Doheny State Beach
Encyclopedia
Doheny State Beach, protected as part of the California Department of Parks and Recreation
, is a beach
on the Pacific
coast of Orange County
, in Dana Point, Southern California
.
The beach is a popular surf spot located at the mouth of San Juan Creek
, which flows from the Santa Ana Mountains
southwest to the beach, where it forms a fresh-water lagoon
. It is also one of the most polluted beaches in Southern California.
for public use on May 31, 1931. On July 1, 1963, the beach was named Doheny State Beach in honor of Edward Doheny. The original donation was 41 acres (165,921.3 m²). An additional 21 acres (84,984.1 m²) was later added by acquisitions from the Santa Fe Railroad, University of California
Regents, and the Union Oil Company. The beach is California's first state beach.
beach at the northern end, as well as campgrounds in its southern area. The beach is one of California's most popular camping grounds and attracts over 850,000 people per year. The beach has tidepools and a visitor center with several aquariums.
, anemone
, several types of sea bass
, crabs, the common dolphin
, harbor seal
, kelp
, California moray
, sea urchin
, octopus
, stingrays, several varieties of shark
s (including the Great White), as well as many other marine life. Several types of birds also live at the beach such as brown pelican
, great blue heron
, snowy egret
, and several other species.
California Department of Parks and Recreation
The California Department of Parks and Recreation, also known as California State Parks, manages the California state parks system. The system administers 278 parks and 1.4 million acres , with over of coastline; of lake and river frontage; nearly 15,000 campsites; and of hiking, biking, and...
, is a beach
Beach
A beach is a geological landform along the shoreline of an ocean, sea, lake or river. It usually consists of loose particles which are often composed of rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle, pebbles or cobblestones...
on the Pacific
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
coast of Orange County
Orange County, California
Orange County is a county in the U.S. state of California. Its county seat is Santa Ana. As of the 2010 census, its population was 3,010,232, up from 2,846,293 at the 2000 census, making it the third most populous county in California, behind Los Angeles County and San Diego County...
, in Dana Point, Southern California
Southern California
Southern California is a megaregion, or megapolitan area, in the southern area of the U.S. state of California. Large urban areas include Greater Los Angeles and Greater San Diego. The urban area stretches along the coast from Ventura through the Southland and Inland Empire to San Diego...
.
The beach is a popular surf spot located at the mouth of San Juan Creek
San Juan Creek
San Juan Creek, also called the San Juan River, is a stream in Orange County, California that consists of a catchment basin encompassing . Its mainstem rises in the Santa Ana Mountains, in the Trabuco Ranger District of the Cleveland National Forest...
, which flows from the Santa Ana Mountains
Santa Ana Mountains
The Santa Ana Mountains are a short peninsular mountain range along the coast of Southern California in the United States. They extend for approximately 36 mi southeast of the Los Angeles Basin largely along the border between Orange and Riverside counties.- Geography :The range starts in the...
southwest to the beach, where it forms a fresh-water lagoon
Lagoon
A lagoon is a body of shallow sea water or brackish water separated from the sea by some form of barrier. The EU's habitat directive defines lagoons as "expanses of shallow coastal salt water, of varying salinity or water volume, wholly or partially separated from the sea by sand banks or shingle,...
. It is also one of the most polluted beaches in Southern California.
History
The beach was donated by oil tycoon Edward L. DohenyEdward L. Doheny
Edward Laurence Doheny was an American oil tycoon, who in 1892, along with business partner Charles A. Canfield, drilled the first successful oil well in the Los Angeles City Oil Field, setting off the petroleum boom in Southern California.At first he was an unsuccessful prospector in the state of...
for public use on May 31, 1931. On July 1, 1963, the beach was named Doheny State Beach in honor of Edward Doheny. The original donation was 41 acres (165,921.3 m²). An additional 21 acres (84,984.1 m²) was later added by acquisitions from the Santa Fe Railroad, University of California
University of California
The University of California is a public university system in the U.S. state of California. Under the California Master Plan for Higher Education, the University of California is a part of the state's three-tier public higher education system, which also includes the California State University...
Regents, and the Union Oil Company. The beach is California's first state beach.
Recreational uses
The beach covers an area of 62 acres (250,905.3 m²) and includes a day use surfingSurfing
Surfing' is a surface water sport in which the surfer rides a surfboard on the crest and face of a wave which is carrying the surfer towards the shore...
beach at the northern end, as well as campgrounds in its southern area. The beach is one of California's most popular camping grounds and attracts over 850,000 people per year. The beach has tidepools and a visitor center with several aquariums.
Animal and plant life
The beach is home to several types of marine life, such as abaloneAbalone
Abalone , from aulón, are small to very large-sized edible sea snails, marine gastropod molluscs in the family Haliotidae and the genus Haliotis...
, anemone
Anemone
Anemone , is a genus of about 120 species of flowering plants in the buttercup family Ranunculaceae in the north and south temperate zones...
, several types of sea bass
Sea bass
-Family Serranidae:* Barred sand bass , lives mainly off the coast of California* Black sea bass , whose range is the eastern coast of the United States...
, crabs, the common dolphin
Common dolphin
The common dolphin is the name given to two species of dolphin making up the genus Delphinus.Prior to the mid-1990s, most taxonomists only recognised one species in this genus, the common dolphin Delphinus delphis...
, harbor seal
Harbor Seal
The harbor seal , also known as the common seal, is a true seal found along temperate and Arctic marine coastlines of the Northern Hemisphere...
, kelp
Kelp
Kelps are large seaweeds belonging to the brown algae in the order Laminariales. There are about 30 different genera....
, California moray
California moray
The California Moray, Gymnothorax mordax, is a Moray eel of the family Muraenidae, found in the eastern Pacific at depths down to 40 m. Its length is up to 152 cm.They live up to 30 years old and have no pelvic, pectoral fins, or gill covers....
, sea urchin
Sea urchin
Sea urchins or urchins are small, spiny, globular animals which, with their close kin, such as sand dollars, constitute the class Echinoidea of the echinoderm phylum. They inhabit all oceans. Their shell, or "test", is round and spiny, typically from across. Common colors include black and dull...
, octopus
Octopus
The octopus is a cephalopod mollusc of the order Octopoda. Octopuses have two eyes and four pairs of arms, and like other cephalopods they are bilaterally symmetric. An octopus has a hard beak, with its mouth at the center point of the arms...
, stingrays, several varieties of shark
Shark
Sharks are a type of fish with a full cartilaginous skeleton and a highly streamlined body. The earliest known sharks date from more than 420 million years ago....
s (including the Great White), as well as many other marine life. Several types of birds also live at the beach such as brown pelican
Brown Pelican
The Brown Pelican is the smallest of the eight species of pelican, although it is a large bird in nearly every other regard. It is in length, weighs from and has a wingspan from .-Range and habits:...
, great blue heron
Great Blue Heron
The Great Blue Heron is a large wading bird in the heron family Ardeidae, common near the shores of open water and in wetlands over most of North and Central America as well as the West Indies and the Galápagos Islands. It is a rare vagrant to Europe, with records from Spain, the Azores and England...
, snowy egret
Snowy Egret
The Snowy Egret is a small white heron. It is the American counterpart to the very similar Old World Little Egret, which has established a foothold in the Bahamas....
, and several other species.
Educational program
Doheny State Beach offers year-round interpretive education programs in marine life, bird life, animal life, water quality, insects, and Native American studies.See also
- California State BeachesCalifornia State BeachesThe beaches listed below are along the coastline of the state of California. Beaches are listed in order from south to north.- San Diego County :* Border Field State Park* Imperial Beach* Silver Strand State Beach* Coronado Municipal Beach...
- List of California state parks
- List of surfing areas