Monday, October 8, 2012

Chapter 8: Topography


The City of San Fernando, as I have mentioned before, is located in the San Fernando Valley. San Fernando is a flat plain surrounded by several mountains. 

To the northwest, you will find the Santa Susana Mountains. The highest point in the Santa Susana Mountains is Oat Mountain with an elevation of 3.747 feet. The climate there is mild and dry during the summer, wet in the winter, and in high elevations snow can be seen.  The first discovery of oil in California happened in the north side of the Santa Susana Mountains at Naco Canyon.

To the west, you can see the Simi Hills. The highest point is at the Simi Peak with an elevation of 652m. Over 8,000 years ago, the Paleo-Indians and the Chumash-VenturaƱo Native Americans settled and hunted at the Simi Hills. There is rarely any snow here in the winter, the climate is mild, but rainy, and the summers are warm and dry.

To the south, are the Santa Monica Mountains with the highest peak being Sandstone Peak with an elevation of 3,111 feet.  The Chalk Hills are also to the south. Winters here are cool and wet with rarely any snow. The summers are dry, warm, and humid. There are over 1,000 archeological sites in the Santa Monica Mountains, mostly from the Tongra and Chumash Native American Cultures. The Chalk Hills are also to the south.  

To the east, are the Verdugo Mountains. This area is prone to wildfires. Verdugo Peak is the highest point with an elevation of 3,126 feet. The indigenous Tongva people made these mountains there home over 7,000 years old.

To the northeast, you can find the San Gabriel Mountains. The highest peak is at Mount San Antonio with an elevation of 10,068 feet. Snow covers these mountains in the winter time making snowboarding and snow skiing very popular. When the climate starts getting warmer, “Melting snow and rain runoff on the south side of the San Gabriel’s’ highest mountains give rise to its largest river, the San Gabriel River.


 










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