Sacramento Valley | |
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![]() Sacramento | |
![]() The Central Valley of California | |
Naming | |
Native name | Spanish: Valle de Sacramento [1] |
Geography | |
Location | California, United States |
Population centers | Redding, Chico, Yuba City, Sacramento |
Borders on | Sierra Nevada (east), Cascade Range, Klamath Mountains (north), Coast Range (west), Sacramento–San Joaquin River Delta (south) |
Coordinates | 39°00′N121°30′W / 39°N 121.5°W Coordinates: 39°00′N121°30′W / 39°N 121.5°W |
Rivers | Sacramento River |
The Sacramento Valley is the area of the Central Valley of the U.S. state of California that lies north of the Sacramento–San Joaquin River Delta and is drained by the Sacramento River. It encompasses all or parts of ten Northern California counties. Although many areas of the Sacramento Valley are rural, it contains several urban areas, including the state capital, Sacramento. Since 2010, statewide droughts in California have further strained both the Sacramento Valley's and the Sacramento metropolitan region's water security. [2]
The Sacramento River and its tributaries are a significant part of the geography of the Sacramento Valley. Rising in the various mountain ranges (the various Northern Coast Ranges to the west, the southern Siskiyou Mountains to the north, and the northern Sierra Nevada to the east) that define the shape of the valley, they provide water for agricultural, industrial, residential, and recreation uses. Most of the rivers are heavily dammed and diverted. In more recent years, statewide droughts in California have further strained the Sacramento Valley's water security. [2]
The terrain of the Sacramento Valley is primarily flat grasslands that become lusher as one moves east from the rain shadow of the Coast Ranges toward the Sierra. Unlike the San Joaquin Valley, which in its pre-irrigation state was a vegetation-hostile desert, the somewhat less arid Sacramento Valley had significant tracts of forest prior to the arrival of settlers of European ancestry. Most of it was cut down during the California Gold Rush and the ensuing wave of American settlement, although there are still some heavily tree-populated areas, such as the greater Sacramento area.
Foothills become more common from just south of Corning to Shasta Lake City. These are known as the Valley Hills and begin south of the Tehama-Glenn County line near Corning. There are also a few hills in Red Bluff and Corning. There is one major range of foothills between Cottonwood and Red Bluff known as the Cottonwood Hills (a.k.a. 9-mile Hill), and there is the Cottonwood Ridge between Anderson and Cottonwood. There are some hills in Redding, a few more than Red Bluff, and north of Redding it is mainly foothills.
One distinctive geographic feature of the Sacramento Valley is the Sutter Buttes. Nicknamed the smallest mountain range in the world, it consists of the remnants of an extinct volcano and is located just outside Yuba City, 44 miles north of Sacramento.
Citrus and nut orchards and cattle ranches are common to both halves of the Central Valley. The Sacramento Valley's agricultural industry also resembles that of the San Joaquin Valley to the south. Nuts, such as almonds and walnuts, are of greater importance north of the Delta, and rice, nonviable in the drier San Joaquin Valley, is a major crop. The town of Corning produces olives for oil extraction and for consumption as fruit. The Sunsweet Growers Incorporated headquarters are in Yuba City. The valley controls more than two-thirds of the worldwide prune market through the over 400 growers in California. [3]
Weather patterns in the Sacramento Valley are very similar to those in the San Joaquin Valley to the south, although the humidity and precipitation tend to be a bit higher. Summers are the dry season, with average daytime temperatures in the low to high 90s °F (low to mid 30s °C) but triple digits (38 °C and above) are a common occurrence, especially in Chico, Redding, Red Bluff, and Sacramento. The "breeze", which comes in from the Bay area, brings cooler temperatures and higher humidity. At times the delta breeze is gusty with wind speed to up to 30 mph (50 km/h) in the valley and up to 45 mph (75 km/h) in the delta region which is often breezy. This breeze can also bring morning low clouds at times into the region, but the clouds generally burn off quickly and temperatures stay cool. Summer-like conditions continue into early to mid-September but weather starts to change to cooler, wetter, foggier weather during October which gives trees vibrant autumn foliage. Winters, also known as the rainy season, are generally mild to cool, foggy and wet. Up north, the temperature averages in the mid-40s °F (mid-to-high single digits °C) and lows reaching to the low-10s °F (-10 to -12 °C), colder in the northern part of the valley and colder still in the foothills and frost can occur almost anywhere. Farther south near Sacramento, temperatures tend to stay between the low-50s and high-60s °F (10-20 °C), with nighttime temperatures dropping to the mid-30s and 40s °F (1-7 °C). The rainy season runs from November to early-April. During the rainy season, the Sacramento Valley is prone to strong thunderstorms and tornadoes, mostly of EF0 or EF1 intensity, especially in Colusa County and areas around Corning and Orland. Flooding does occur at times during wetter periods, usually November to March. Snow in the valley is rare, although Redding and Red Bluff, being at the north end of the valley, often experience a light dusting or two per year. Chico may get a rain-snow mix every few years, but, on the average, only snows about every 5 years. Farther south in Sacramento, snow rarely occurs. During the autumn and winter months, the entire Central Valley is susceptible to dense tule fog that makes driving hazardous, especially at night and especially south of Corning. The fog can last for weeks depending on how weak the wind is. In more recent years, statewide droughts in California have further strained both the Sacramento Valley's and the San Joaquin Valley's water security. [2]
Climate data for Sacramento, California (Sacramento Executive Airport), 1991–2020 normals, extremes 1941–present [lower-alpha 1] | |||||||||||||
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Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Record high °F (°C) | 76 (24) | 78 (26) | 88 (31) | 95 (35) | 105 (41) | 115 (46) | 114 (46) | 112 (44) | 114 (46) | 104 (40) | 87 (31) | 74 (23) | 115 (46) |
Mean maximum °F (°C) | 65.2 (18.4) | 71.1 (21.7) | 78.1 (25.6) | 87.4 (30.8) | 95.3 (35.2) | 103.1 (39.5) | 105.3 (40.7) | 104.1 (40.1) | 100.6 (38.1) | 91.8 (33.2) | 76.5 (24.7) | 65.1 (18.4) | 107.0 (41.7) |
Average high °F (°C) | 56.0 (13.3) | 61.3 (16.3) | 66.3 (19.1) | 72.1 (22.3) | 80.3 (26.8) | 87.9 (31.1) | 92.6 (33.7) | 91.9 (33.3) | 88.5 (31.4) | 78.8 (26.0) | 65.0 (18.3) | 56.0 (13.3) | 74.7 (23.7) |
Daily mean °F (°C) | 47.6 (8.7) | 51.4 (10.8) | 55.4 (13.0) | 59.5 (15.3) | 66.1 (18.9) | 72.2 (22.3) | 75.9 (24.4) | 75.3 (24.1) | 72.5 (22.5) | 64.5 (18.1) | 53.9 (12.2) | 47.3 (8.5) | 61.8 (16.6) |
Average low °F (°C) | 39.2 (4.0) | 41.5 (5.3) | 44.5 (6.9) | 47.0 (8.3) | 52.0 (11.1) | 56.5 (13.6) | 59.2 (15.1) | 58.8 (14.9) | 56.5 (13.6) | 50.3 (10.2) | 42.7 (5.9) | 38.5 (3.6) | 48.9 (9.4) |
Mean minimum °F (°C) | 29.1 (−1.6) | 31.7 (−0.2) | 35.1 (1.7) | 37.9 (3.3) | 44.1 (6.7) | 49.5 (9.7) | 54.1 (12.3) | 53.8 (12.1) | 49.6 (9.8) | 41.7 (5.4) | 32.7 (0.4) | 28.7 (−1.8) | 26.9 (−2.8) |
Record low °F (°C) | 20 (−7) | 23 (−5) | 26 (−3) | 31 (−1) | 34 (1) | 41 (5) | 48 (9) | 48 (9) | 42 (6) | 35 (2) | 26 (−3) | 18 (−8) | 18 (−8) |
Average precipitation inches (mm) | 3.66 (93) | 3.49 (89) | 2.68 (68) | 1.26 (32) | 0.75 (19) | 0.23 (5.8) | trace | 0.04 (1.0) | 0.09 (2.3) | 0.85 (22) | 1.66 (42) | 3.43 (87) | 18.14 (461) |
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) | 10.0 | 9.1 | 9.0 | 5.1 | 3.6 | 1.1 | 0.1 | 0.2 | 0.7 | 3.1 | 6.1 | 9.6 | 57.7 |
Average relative humidity (%) | 83.3 | 76.8 | 71.6 | 64.5 | 58.9 | 55.0 | 53.2 | 55.7 | 57.0 | 63.1 | 75.6 | 82.9 | 66.5 |
Average dew point °F (°C) | 39.4 (4.1) | 42.1 (5.6) | 42.8 (6.0) | 43.7 (6.5) | 46.9 (8.3) | 50.4 (10.2) | 53.1 (11.7) | 53.4 (11.9) | 50.9 (10.5) | 47.5 (8.6) | 43.7 (6.5) | 39.2 (4.0) | 46.1 (7.8) |
Mean monthly sunshine hours | 145.5 | 201.3 | 278.0 | 329.6 | 406.3 | 419.5 | 440.2 | 406.9 | 347.8 | 296.7 | 194.9 | 141.1 | 3,607.8 |
Percent possible sunshine | 48 | 67 | 75 | 83 | 92 | 94 | 98 | 96 | 93 | 86 | 64 | 48 | 81 |
Source: NOAA (relative humidity, dew point and sun 1961–1990) [5] [6] [7] |
Climate data for Sacramento 5 ESE, California (Sacramento State [8] ), 1991–2020 normals, extremes 1877–present | |||||||||||||
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Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Record high °F (°C) | 79 (26) | 80 (27) | 90 (32) | 98 (37) | 107 (42) | 112 (44) | 114 (46) | 112 (44) | 116 (47) | 102 (39) | 86 (30) | 72 (22) | 116 (47) |
Mean maximum °F (°C) | 66.4 (19.1) | 72.5 (22.5) | 80.6 (27.0) | 89.5 (31.9) | 97.1 (36.2) | 104.4 (40.2) | 106.7 (41.5) | 105.5 (40.8) | 102.0 (38.9) | 92.3 (33.5) | 77.3 (25.2) | 65.9 (18.8) | 108.1 (42.3) |
Average high °F (°C) | 56.5 (13.6) | 62.2 (16.8) | 67.8 (19.9) | 73.5 (23.1) | 81.3 (27.4) | 89.0 (31.7) | 94.4 (34.7) | 93.5 (34.2) | 89.3 (31.8) | 78.9 (26.1) | 65.3 (18.5) | 56.4 (13.6) | 75.7 (24.3) |
Daily mean °F (°C) | 48.8 (9.3) | 52.9 (11.6) | 57.2 (14.0) | 61.4 (16.3) | 67.7 (19.8) | 73.9 (23.3) | 77.9 (25.5) | 77.3 (25.2) | 74.0 (23.3) | 65.9 (18.8) | 55.3 (12.9) | 48.5 (9.2) | 63.4 (17.4) |
Average low °F (°C) | 41.1 (5.1) | 43.7 (6.5) | 46.7 (8.2) | 49.3 (9.6) | 54.0 (12.2) | 58.7 (14.8) | 61.4 (16.3) | 61.0 (16.1) | 58.8 (14.9) | 52.9 (11.6) | 45.3 (7.4) | 40.7 (4.8) | 51.1 (10.6) |
Mean minimum °F (°C) | 32.5 (0.3) | 35.4 (1.9) | 38.8 (3.8) | 41.6 (5.3) | 47.2 (8.4) | 51.9 (11.1) | 55.9 (13.3) | 55.9 (13.3) | 52.4 (11.3) | 45.1 (7.3) | 36.2 (2.3) | 31.9 (−0.1) | 30.5 (−0.8) |
Record low °F (°C) | 19 (−7) | 21 (−6) | 29 (−2) | 34 (1) | 37 (3) | 43 (6) | 47 (8) | 48 (9) | 44 (7) | 34 (1) | 27 (−3) | 17 (−8) | 17 (−8) |
Average precipitation inches (mm) | 3.87 (98) | 3.63 (92) | 2.82 (72) | 1.44 (37) | 0.86 (22) | 0.21 (5.3) | trace | 0.02 (0.51) | 0.15 (3.8) | 0.93 (24) | 1.78 (45) | 3.49 (89) | 19.20 (488) |
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) | 10.8 | 9.6 | 9.2 | 5.3 | 3.7 | 1.2 | 0.1 | 0.2 | 0.8 | 3.1 | 6.8 | 10.1 | 60.9 |
Source: NOAA [5] [9] [10] , Western Regional Climate Center [11] |
Climate data for Chico, California (1981–2010 normals) | |||||||||||||
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Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Record high °F (°C) | 77 (25) | 82 (28) | 93 (34) | 98 (37) | 108 (42) | 115 (46) | 117 (47) | 116 (47) | 114 (46) | 107 (42) | 91 (33) | 78 (26) | 117 (47) |
Average high °F (°C) | 55.1 (12.8) | 61.1 (16.2) | 66.3 (19.1) | 72.6 (22.6) | 81.3 (27.4) | 88.7 (31.5) | 94.2 (34.6) | 93.7 (34.3) | 89.7 (32.1) | 79.4 (26.3) | 64.8 (18.2) | 55.6 (13.1) | 75.3 (24.1) |
Average low °F (°C) | 35.4 (1.9) | 38.3 (3.5) | 41.5 (5.3) | 45.2 (7.3) | 51.9 (11.1) | 56.7 (13.7) | 60.5 (15.8) | 58.3 (14.6) | 54.6 (12.6) | 46.9 (8.3) | 39.9 (4.4) | 35.3 (1.8) | 47.1 (8.4) |
Record low °F (°C) | 12 (−11) | 16 (−9) | 23 (−5) | 27 (−3) | 30 (−1) | 38 (3) | 40 (4) | 38 (3) | 35 (2) | 23 (−5) | 20 (−7) | 11 (−12) | 11 (−12) |
Average precipitation inches (mm) | 4.86 (123) | 4.42 (112) | 4.29 (109) | 1.75 (44) | 1.04 (26) | .48 (12) | .02 (0.51) | .08 (2.0) | .42 (11) | 1.42 (36) | 3.28 (83) | 4.61 (117) | 26.67 (677) |
Source: Western Regional Climate Center [12] |
Climate data for Redding, California (1961–1990) | |||||||||||||
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Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Average high °F (°C) | 57.3 (14.1) | 61.3 (16.3) | 62.5 (16.9) | 69.9 (21.1) | 80.5 (26.9) | 90.4 (32.4) | 98.3 (36.8) | 95.7 (35.4) | 89.3 (31.8) | 77.6 (25.3) | 62.1 (16.7) | 54.7 (12.6) | 74.8 (23.8) |
Daily mean °F (°C) | 45.5 (7.5) | 50.7 (10.4) | 52.5 (11.4) | 58 (14) | 66.4 (19.1) | 76.1 (24.5) | 81.5 (27.5) | 79.5 (26.4) | 74.1 (23.4) | 63.5 (17.5) | 51.8 (11.0) | 45 (7) | 62 (17) |
Average low °F (°C) | 35.7 (2.1) | 40 (4) | 41.7 (5.4) | 46 (8) | 52.3 (11.3) | 61.8 (16.6) | 64.7 (18.2) | 63.1 (17.3) | 58.8 (14.9) | 49.2 (9.6) | 41.4 (5.2) | 35.2 (1.8) | 49.2 (9.6) |
Average precipitation inches (mm) | 6.06 (154) | 4.45 (113) | 4.38 (111) | 2.08 (53) | 1.27 (32) | 0.56 (14) | 0.17 (4.3) | 0.46 (12) | 0.91 (23) | 2.24 (57) | 5.21 (132) | 5.51 (140) | 33.3 (850) |
Average precipitation days | 13.1 | 8.7 | 12.3 | 7.9 | 7.2 | 4.0 | 0.6 | 0.9 | 2.1 | 4.1 | 6.8 | 10.2 | 77.9 |
Mean monthly sunshine hours | 226 | 256 | 312 | 351 | 395 | 423 | 451 | 421 | 338 | 314 | 251 | 204 | 3,942 |
Source: [13] |
Interstate 5 is the primary route through the Sacramento Valley, traveling north–south roughly along the valley's western edge. Interstate 80 cuts a northeast-to-southwest swath through the southern end of the valley, mostly through Sacramento and Yolo Counties, and ends at the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge. Several secondary routes connect the two roads, including Interstate 505 and State Route 113. The Sacramento area has a web of urban freeways.
Other principal routes in the region include State Route 99, which runs along the valley's eastern edge, roughly parallel to I-5, from Sacramento until its northern terminus in Red Bluff; State Route 20, which traverses the valley from west to east on its route from State Route 1 in Mendocino County to the Donner Pass; State Route 49, named in honor of the California Gold Rush and running through many old mining towns in the foothills of the valley; and State Route 45, which runs along the course of the Sacramento River roughly ten miles (20 km) east of I-5.
The Union Pacific Railroad serves the valley, with its principal north–south line from Oakland, California to Portland, Oregon, via Sacramento, Marysville, Chico, and Redding. This is also the route of Amtrak's Coast Starlight passenger train. The Union Pacific also has two east–west lines, through Donner Pass (the former Central Pacific Railroad), and through the Feather River gorge (the former Western Pacific Railroad). Amtrak's California Zephyr uses the Donner Pass route. The BNSF Railway has a line from Klamath Falls, Oregon, to a junction with the Union Pacific Feather River line at Keddie. The BNSF has trackage rights on both the UP east–west routes. In addition, the California Northern Railroad operates the former Southern Pacific Railroad line on the west side of the valley from Davis to Tehama (near Red Bluff).
The Sacramento River is the principal river of Northern California in the United States and is the largest river in California. Rising in the Klamath Mountains, the river flows south for 400 miles (640 km) before reaching the Sacramento–San Joaquin River Delta and San Francisco Bay. The river drains about 26,500 square miles (69,000 km2) in 19 California counties, mostly within the fertile agricultural region bounded by the Coast Ranges and Sierra Nevada known as the Sacramento Valley, but also extending as far as the volcanic plateaus of Northeastern California. Historically, its watershed has reached as far north as south-central Oregon where the now, primarily, endorheic (closed) Goose Lake rarely experiences southerly outflow into the Pit River, the most northerly tributary of the Sacramento.
The 'Central Valley is a broad, elongated, flat valley that dominates the interior of California. It is 40–60 mi (60–100 km) wide and runs approximately 450 mi (720 km) from north-northwest to south-southeast, inland from and parallel to the Pacific coast of the state. It covers approximately 18,000 sq mi (47,000 km2), about 11% of California's land area. The valley is bounded by the Coast Ranges to the west and the Sierra Nevada to the east.
Red Bluff is a city in and the county seat of Tehama County, California, United States. The population was 14,710 at the 2020 census, up from 14,076 at the 2010 census.
Northern California is a geographic and cultural region that generally comprises the northern portion of the U.S. state of California. Spanning the state's northernmost 48 counties, its main population centers include the San Francisco Bay Area, the Greater Sacramento area, the Redding, California, area south of the Cascade Range, and the Metropolitan Fresno area. Northern California also contains redwood forests, along with most of the Sierra Nevada, including Yosemite Valley and part of Lake Tahoe, Mount Shasta, and most of the Central Valley, one of the world's most productive agricultural regions.
State Route 99 (SR 99), commonly known as Highway 99 or, simply, as 99, is a north–south state highway in the U.S. state of California, stretching almost the entire length of the Central Valley. From its southern end at Interstate 5 (I-5) near Wheeler Ridge to its northern end at SR 36 near Red Bluff, SR 99 goes through the densely populated eastern parts of the valley. Cities served include Bakersfield, Delano, Tulare, Visalia, Kingsburg, Selma, Fresno, Madera, Merced, Turlock, Modesto, Manteca, Stockton, Sacramento, Yuba City, and Chico.
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The Sacramento Northern Railway was a 183-mile (295 km) electric interurban railway that connected Chico in northern California with Oakland via the California capital, Sacramento. In its operation it ran directly on the streets of Oakland, Sacramento, Yuba City, Chico, and Woodland and ran interurban passenger service until 1941 and freight service into the 1960s.
Sacramento Valley Station is an Amtrak railway station in the city of Sacramento, California, at 401 I Street on the corner of Fifth Street. It is the seventh busiest Amtrak station in the country, and the second busiest in the Western United States with thousands of riders a day and over a million passengers per year. Today, it is served by 38 daily Amtrak and Amtrak California trains and many Amtrak Thruway Motorcoaches. It is also the western terminus of the Sacramento RT Gold Line light rail system and the Route 30 bus serving Sacramento State University.
The Golden Empire Council (GEC-BSA) is a California-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit affiliated with the Boy Scouts of America and its Western Region, Area 4. The council serves a large section of Northern California, primarily the Sacramento Valley and the northern Sierra Nevada. Its boundaries range north to south from Redding to Elk Grove and west to east from Vacaville to Pollock Pines and include 16 Northern California Counties. Its council headquarters and service center is located in Sacramento. The council also operates two Scout Shops selling BSA merchandise; located in Sacramento and Chico.
The Greater Sacramento area refers to a metropolitan region in Northern California comprising either the U.S. Census Bureau defined Sacramento–Roseville–Arden-Arcade metropolitan statistical area or the larger Sacramento–Roseville combined statistical area, the latter of which consists of seven counties, namely Sacramento, Yolo, Placer, El Dorado, Sutter, Yuba, and Nevada counties.
The Northern California Rugby Football Union (NCRFU) is the Geographical Union (GU) for Adult rugby union teams in Northern California, as well as northern Nevada. The NCRFU is part of USA Rugby.
U.S. Route 99 (US 99) was the main north–south United States Numbered Highway on the West Coast of the United States until 1964, running from Calexico, California, on the Mexican border to Blaine, Washington, on the Canadian border. Known also as the "Golden State Highway" and "The Main Street of California", US 99 was an important route in California throughout much of the 1930s as a route for Dust Bowl immigrant farm workers to traverse the state. It was assigned in 1926 and existed until it was replaced for the most part by Interstate 5 (I-5). A large section in the Central Valley is now State Route 99 (SR 99).
This article lists the railroads and a timeline of railroad history in Solano County, California.
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The Sac-Joaquin Section (SJS) is the governing body of public and private high school athletics in parts of Northern San Joaquin Valley, California. Its geographic area also covers the California portion of the Lake Tahoe region; however, three schools in that area—North Tahoe, Truckee, and South Tahoe High Schools—are instead members of the Nevada Interscholastic Activities Association due to their relative isolation from other California schools and their proximity to more populated areas in Nevada, especially in the Reno area. It is one of ten sections that compose the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF). The SJS is split into seven divisions, each comprising several leagues.
Cottonwood Creek is a major stream and tributary of the Sacramento River in Northern California. About 68 miles (109 km) long measured to its uppermost tributaries, the creek drains a large rural area bounded by the crest of the Coast Ranges, traversing the northwestern Sacramento Valley before emptying into the Sacramento River near the town of Cottonwood. For its entire length, it defines the boundary of Shasta and Tehama counties. Because Cottonwood Creek is the largest undammed tributary of the Sacramento River, it is known for its Chinook salmon and steelhead runs.
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