777-0369 STATE PARKS STATE ion call: ion informat For CALIFORNIA Office at the following address. following the at Office alternate format, write to the Communications the to write format, alternate number below. To receive this publication in an in publication this receive To below. number assistance should contact the park at the phone the at park the contact should assistance arrival, visitors with disabilities who need who disabilities with visitors arrival, against individuals with disabilities. Prior to Prior disabilities. with individuals against California State Parks does not discriminate not does Parks State California canyons. redwood d deep d an ins mounta steep Acting Director, California State Parks State California Director, Acting RUTH COLEMAN RUTH beautiful inland area of area inland beautiful Secretary for Resources for Secretary ine and a and ine orel sh rocky MARY D. NICHOLS D. MARY Governor ectacular sp a compass en GRAY DAVIS GRAY s 3,000 acres 3,000 s a’ at ap rr Ga r high-quality outdoor recreation. outdoor high-quality r fo cultural resources, and creating opportunities creating and resources, cultural the Santa Lucia Range, Lucia Santa the of protecting its most valued natural and natural valued most its protecting State Park State the state’s extraordinary biological diversity, biological extraordinary state’s the N the base the at estled people of California by helping to preserve to helping by California of people Garrapata health, inspiration and education of the of education and inspiration health, Parks and and Parks Recreation is to provide for the for provide to is Recreation Department of Department California the of mission The Our Mission Our W elcome to Garrapata State Park, parcel of the property in 1980, and it where spectacular rocky shorelines play was classified a state park in 1985. counterpoint with an inland area of NATURAL HISTORY steep mountains and deep redwood Garrapata’s bold, vertical headlands canyons. The park is on the northern and offshore sea stacks are a combina- end of the Big Sur coast, three miles tion of marine sandstone, shale, volca- south of Point Lobos State Reserve. nic rock and chert. Their proximity to The climate is moderate, with a mean several fault lines keeps them in a average of 50-65 degrees year-round. state of seismic movement. Variable weather includes cool, foggy mornings, strong onshore winds, and PLANT AND ANIMAL COMMUNITIES hot summer days in the backcountry. Visitors find colorful wildflower displays along coastal trails. Garrapata’s diverse terrain supports six PARK HISTORY vegetation types and several plant and Soberanes Family animal communities. Native Americans In 1939 this area was part of Rancho San José Scrub—Northern bluff scrub includes lizard Until the mid-to late-1700s, the dominant y Sur Chiquito, a Mexican land grant. The tail, mock heather and dune buckwheat. group here was the Costanoan people, now acreage was later divided, and William B. Central coast scrub is dominated by coyote known as the Ohlone. About 10,000 Ohlone Post purchased two 160-acre parcels. In brush, California sagebrush, sticky lived in the area south of San Francisco Bay to 1867 he sold his land to Ezequiel monkeyflower and poison oak. California south of Monterey Bay and east to the Central Soberanes, who operated a prosperous sagebrush and black sage grow on the Valley. The land and sea provided well for cattle and sheep ranch for 24 years. Locally rockier inland slopes. Mixed coastal scrub them, and what they had in abundance they famous for their musical talents, the along the shoreline provides food and traded for items they could not obtain locally. Soberanes family was also known for their shelter for the endangered Smith’s blue In the late 1700s, without regard to the hospitality to ranchers traveling along the butterfly. Ohlones’ desires, Spanish missionaries coast to Monterey. A land title dispute Chaparral—Northern mixed chaparral brought them into the mission system. Those brought the colorful era of the Ezequiel includes manzanita, blue blossom and who managed to escape no longer had Soberanes Rancho to an end. chamise. The denser, taller mixed chaparral unlimited access to their food sources. By The Doud Ranch at Rocky Ridge shelters the sensitive Califor- 1830 the loss of their lands, the disruption In 1891 Francis Doud, an early Monterey nia horned lizard. of their network of village communities, and resident, combined this and other proper- Grassland—Cattle grazing and drought their lack of immunity to European ties into the Doud Ranch, which operated introduced non-native grasses. Near the diseases had reduced their num- until the early 1950s. By the 1960s the Rocky Ridge Trail rare California oatgrass, bers to about 2,500. Despite family had stopped running cattle, and purple needlegrass, California brome and these drastic changes, many their wood-frame ranch house had blue wild rye grow among the non-native descendants of the Ohlone burned to the ground. The grasses, home to the black-shouldered kite, still live in the area. State acquired its first peregrine falcon, merlin and American kestrel. Brown pelican © 2003 California State Parks Paper State Recycled California on 2003 © Printed Cover Photo by Tom Moss Tom by Photo Cover 831-649-2866 Monterey, CA 93940 CA Monterey, 2211 Garden Road Garden 2211 Monterey Sector Monterey Garrapata State Park State Garrapata www.parks.ca.gov 94296-0001 711, TTY relay service relay TTY 711, Sacramento, CA Sacramento, 916-653-6995, outside the U.S. the outside 916-653-6995, P. O. Box 942896 Box O. P. 800-777-0369 STATE PARKS STATE For information call: information For CALIFORNIA Office at the following address. following the at Office alternate format, write to the Communications the to write format, alternate number below. To receive this publication in an in publication this receive To below. number assistance should contact the park at the phone the at park the contact should assistance arrival, visitors with disabilities who need who disabilities with visitors arrival, against individuals with disabilities. Prior to Prior disabilities. with individuals against California State Parks does not discriminate not does Parks State California redwood canyons. redwood steep mountains and deep and mountains steep Acting Director, California State Parks State California Director, Acting RUTH COLEMAN RUTH beautiful inland area of area inland beautiful Secretary for Resources for Secretary rocky shoreline and a and shoreline rocky MARY D. NICHOLS D. MARY Governor encompass a spectacular a encompass GRAY DAVIS GRAY Garrapata’s 3,000 acres 3,000 Garrapata’s for high-quality outdoor recreation. outdoor high-quality for cultural resources, and creating opportunities creating and resources, cultural of the Santa Lucia Range, Lucia Santa the of protecting its most valued natural and natural valued most its protecting State Park State the state’s extraordinary biological diversity, biological extraordinary state’s the N estled at the base the at estled people of California by helping to preserve to helping by California of people Garrapata health, inspiration and education of the of education and inspiration health, Recreation is to provide for the for provide to is Recreation and Parks Department of Department California the of mission The Our Mission Our W elcome to Garrapata State Park, parcel of the property in 1980, and it where spectacular rocky shorelines play was classified a state park in 1985. counterpoint with an inland area of NATURAL HISTORY steep mountains and deep redwood Garrapata’s bold, vertical headlands canyons. The park is on the northern and offshore sea stacks are a combina- end of the Big Sur coast, three miles tion of marine sandstone, shale, volca- south of Point Lobos State Reserve. nic rock and chert. Their proximity to The climate is moderate, with a mean several fault lines keeps them in a average of 50-65 degrees year-round. state of seismic movement. Variable weather includes cool, foggy mornings, strong onshore winds, and PLANT AND ANIMAL COMMUNITIES hot summer days in the backcountry. Visitors find colorful wildflower displays along coastal trails. Garrapata’s diverse terrain supports six PARK HISTORY vegetation types and several plant and Soberanes Family animal communities. Native Americans In 1939 this area was part of Rancho San José Scrub—Northern bluff scrub includes lizard Until the mid-to late-1700s, the dominant y Sur Chiquito, a Mexican land grant. The tail, mock heather and dune buckwheat. group here was the Costanoan people, now acreage was later divided, and William B. Central coast scrub is dominated by coyote known as the Ohlone. About 10,000 Ohlone Post purchased two 160-acre parcels. In brush, California sagebrush, sticky lived in the area south of San Francisco Bay to 1867 he sold his land to Ezequiel monkeyflower and poison oak. California south of Monterey Bay and east to the Central Soberanes, who operated a prosperous sagebrush and black sage grow on the Valley. The land and sea provided well for cattle and sheep ranch for 24 years. Locally rockier inland slopes. Mixed coastal scrub them, and what they had in abundance they famous for their musical talents, the along the shoreline provides food and traded for items they could not obtain locally. Soberanes family was also known for their shelter for the endangered Smith’s blue In the late 1700s, without regard to the hospitality to ranchers traveling along the butterfly.