San Francisco Bay is a large tidal estuary in the U.S. state of California, and gives its name to the San Francisco Bay Area. It is dominated by the cities of San Francisco, San Jose, and Oakland.
The San Francisco Peninsula is a peninsula in the San Francisco Bay Area that separates San Francisco Bay from the Pacific Ocean. On its northern tip is the City and County of San Francisco. Its southern base is Mountain View, in Santa Clara County, south of Palo Alto and north of Sunnyvale and Los Altos. Most of the Peninsula is occupied by San Mateo County, between San Francisco and Santa Clara counties, and including the cities and towns of Atherton, Belmont, Brisbane, Burlingame, Colma, Daly City, East Palo Alto, El Granada, Foster City, Hillsborough, Half Moon Bay, La Honda, Loma Mar, Los Altos, Menlo Park, Millbrae, Pacifica, Palo Alto, Pescadero, Portola Valley, Redwood City, San Bruno, San Carlos, San Mateo, South San Francisco, and Woodside.
San Mateo County, officially the County of San Mateo, is a county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 764,442. Redwood City is the county seat, and the third most populated city following Daly City and San Mateo. San Mateo County is included in the San Francisco–Oakland–Berkeley, CA MSA, Silicon Valley, and is part of the San Francisco Bay Area, the nine counties bordering San Francisco Bay. It covers most of the San Francisco Peninsula. San Francisco International Airport is located in the northeastern area of the county and is approximately 7 miles (11 km) south of the city and county limits of San Francisco, even though the airport itself is assigned a San Francisco postal address. The county's built-up areas are mostly suburban, and are home to many corporate campuses.
Half Moon Bay is a coastal city in San Mateo County, California, United States, approximately 25 miles south of San Francisco. Its population was 11,795 as of the 2020 census. Immediately north of Half Moon Bay is Pillar Point Harbor and the unincorporated community of Princeton-by-the-Sea. Half Moon Bay is known for Mavericks, a big-wave surf location. It is called Half Moon Bay because of its crescent shape.
Moss Beach is a coastal census-designated place in San Mateo County, California, with a year 2020 census population of 3,214. Located in Moss Beach are the Fitzgerald Marine Reserve, a marine sanctuary; the Half Moon Bay Airport, the historic Moss Beach Distillery; and the Seal Cove Inn, a destination lodging property. Moss Beach is a cool coastal microclimate that gives one a sense of separation from the nearby metropolitan San Francisco Bay Area and assures that summer temperatures are generally mild.
Pacifica is a city in San Mateo County, California, on the coast of the Pacific Ocean between San Francisco and Half Moon Bay.
Fitzgerald Marine Reserve is a marine reserve in California on the Pacific Ocean, located just north of Pillar Point Harbor and Mavericks in the San Mateo County community of Moss Beach. Moss Beach is located approximately 20 miles (32 km) south of San Francisco and 50 miles (80 km) north of Santa Cruz. The reserve is a 32-acre (0.13 km2) holding which extends from Montara light station at the north to Pillar Point on the south. The reserve consists of a three-mile stretch of beach, tidepool habitat, marsh, erosive bluffs, clifftop trail and cypress and eucalyptus forests. The property is owned by the State of California and managed by San Mateo County as a county park and nature preserve. The reserve is administratively assigned to be part of the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary. Adjacent to and possibly within the reserve is an endangered species of butterfly, the San Bruno elfin butterfly.
Half Moon Bay State Beach is a 4-mile (6 km) stretch of protected beaches in the state park system of California, United States, on Half Moon Bay. From north to south it comprises Roosevelt, Dunes, Venice, and Francis Beaches. The 181-acre (73 ha) park was established in 1956.
Eddie Andreini Sr. Airfield, officially Half Moon Bay Airport, is a public airport in San Mateo County, six miles (9.7 km) northwest of Half Moon Bay, California, United States. The airport is on the Pacific Coast, south of San Francisco.
The Golden Gate National Recreation Area (GGNRA) is a U.S. National Recreation Area protecting 82,116 acres (33,231 ha) of ecologically and historically significant landscapes surrounding the San Francisco Bay Area. Much of the park is land formerly used by the United States Army. GGNRA is managed by the National Park Service and is the second-most visited unit of the National Park system in the United States, with more than 15.6 million visitors in 2022. It is also one of the largest urban parks in the world, with a size two-and-a-half times that of the consolidated city and county of San Francisco.
The Pacific Flyway is a major north-south flyway for migratory birds in the Americas, extending from Alaska to Patagonia. Every year, migratory birds travel some or all of this distance both in spring and in fall, following food sources, heading to breeding grounds, or travelling to overwintering sites.
Miramar is a district located within the city limits of Half Moon Bay in San Mateo County, California. Miramar Beach is located at Miramar. The east side of Highway 1 and north of the middle of Mirada road is in unincorporated San Mateo County.
Pillar Point Harbor is a boat harbor created by a riprap breakwater in San Mateo County, California, immediately north of Half Moon Bay. It is used by both pleasure craft and small commercial fishing boats.
Princeton-by-the-Sea is an unincorporated community on the coast of San Mateo County, California. The ZIP code is 94019 and the community is in area code 650.
Arroyo de en Medio is a 2.5-mile-long (4.0 km) coastal stream in western San Mateo County, California. Arroyo de en Medio rises on the western slopes of Montara Mountain and discharges to the Pacific Ocean at Half Moon Bay at the location of the unincorporated community of Miramar at Miramar Beach. The watershed of Arroyo de en Medio consists of relatively permeable sandy soils capable of significant recharge to its aquifers, which supply considerable potable water to the local area. Arroyo is Spanish for creek; de en Medio means literally "of in between" but a closer more functional translation may be in the middle.
Denniston Creek is a 4.4-mile-long (7.1 km) coastal stream in western San Mateo County, California. Denniston Creek rises on the western slopes of Montara Mountain and discharges to the Pacific Ocean at Pillar Point Harbor somewhat north of El Granada Beach. The watershed of Denniston Creek is made up of relatively permeable sandy soils capable of significant recharge to its aquifers, which supply a moderate amount of potable water to the local area.
Miramar Beach is a sandy beach in western San Mateo County, California. Miramar Beach is one of the numerous beaches on Half Moon Bay, a Pacific Ocean embayment noted for its surfing and extensive visitation. The marine terrace above the beach itself is situated approximately eight meters above mean sea level, and on this terrace is positioned the small unincorporated community of Miramar, which is a residential setting that also has several coastal visitor serving uses such as restaurant and lodging facilities. A stream named Arroyo de en Medio discharges onto Miramar Beach into the Pacific Ocean.
Pilarcitos Creek is a 13.5-mile-long (21.7 km) coastal stream in San Mateo County, California, United States, that rises on the western slopes of the Santa Cruz Mountains and descends through Pilarcitos Canyon to discharge into the Pacific Ocean Half Moon Bay State Beach.
Naples Creek is a stream in San Mateo County, California, United States that rises on the western slopes of the Santa Cruz Mountains and discharges to the Pacific Ocean. The specific point of discharge is onto Naples Beach, a unit of the Half Moon Bay State Beach. This watercourse runs through the city of Half Moon Bay, which municipality has planning jurisdiction over the creekside area within its city boundaries. In the Open Space Element of Half Moon Bay's General Plan, Naples Creek is designated to have significant wetland and riparian zone biotic resources.
Pillar Point Bluff is a 220-acre park in San Mateo County, California. It is part of the Fitzgerald Marine Reserve, owned by the U.S. state of California, and managed by San Mateo County as a county park and nature preserve. The park is located between Princeton-by-the-Sea and Moss Beach, just north of the Pillar Point peninsula, Pillar Point Harbor, and Half Moon Bay. The area was inhabited by coastal indigenous peoples for thousands of years, and in recent centuries, was used for livestock grazing by Spanish Missions and Mexican ranchos. Pillar Point Bluff was once part of the Rancho Corral de Tierra Mexican land grant before California became a state.
