California is a top travel destination and most visited state in the U.S., hosting over 250 million guests annually.  Beaches, national parks, mountain sports, themed attractions, Hollywood celebrities and hundreds of wineries and tasting rooms are a few of the items you'll find at California Beaches.  And you'll find many of them on this site.  

California celebrated its 150th birthday as a US state in September 2000.  Before European and Asian immigrants sought their claims to gold and the riches of California, there were Indian tribes along the coast thousands of years past. Their artifacts such as pottery and baskets appear in museums.

Standing as tribute to a much earlier time are incredible rock structures such as Morro Rock, an ancient volcanic formation which is part of a chain of uninterrupted volcanic intrusions that run from the city of San Luis Obispo west to the Pacific Ocean. Material from the rock, dacite, is believed to be twenty-four million years old.  

A study of California's 104 beach cities and 411 beaches shows a diverse range encompassing five types of littoral cells. Each is characterized by a different process determined by the geographic features unique to it. What this means is that in one place you will see beautiful stretches of sand which were created through certain conditions. Then you'll visit another beach where you will find lagoons and a closed bay. If you look at the natural processes which made a beach sandy rather than rocky and rough, for instance, you will understand how beaches are made and what littoral cells are.   

Every beach is unique though you will find many similarities as you travel along 1,100 miles of California coastline.  Take your time, enjoy the ride and do come back as we add beaches, one at a time, to this fabulous documentation of California's beloved treasure, the Beach.