Калифорнияның Санта-Лусия таулары

Mountain range in California, United States

The Santa Lucia Mountains (sæntə luˈsiːə) or Santa Lucia Range is a rugged mountain range in coastal central California, running from Carmel southeast for 140 mile (225 km) to the Cuyama River in San Luis Obispo County. The range is never more than from the coast. The range forms the steepest coastal slope in the contiguous United States. rising nearly a mile (1,609 m) above sea level, only three miles (5 km) from the Pacific Ocean. The range's northern section runs parallel to the southern section of the Diablo Range, part of the Inner South Coast Ranges, which lies to the east across the Salinas Valley. The range's highest summit is Junipero Serra Peak, in Monterey County and the Los Padres National Forest.

Junipero Serra Peak, 5,857 feet (1785 m). Cone Peak, 5158 feet (1572 m). Ventana Double Cone, 4856 feet (1480 m). Mount Carmel, 4420 feet (1347 m).

The first European to document the Santa Lucias was Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo in 1542 while sailing northward along the coast on a Spanish naval expedition. Cabrillo originally named the southern portion of the range the Sierras de San Martín, as he was passing the area on November 11, the feast day for Saint Martin. He named the northern part Sierras Nevadas because there was snow on it. The present name for the range was documented in 1602 by Sebastián Vizcaíno, who had been tasked by the Spanish to complete a detailed chart of the coast. Passing by the range around December 14, he named the range Sierra de Santa Lucia in honor of Saint Lucy of Syracuse, for whom many Christians celebrate a feast day on December 13. They traveled north through the Salinas Valley before arriving at Monterey Bay, where they founded Monterey and named it their capital.

Like other Pacific Coast Ranges, the mountains' close proximity to the Pacific Ocean cause moisture to be deposited on the west facing slopes, creating a suitable environment for conifers. This creates a rain shadow over Salinas Valley to the east, which is considerably drier. The higher peaks receive some snowfall during the winter. The climate is classified as dry summer subtropical, or Mediterranean. Rainfall varies from throughout the range. Most of the precipitation falls during the winter on the higher mountains in the north. During the summer, fog and low clouds are frequent along the coast up to an elevation of 2–3,000 feet. Surface runoff from rainfall is rapid, and many streams dry up entirely in the summer, except for some perennial streams in the wetter areas in the north.

The western slopes of the range facing the Pacific Ocean are moist with growths of coast redwood, Douglas fir, ponderosa pine, Pacific madrone and the local endemic species such as Santa Lucia fir (Abies bracteata) and Gowen cypress (Cupressus goveniana var. goveniana). The east side is drier, with chaparral and open woods of pine (including Coulter pine and gray pine) and oak woodlands of several Quercus species. The range is the southernmost native location of about 225 plant species including the coast redwood trees and the northernmost home for about 90 species. The southernmost naturally occurring grove of redwoods is found within the Big Sur region in the Southern Redwood Botanical Area, a reserve located in the Little Redwood Gulch watershed adjacent to the Silver Peak Wilderness. It is just north of the Salmon Creek trailhead. The southernmost tree is about 15 feet (5 m) from Highway 1 at the approximate coordinates About 57 plants are only found in the Santa Lucia Mountains. This range is the only known habitat of the Vortriede's spineflower.

California State Route 1 runs along the Big Sur coast on the coastal slopes of the range, while U. S. Route 101 lies in the Salinas Valley to the East, and crosses the southern Santa Lucia Range over Cuesta Pass to reach San Luis Obispo. California State Route 41 crosses the range from Atascadero to Morro Bay and Route 46 crosses from Templeton to Cambria. The only other paved road across the Santa Lucia Range is Nacimiento Fergusson Road, connecting Lucia to Jolon.

Since at least the 1930s, accounts of encounters with Dark Watchers or Los Vigilantes Oscuros have been associated with the Santa Lucia Range, described as shadowy figures which watch hikers from atop mountain ridges. The Lost Padre Mines of the Carmel Mission have become part of local folklore, with their legacy recounted through various accounts, including those within Randall Reinstadt's works such as Ghosts, Bandits, and Legends of Old Monterey, Carmel and Surrounding Areas and Tales and Treasures of California Missions. These narratives suggest that indigenous communities held knowledge of abundant gold deposits concealed within the untamed terrain of the Santa Lucia Mountains. As legends of these riches were passed down over time, the Lost Padre Mines attracted attention. Versions of these legends appear to have originated from long time residents of Carmel Valley. The stories if ghosts may be attributed to descendants of and the last residents of the native people who remained hidden deep in the mountains after the missions failed.

Pacific Southwest Airlines Flight 1771 crashed in the mountains near Cayucos on December 7, 1987 after a gunman killed both pilots, causing the aircraft to crash. A total of 43 people were killed with no survivors.

The Santa Lucia Highlands AVA, an American Viticultural Area and producer of California wine, is located on the southeastern slopes of the mountains, above the Salinas valley.

Like the well known Santa Ana winds of Southern California or the Sundowner winds of Santa Barbara, Santa Lucia's Cuesta Grade on Highway 101 has potential to produce some powerful katabatic winds. Temperatures have been recorded jumping 40 degrees F, to 110 F, in just three hours.