Santa Clarita Valley - Wikipedia

Valley in Los Angeles County, California, United States

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Santa Clarita Valley
View from the Sierra Pelona Mountains
Santa Clarita ValleyLocation in Los Angeles CountyShow map of the Los Angeles metropolitan areaSanta Clarita ValleyLocation in CaliforniaShow map of California
Floor elevation	1,000–1,800 feet (300–550 m)
Geography
Location	Los Angeles County, California, United States
Population center	Santa Clarita
Borders on	Santa Clara River Valley (west)Soledad Canyon (east)
Coordinates	34°25′N 118°31′W / 34.42°N 118.52°W / 34.42; -118.52
Traversed by	Interstate 5, State Route 14
River	Santa Clara River

The Santa Clarita Valley (SCV) is part of the upper watershed of the Santa Clara River in Southern California. The western portion of the valley was part of the 48,612-acre (19,673 ha) Rancho San Francisco Mexican land grant. Located in Los Angeles County. The valley's main population center is the city of Santa Clarita which includes the neighborhoods of Canyon Country, Newhall, Saugus, and Valencia. Adjacent unincorporated communities include Castaic, Stevenson Ranch, Val Verde, and Valencia.

Etymology

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The Santa Clara River was named by Spanish explorers for Clare of Assisi. The valley later became known as "little Santa Clara" in deference to the Northern California mission and city of Santa Clara, California. In time, "little Santa Clara" became "Santa Clarita".[1]

Geography

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The Santa Clarita Valley is bordered by the Lake Piru area, including the community of Val Verde, Los Padres National Forest, and Castaic Lake to the northwest, Sierra Pelona Mountains and Angeles National Forest to the north and northeast, San Gabriel Mountains to the east and southeast, and Santa Susana Mountains to the south and southwest, and Ventura County and the Santa Clara River Valley to the west. To the west-northwest lies the Topatopa Mountains.

Santa Clarita Valley is connected to a wide array of other nearby valleys: the San Fernando Valley and Los Angeles Basin via Newhall Pass to the south; Antelope Valley via CA 14 through Soledad Pass to the northeast; the San Joaquin Valley via I-5 through Tejon Pass to the northwest, and Leona Valley via San Francisquito and Bouquet canyons.

Downstream lies the Santa Clara River Valley, which was given the moniker Heritage Valley by the tourism bureau representing Piru, Fillmore, and Santa Paula. Upstream is Soledad Canyon which contains the communities of Vincent, Acton, Ravenna, and Agua Dulce.

Geology

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The Santa Clarita Valley is underlain by Quaternary alluvial deposits and coarse-grained Pleistocene age conglomerates dominated by sandstone of marine and non-marine origin. The far eastern end of the valley features predominantly coarse-grained Tertiary age formations of sedimentary origin. The southern end of Bouquet Canyon features a large areas of artificial fill stretching from Newhall Ranch Road up to Copper Hill Drive.[2][3]

The valley is bisected by the San Gabriel Fault, which runs through the center of the valley along a NW-SE axis. The much smaller Holser Fault runs east-to-west between the south-eastern Topatopa Mountains and the present day community of Valencia. Neither fault line has been active since the early Holocene era.[4]

The valley is located in the northeastern extreme of the Ventura Basin Province, a petroleum-rich sedimentary basin with a long history of oil and gas production.[5]

Climate

[edit] Main article: Santa Clarita, California § Climate

The valley features a Mediterranean climate (Köppen Csa), approaching a semi-arid climate, with hot, dry summers and mild, moderately rainy winters with rare snowfall. Temperatures often exceed 100 °F (38 °C), even 110 °F (43 °C), on hot summer afternoons but rarely dip below 32 °F (0 °C) on cold winter nights. The valley lies within plant hardiness zones 9b and 10a.[6]

Late spring and early summer mornings are often overcast due to the formation of a marine layer off the coast that moves inland overnight. These clouds typically retreat out of the valley by midday.

The valley is part of a "wind-tunnel-like-corridor" that connects the high desert with the Oxnard Plain on the coast. This funnels the Santa Ana winds which spreads wildfires and has been called one of the "most dangerous wind and fire corridors in Southern California."[7]

Wildfires

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Characterized by dry hills covered in brush and chaparral, Santa Clarita is susceptible to wildfires. Although wildfires are most common in summer and fall, they can occur throughout the year during drought conditions, such as in December 2017. Wildfire risk is highest when Santa Ana winds blow through the area from the Mojave Desert.

Notable wildfires in the Santa Clarita Valley include the Buckweed Fire, Sand Fire, Rye Fire, Tick Fire, and Maria Fire.

Ecology

[edit] Coastal sage and chaparral typical of the southwestern and central portions of the valley.Montane chaparral typical of the northern and eastern foothills.

Santa Clarita lies on the boundary between the WWF-designated California coastal sage and chaparral ecoregion to the southwest, and California montane chaparral and woodlands ecoregion to the northeast.

Resident species of note include bobcat, coyote, red-tailed hawk, and desert cottontail.[8]

See also

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• Placerita Canyon State Park
• Disney—Golden Oak Ranch
• Monogram Movie Ranch—Melody Ranch

Explanatory notes

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References

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1. ^ Newhall., Ruth Waldo (February–March 1997). "How Santa Clarita Got Its Name". Old Town Newhall Gazette. Archived from the original on 26 March 2019. Retrieved 22 March 2018 – via www.scvhistory.com.
2. ^ "Quaternary Surficial Deposits (Alluvial Fan Task Force)". maps.conservation.ca.gov. Archived from the original on 2021-05-13. Retrieved 2021-05-11.
3. ^ "Geologic Map of California". maps.conservation.ca.gov. Archived from the original on 2021-07-10. Retrieved 2021-05-11.
4. ^ "Fault Activity Map of California". maps.conservation.ca.gov. Archived from the original on 2021-05-01. Retrieved 2021-05-11.
5. ^ Keller, Margaret (1993). "Ventura Basin Province" (PDF). U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin. U.S. Government Printing Office. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 31, 2011. Retrieved February 4, 2016.
6. ^ "California 2012 USDA Hardiness Zone Map". plantmaps.com. Archived from the original on 2021-07-29. Retrieved 2021-07-30.
7. ^ Fry, Hannah; Puente, Mark; Lin II, Rong-Gong; Wigglesworth, Alex (2019-11-01). "Maria fire charges toward Santa Paula neighborhoods, forcing additional evacuations". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 2019-11-06. Retrieved 2019-11-01.
8. ^ "The Atlas of Global Conservation". maps.tnc.org. Archived from the original on 2012-03-05. Retrieved 2021-04-09.

External links

[edit] Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Santa Clarita Valley. Wikimedia Commons has media related to Santa Clarita Valley (California).

• Santa Clarita Valley Historical Society

v t e Santa Clarita Valley
City	Santa Clarita
Neighborhoods	Agua Dulce Canyon Country Sand Canyon Castaic Newhall Saugus Stevenson Ranch Valencia unincorporated residential villages Val Verde
Public schools	Acton-Agua Dulce Unified School District Castaic Union School District Newhall School District Saugus Union School District Sulphur Springs School District William S. Hart Union High School District Academy of the Canyons Canyon HS Castaic HS Golden Valley HS Hart HS Saugus HS Valencia HS West Ranch HS Foothill League
Private schools	Legacy Christian Academy Our Lady of Perpetual Help Catholic School Santa Clarita Christian School Trinity Classical Academy
Colleges and universities	California Institute of the Arts College of the Canyons The Master's University
Points of interest	Beale's Cut Castaic Junction Castaic Lake Central Park Gibbon Conservation Center Golden Oak Ranch Henry Mayo Newhall Memorial Hospital Mentryville Newhall Pass Pitchess Detention Center Placerita Canyon State Park Pioneer Oil Refinery Santa Clarita Woodlands Park Saugus Speedway Six Flags Magic Mountain Valencia Country Club Valencia Town Center Vasquez Rocks William S. Hart Ranch and Museum
Services	Los Angeles County Fire Department Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department
Media	KHTS (AM) The Santa Clarita Valley Signal
Transportation	City of Santa Clarita Transit McBean Regional Transit Center Metrolink: Antelope Valley Line Stations: Newhall Santa Clarita Via Princessa Vista Canyon Lang Southern Pacific Station (historic)
History	St. Francis Dam disaster United Air Lines Flight 34 Newhall incident 1971 San Fernando earthquake Twilight Zone accident 1994 Northridge earthquake 2001 Stevenson Ranch shootout Sand Fire Rye Fire Tick Fire Saugus High School shooting
Companies	Honda Racing Corporation USA Mechanix Wear Newhall Land and Farming Company Princess Cruises Precision Dynamics Corporation Remo WayForward

v t e Santa Clara River Watershed
Tributaries	Castaic Creek Piru Creek San Francisquito Creek Sespe Creek
Communities	Acton Agua Dulce Bardsdale Castaic Castaic Junction El Rio Elizabeth Lake Fillmore Green Valley Lake Hughes Oxnard Piru Sand Canyon Santa Clarita Santa Paula Saticoy Stevenson Ranch Val Verde Valencia Ventura
Landmarks	Angeles National Forest Bouquet Reservoir California State Route 126 Castaic Lake Castaic Lake State Recreation Area Dry Canyon Reservoir Elizabeth Lake Hughes Lake Lake Piru Los Angeles Aqueduct Los Padres National Forest McGrath State Beach Mentryville Mint Canyon Formation Munz Lakes Oxnard Plain Placerita Canyon State Park Pyramid Dam Pyramid Lake Rancho Camulos Rancho El Rio de Santa Clara o la Colonia Rancho San Francisco Rancho Santa Clara del Norte Rancho Santa Paula y Saticoy Rancho Sespe Santa Clara River Trail Santa Clara River Valley Santa Clarita Valley San Emigdio Mountains San Francisquito Canyon St. Francis Dam San Gabriel Mountains Santa Susana Mountains Saticoy Oil Field Sespe Wilderness Sierra Madre Mountains Sierra Pelona Ridge Six Flags Magic Mountain Soledad Canyon Topatopa Mountains Vasquez Rocks

v t e Greater Los Angeles Area
Counties	Los Angeles Orange Riverside San Bernardino Ventura
Citiesandtowns	Central city Los Angeles 200k–500k Anaheim Fontana Irvine Long Beach Moreno Valley Oxnard Riverside San Bernardino Santa Ana Santa Clarita 100k−200k Burbank Corona Costa Mesa Downey El Monte Fullerton Garden Grove Glendale Huntington Beach Inglewood Jurupa Valley Lancaster Murrieta Menifee Norwalk Ontario Orange Palmdale Pasadena Pomona Rancho Cucamonga Rialto Simi Valley Temecula Thousand Oaks Torrance Ventura Victorville West Covina 50k–100k Alhambra Aliso Viejo Apple Valley Arcadia Azusa Baldwin Park Beaumont Bellflower Buena Park Camarillo Carson Cathedral City Chino Chino Hills Colton Compton Covina Cypress Diamond Bar Eastvale Fountain Valley Gardena Glendora Hacienda Heights Hawthorne Hemet Hesperia Highland Indio La Habra Laguna Niguel Lake Elsinore Lake Forest Lakewood Lynwood Mission Viejo Monrovia Montebello Monterey Park Newport Beach Palm Desert Paramount Perris Pico Rivera Placentia Redlands Redondo Beach Rosemead San Clemente San Jacinto Santa Monica South Gate Tustin Upland Westminster Whittier Yorba Linda Yucaipa 25k–50k Adelanto Banning Barstow Bell Bell Gardens Beverly Hills Brea Cerritos Claremont Coachella Culver City Dana Point Desert Hot Springs La Mirada La Puente La Quinta La Verne Laguna Hills Lawndale Manhattan Beach Maywood Monrovia Montclair Moorpark Norco Palm Springs Rancho Palos Verdes Rancho Santa Margarita San Dimas San Gabriel San Juan Capistrano Santa Paula Seal Beach South Pasadena Stanton Temple City Twentynine Palms Walnut West Hollywood Wildomar 10k–25k Agoura Hills Artesia Blythe Calabasas Calimesa Canyon Lake Commerce Cudahy Duarte El Segundo Fillmore Grand Terrace Hawaiian Gardens Hermosa Beach La Cañada Flintridge La Palma Laguna Beach Laguna Woods Loma Linda Lomita Los Alamitos Malibu Palos Verdes Estates Port Hueneme Rancho Mirage San Fernando San Marino Santa Fe Springs Sierra Madre Signal Hill South El Monte Yucca Valley Under 10k Avalon Big Bear Lake Bradbury City of Industry Hidden Hills Indian Wells Irwindale La Habra Heights Needles Ojai Rolling Hills Rolling Hills Estates Vernon Villa Park Westlake Village
CDPsover 25k	Altadena East Los Angeles Florence-Graham French Valley Hacienda Heights Ladera Ranch North Tustin Rowland Heights South Whittier Temescal Valley West Whittier-Los Nietos Westmont
Arearegions	Anaheim–Santa Ana edge city Antelope Valley Central Los Angeles Coachella Valley Colorado Desert Conejo Valley Downtown Los Angeles East Los Angeles Gateway Cities Greater Hollywood Greater Los Angeles Harbor Area Inland Empire Mojave Desert Northeast Los Angeles Northwest Los Angeles Orange Coast Palos Verdes Peninsula Pomona Valley Saddleback Valley San Bernardino Valley San Fernando Valley San Gabriel Valley Santa Ana Valley Santa Clarita Valley Simi Valley South Bay South Coast Metro South Los Angeles Victor Valley Westside Los Angeles
Landforms	Baldwin Hills (range) Channel Islands Chino Hills Hollywood Hills Los Angeles Basin Oxnard Plain Palos Verdes Hills Puente Hills San Fernando Valley San Gabriel Mountains San Gabriel Valley San Jacinto Mountains Santa Ana Mountains Santa Catalina Island Santa Monica Mountains Santa Susana Mountains Sierra Pelona Ridge Simi Hills Verdugo Mountains
Bodies ofwater	Aliso Creek Arroyo Calabasas Arroyo Seco Ballona Creek Bell Creek Big Bear Lake Coyote Creek Lake Arrowhead Lake Gregory Lake Perris Lake Piru Los Angeles Aqueduct Los Angeles River Malibu Creek Mojave River Pacific Ocean Pyramid Lake Rio Hondo San Gabriel River San Juan Creek San Pedro Bay Santa Ana River Santa Clara River Santa Margarita River Santa Monica Bay Tujunga Wash

v t e State of California
Sacramento (capital)
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