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Jul 22, 2013

Lovers Point Pacific Grove California

Lovers Point Pacific Grove California
Lovers Point Pacific Grove California
Never doubt that love makes the world go round. You could go to an all-inclusive resort, but you’d miss out Lovers Point, Pacific Grove California, where countless couples have found love.

There is a special spot on the coast of California, one of the few places on the Pacific shore of the United States where lovers can stand on land and face east to watch the sun rise over the ocean.

Pacific Grove is a coastal city in Monterey County, California, USA, with a population of 15,295 as per the 2011 Census data. Pacific Grove is located between Point Pinos and Monterey, at an elevation of 151 feet (46 m).

Pacific Grove contains several habitat types including marine, littoral, pine forest and mixed oak woodland. The famed breeding habitat for the Monarch butterfly is situated in the southern part of town imbedded in residential neighborhoods in mixed oak forests. These Monarchs migrate 2000 miles to reach Pacific Grove after their summer in Canada, often soaring as high as 3000 meters.

The black-and-orange butterflies spend much of the fall and winter in the local Monterey Pine trees, roughly from Halloween until Valentine's Day. Residents of Pacific Grove help the butterfly's habitat by planting purple and yellow flowers, such as lantara, yellow aster, Pride of Madera, and Mexican Sage, in what are called Butterfly Gardens. City Ordinance No. 352 makes it a misdemeanor to kill or threaten a butterfly, punishable by a $1000 fine.

Pacific Grove Marine Gardens State Marine Conservation Area, Lovers Point State Marine Reserve, Edward F. Ricketts State Marine Conservation Area and Asilomar State Marine Reserve are marine protected areas in the waters around Pacific Grove. Like underwater parks, these marine protected areas help conserve ocean wildlife and marine ecosystems.

The principal noise source in Pacific Grove is State Route 68. There are approximately 800 residents exposed to sound levels of 60 CNEL or above, making Pacific Grove noticeably more quiet than its neighbor Monterey, which has more tourist traffic and more through traffic (Hogan, 1980).

The town sits between its two well known neighbors, Pebble Beach and Monterey. Carmel-by-the-Sea is the next city, five miles to the south, and the community of Big Sur is 30 miles south. Pacific Grove is a favorite vacation getaway for San Francisco Bay Area residents, located two and a half hours south of San Francisco.

The town does not allow development on the waterside of the ocean-front street, so that the beaches and scenic points are unobstructed. Plans for the one private residential parcel on the waterside of the street about one half mile north of Asilomar State Beach were the center of local controversy several years ago.

Monarch Butterflies Pacific Grove
Monarch Butterflies Pacific Grove

Pacific Grove is located at 36°37′9″N 121°55′16″W (36.619065, -121.921025). That places it on the Pacific Ocean between Monterey and Pebble Beach, about 40 miles south of Santa Cruz and about 100 miles south of San Francisco. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 4.0 square miles (10 km2). 2.9 square miles (7.5 km2) of it is land and 1.1 square miles (2.8 km2) of it (28.42%) is water. Asilomar, Lovers Point and the intervening coastline afford surfing, which is challenging due to near shore rocks, albeit waves are typically moderate in height.

Pacific Grove's climate is mild throughout the year, essentially the same as in neighboring Monterey, with most of the rain falling from November through April. Extreme temperatures are rare and fog is common, especially in the late night and early morning, all year.