Difference between revisions of "Garrapata State Park"

Revision as of 20:52, 24 October 2020

Image 1. Garrapata State Park.

Garrapata State Park lies just over six miles south of Carmel. The park encompasses nearly 3,000 acres of land comprising sea bluff, rocky intertidal, and sandy beach to the west of Highway 1 and the steep foothills of the Santa Lucia Range to the east (Image 1). The park is dissected by Wildcat Creek, Malpaso Creek, Soberanes Creek, Doud Creek, and Granite Creek and elevation ranges from sea level to 2,011 ft.^[1] Dissected by several faults, Garrapata State Park contains a mosaic of vertical sea stacks of sandstone and turbidite formations, shale, volcanic rocks, chert, and highly fractured granite. The park supports a variety of habitats including coastal scrub, maritime chaparral, and coast redwood stands and is home to the endangered Smith's blue butterfly and coast horned lizard as well as an assortment of birds and mammals.^[2]

History

Garrapata State Park began as part of a large network of villages for the Ohlone and Esselen tribes. In the mid-to-late 1700s, Spanish missionaries began assuming control and claiming authority over the land and its resources.^[3] By the 1830s, most of the land was being used for cattle grazing by a few ranchers, most notably Ezequiel Soberanes and Francis Doud. Ezequiel Soberanes prosperously ranched cattle and sheep on the land for 24 years until a land dispute resulted in the selling of the property to Francis Doud, an early resident of Monterey. Francis Doud successfully operated the Doud Ranch from 1891 until the early 1950s and in 1980, the state of California purchased its first parcel of the property. Five years later, the area was officially classified as a State Park.^[2]

Recreation

Day Use

Trails

Garrapata State Park Trails in ascending order of length:

• Garrapata Bluff Trail
  • Difficulty level: easy
  • Length: 0.6 mi
  • Elevation gain: 49 ft
  • Estimated time: 16 m
• South Plateau-Mound Meadow Loop
  • Difficulty: easy
  • Length: 0.7 mi
  • Elevation gain: 118 ft
  • Estimated time: 22 m
• Garrapata Beach: Calla Lily Valley
  • Difficulty level: easy
  • Length: 1.1 mi
  • Elevation gain: 150 ft
  • Estimated time: 30 m
• Soberanes Point and Whale Peak
  • Difficulty level: easy
  • Length: 1.8 mi
  • Elevation gain: 311 ft
  • Estimated time: 1 h
• Ridge/Soberanes Canyon Loop
  • Difficulty level: hard
  • Length: 5.4 mi
  • Elevation gain: 1,788 ft
  • Estimated time: 3 h 20 m
• Doud Peak Trail
  • Difficulty level: hard
  • Length: 5.9 mi
  • Elevation gain: 2,011 ft
  • Estimated time: 3 h 20 m

Management

References

1. ↑ Perez-Jimenez J, Solis L, Bogdan M, McGee M, Brown R, Franklin L, Gautreaux S, Larson D, Robinson T, Schnieders J, Van Orman B, Walmsley E, Watson F. 2020. Mapping of vegetation communities, invasive plants, and sensitive plants at Garrapata State Park, Monterey County, California. Watershed Institute, California State University Monterey Bay, Publication No. WI-2020-03, 123 pp. http://ccows.csumb.edu/pubs/proj_pubs/2020/ENVS660_GarrapataSP/CSUMB_ENVS660_VegetationOfGarrapataSP_20201023b.pdf
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1} Garrapata State Park Monterey Sector. 2003. Garrapata State Park brochure [Internet]. Sacramento (CA): California State Parks; [cited 2020 Oct 24]. https://www.parks.ca.gov/pages/579/files/Garrapata.pdf
3. ↑ White C. 2001. Costanoan Rumsen Carmel Tribe history. http://crc.nativeweb.org/history.html