Читать книгу Afoot & Afield: Orange County. A Comprehensive Hiking Guide онлайн

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chapter 1

North Coast

Orange County’s northernmost stretch of coastline consists of a wide, sandy strand stretching through the cities of Seal Beach and Huntington Beach. Tens of thousands of people flock to these beaches on warm, sunny days, while tens of thousands more live immediately back of the coastline on low-lying land that once supported extensive saltwater and freshwater marshes.

The underlying sedimentary rocks are rich in petroleum; you’re reminded of that by the sight of rocker pumps, storage tanks, and refineries. That activity, however, is waning. New housing developments are springing up, especially along the Pacific Coast Highway (Highway 1). Formerly environmentally abused wetlands and floodplains are in the process of being restored to some semblance of an original condition.

Two areas along this north stretch of coast stand out as excellent examples of ecological rehabilitation: Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve and Talbert Nature Preserve. Both are perfect for easygoing exercise and early-morning bird- and wildlife-watching. Huntington Beach boasts of being one of the nation’s best birding sites, with nearly half of all species of birds in the nation spotted there. The prevalence of hikers and bird-watchers with elaborate spotting scopes and telephoto lenses at Bolsa Chica and other nearby coastal locales attests to that.