SANTA MONICA MOUNTAINS NATIONAL RECREATION AREA

The 'Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area' is a U.S. National Recreation Area, administered by the National Park Service, located in Los Angeles, California. Approximately half of the park resides in Los Angeles County, while the other half resides in Ventura County to the Northwest. The main headquarters for the park itself is located in Thousand Oaks[1], near one of it's main entrances in Newbury Park. The park divides Los Angeles in two—it is the only city in the world divided by a mountain range, the Santa Monica Mountains. The recreation area also preserves one of the best examples of a Mediterranean climate in the world.
Santa Monica Mountains NRA contains 154,095 acres (623.6 km²), California State Parks own 42,000 acres (170 km²), the National Park Service controls 21,500 acres (87 km²), and the rest are local park lands and private property. In size, Santa Monica Mountains NRA is the largest urban national park in the United States.
The park was established November 10, 1978 after a long campaign for the area by local conservationists. The park is intended as an extension of Channel Islands National Park, which is just the underwater portion of the Santa Monica Mountains immediately to the west.
Recreational opportunities abound, including biking, birding,
camping, hiking, and horseback riding. The Backbone Trail System runs for nearly 70 miles across the length of the park.


The following California State Parks are located within Santa Monica Mountains NRA:

★ Topanga State Park

★ Leo Carrillo State Park

★ Malibu Creek State Park

★ Point Mugu State Park

★ Will Rogers State Historic Park

★ Point Dume State Beach
Entertainer Bob Hope caused controversy in the early 1990s when he proposed to sell 5,900 acres (23.9 km²) of neighboring land to the federal government in exchange for 59 acres (0.24 km²) of federal parkland in the nearby Cheeseboro Canyon section of Santa Monica Mountains NRA in order to build an access road serving a new golf course and housing development.[2] The land swap was never completed.

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External links

External links

★ NPS Official Site for the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area

★ Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy

★ Santa Monica Mountains Fund