33-475: Wilder Ranch State Park is a California State Park on the Pacific Ocean coast north of Santa Cruz, California . The park was formerly a dairy ranch, and many of the ranch buildings have been restored for use as a museum. There are no campgrounds; a day-use parking lot provides access to the museum. Dogs are prohibited on the trails, but many trails allow bikes and/or horses. The long trails and ocean views make
66-521: A complete plot, as Twain abandoned the other two works after finishing only a few chapters. It is set in the 1840s in the Mississippi. The fictional character's name may have been derived from a jolly and flamboyant chief named Tom Sawyer, with whom Twain was acquainted in San Francisco , California , while Twain (which was the assumed pen-name of the author born Samuel Langhorne Clemens) was employed as
99-481: A condition of undisturbed integrity," or State Cultural Reserves which consist of areas selected and managed to preserve the integrity of historic structures and features as well as areas with spiritual significance to California indigenous people. State Wildernesses are areas where the environment has not been affected by humans and are relatively undeveloped state-owned or leased lands which have retained their original characters and influence or have been restored to
132-492: A near-natural appearance. State wildernesses can be established within other state parks system units. Natural preserves are nonmarine areas of outstanding natural or scientific significance established within the boundaries of other units to preserve features natural features such as rare or endangered species and their supporting ecosystems. Cultural preserves are those established also within other units to preserve cultural features such as sites, buildings or zones important to
165-406: A park totaling 7,000 acres (28 km) that extends 7.5 mi (12.1 km) up-slope from the coast and creates a swath of publicly owned land from the shore all the way to the town of Felton . The main ranch road (dirt) extends through Wilder Ranch to the Pacific Ocean coast, and in the other direction connects to a fire road on the U.C.S.C. campus. The former "Gray Whale Ranch" also contains
198-401: A reporter at The San Francisco Call . Twain used to listen to Sawyer tell stories of his youth: " Sam , he would listen to these pranks of mine with great interest and he'd occasionally take 'em down in his notebook. One day he says to me: 'I am going to put you between the covers of a book some of these days, Tom.' 'Go ahead, Sam,' I said, 'but don't disgrace my name. ' " Twain himself said
231-401: Is a marine protected area along the coast of Wilder Ranch State Park and part of the adjacent Natural Bridges State Beach . The long, narrow Reserve area is bounded by the mean high tide line and a distance of 200 feet seaward of mean lower low water. This protected area helps conserve ocean tidal-zone wildlife and marine ecosystems. California State Park California State Parks is
264-537: Is divided into 21 districts. California's first state park was the Yosemite Grant , which today constitutes part of Yosemite National Park . In 1864, the federal government set aside Yosemite Valley for preservation and ceded the land to the state, which managed the famous glacial valley until 1906. California's oldest state park, Big Basin Redwoods State Park , was founded in 1902. Until 1921, each park
297-568: The Mark Twain novel The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876). He appears in three other novels by Twain: Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884), Tom Sawyer Abroad (1894), and Tom Sawyer, Detective (1896). Sawyer also appears in at least three unfinished Twain works, Huck and Tom Among the Indians , Schoolhouse Hill , and Tom Sawyer's Conspiracy . While all three uncompleted works were posthumously published, only Tom Sawyer's Conspiracy has
330-488: The National Park Service ) serving as acquisition officer, the new system of state parks rapidly began to grow. William Penn Mott Jr. served as director of the agency under Governor Ronald Reagan . In May 2008 The National Trust for Historic Preservation listed the park system as a whole on their list of America's Most Endangered Places . On January 10, 2008, Governor Schwarzenegger 's office announced that
363-919: The state park system for the U.S. state of California . The system is administered by the California Department of Parks and Recreation , a department under the California Natural Resources Agency . The California State Parks system is the largest state park system in the United States. California State Parks administers 279 separate park units on 1.4 million acres (5,700 km ), with over 280 miles (450 km) of Californian coastline ; 625 miles (1,006 km) of lake and river frontage; nearly 15,000 campsites; and 3,000 miles (4,800 km) of hiking, biking, and equestrian trails. Headquartered in Sacramento , park administration
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#1732875970526396-772: The California State Park System will consider indefinite closures of all or part of 48 specific individual parks (one in five) to help meet the challenges of the looming (projected) $ 14.5 billion deficit facing California for its 2008-2009 budget year. On September 25, 2009, Governor Schwarzenegger's office announced that all state parks would remain open during the 2009-2010 fiscal year using one-time budget reduction methods in maintenance, equipment, and services. A record wet winter in 2023 caused more than $ 210 million in storm damage to California's State Parks. Responsible for almost one-third of California's scenic coastline (280 miles), California State Parks manages
429-629: The Hell Hole is the "Hall of Faces", a clay room where people leave sculptures and sign a book at the very bottom. Getting to the Hall of Faces is no easy task, and requires descending the 90 foot (27 m) vertical called "The Pit", which itself accessed via some further narrow tunnels from the Party Room. Barricades are periodically placed on the cave entrance to prevent entry, but these barriers are typically removed fairly quickly. Natural Bridges State Marine Reserve
462-593: The State Parks and the millions of people who visit them each year. Parks are patrolled by sworn State Park Peace Officers , of which there are two classifications, State Park Ranger and State Park Lifeguards. Subdivisions of California State Parks include the California Office of Historic Preservation, Off-Highway Motor Vehicle Recreation Division, and the Boating & Waterways Division. The Parks Forward Commission
495-532: The area a favorite of hikers, equestrians and mountain bikers . Public beaches continue to the north in Coast Dairies State Park . The first European land exploration of Alta California , the Spanish Portolà expedition , followed the coast in this area on its way north, camping at today's Majors Creek (now the northern park boundary) on October 18, 1769. On its way through today's Santa Cruz County,
528-458: The cave in January 1990; prompting security guards to limit access to the Hell Hole along with other caves on Grey Whale Ranch. Around this time, visiting the cave was considered to be a rite of passage for students at the nearby UC Santa Cruz , however, many visitors did damage the cave and leave litter behind. In spite of the best efforts from early explorers to keep the location of the cave a secret,
561-1149: The classification of units of the state park system. All units that are or will become part of the system, except those units or parts of units designated by the state legislature as wilderness areas or are subject to any other provision of law are classified by the State Park and Recreation Commission into one of these classifications. State Parks "consist of relatively spacious areas of outstanding scenic or natural character, oftentimes also containing significant [...] values. State recreation units "consist of areas selected, developed, and operated to provide outdoor recreational opportunities" and are classified as either State Recreation Areas, Underwater Recreation Areas, State Beaches, and Wayside Campgrounds. State Recreation Areas consist of "areas selected and developed to provide multiple recreational opportunities," and are selected for "having terrain capable of withstanding extensive human impact and for their proximity to large population centers, major routes of travel, or proven recreational resources." Underwater Recreation Areas consist of "areas in
594-414: The explorers bestowed a few important names which survive today: Pajaro River , San Lorenzo River and Santa Cruz. On the return journey to San Diego , the party camped at the same spot on November 21. Franciscan missionary Juan Crespi noted in his diary the difficulty of moving along this part of the coast: "The road on this march was very troublesome, on account of the frequent gulches [arroyos] along
627-413: The first state park bond issue. Its efforts were rewarded in 1928 when Californians voted nearly three-to-one in favor of a $ 6 million park bond act. In addition, Frederick Law Olmsted Jr. completed a statewide survey of potential park lands that defined basic long-range goals and provided guidance for the acquisition and development of state parks. With Newton B. Drury (later to be named director of
660-457: The former rancho in 1871. In 1885, the partners split the holdings into separate ranches. Most of both ranches are now contained within the park. Among the historic ranch buildings, the older farmhouse predate the Wilders. The oldest part of it was built in the 1850s. Wilder's elegant 1897 Victorian home also survives. The Wilder family continued to operate the dairy until 1969, and the state acquired
693-510: The human history of California. State Marine Reserves have a uniform classifications established by the Marine Managed Areas Improvement Act: State Marine Reserve, State Marine Park, State Marine Conservation Area, State Marine Cultural Preservation Area, and State Marine Recreational Management Area. Tom Sawyer Thomas " Tom " Sawyer ( / ˈ s ɔː j ər / ) is the title character of
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#1732875970526726-558: The land in 1974. Since then, the Bolcoff adobe, two Wilder houses and several other ranch structures have been restored for use as a museum. In 1996 the state acquired the adjacent "Gray Whale Ranch" . The 2,305 acres (9.33 km) parcel contains many long trails, extending from the northern boundary of Wilder Ranch to the University of California at Santa Cruz campus. The addition of " Gray Whale Ranch", plus more recent additions, results in
759-468: The land in 1996 for $ 13.4 million and transferred it to the State Parks Department . The California Coastal Conservancy and the state California Wildlife Conservation Board (California Department of Fish and Wildlife), each contributed to help State Parks acquire the property for just over $ 1 million. Spelunking is one popular activity at Gray Whale Ranch, although most cavers try to prevent
792-436: The location of the Hell Hole is easily found online, which has made it even easier for visitors to visit the cave; however, inexperienced spelunkers are actively discouraged from visiting the Hell Hole, due to the many risks involved. Entering the cave involves descending a rather narrow tunnel, before a ~15 foot drop leading to a reasonably large room, known as the "Party Room". The main destination for contemporary explorers to
825-452: The location of the caves from becoming widely known. One such example is the "Hell Hole" (originally known as the " Tom Sawyer Cave" when it was first reported in 1954; subsequently known by the names of "IXL" and "Hell Hole" by 1990) a limestone cave, popular with local spelunkers. This cave was known about in the local spelunking community since at least 1953, but gained some further local notoriety after two spelunkers needed rescuing from
858-714: The nonmarine aquatic environment selected and developed to provide surface and subsurface water-oriented recreational opportunities..." State Beaches consist of "areas with frontage on the ocean or bays designed to provide beach-oriented recreational activities." Wayside Campgrounds consist of "relatively small areas suitable for overnight camping and offering convenient access to major highways." Historical units are "nonmarine areas established primarily to preserve objects of historical, archaeological, and scientific interest, and archaeological sites and places commemorating important persons or historic events." State seashores "consist of relatively spacious coastline areas with frontage on
891-936: The ocean, or on bays open to the ocean [...] possessing outstanding scenic or natural character and significant recreational, historical, archaeological, or geological values." State Historic Parks consists of 47 specially-designated historic sites across California, that highlight crucial events in the history of California and provide an educational opportunity for those interested in learning about Californian history, namely students. These include battlegrounds, Californian missions , historic estates, cave paintings , and colonial fortifications, among others. State Reserves "consist of areas embracing outstanding natural or scenic characteristics or areas containing outstanding cultural resources of statewide significance," and are classified as either State Natural Reserves which consist of areas selected and managed to preserve their ecology, fauna, flora, geological features, and scenic qualities "in
924-512: The parks and providing reservations while being overwhelmed by the responsibility for managing the park system. The sites managed and preserved by the department are categorized into different types. There are 87 State Parks, 63 State Beaches, 51 State Historic Parks, 32 State Recreation Areas, 16 State Natural Reserves, 14 State Park Properties, 8 Vehicular Recreation Areas, 2 State Marine Reserves, 1 State Historical Monument, 1 State Seashore, and 1 Wayside Park. The Public Resources Code provides
957-511: The ruins of a lime manufacturing operation, including a quarry and lime kilns built by early lime manufacturer Samuel Adams in the mid-19th century. The ranch and lime works were later acquired by industrialist Henry Cowell . The "Gray Whale Ranch" had been zoned only for logging but was considered for further development before the Save the Redwoods League , a private conservation group, bought
990-984: The state's finest coastal wetlands , estuaries , beaches , and dune systems. California State Parks contains the largest and most diverse natural and cultural heritage holdings of any state agency in the nation. State park units include underwater preserves, reserves, and parks; redwood , rhododendron , and wildlife reserves; state beaches, recreation areas, wilderness areas, and reservoirs; state historic parks, historic homes, Spanish era adobe buildings, including museums, visitor centers, cultural reserves, and preserves; as well as lighthouses , caverns , ghost towns , water slides, conference centers, and off-highway vehicle parks. These parks protect and preserve an unparalleled collection of culturally and environmentally sensitive structures and habitats, threatened plant and animal species, ancient Native American sites, historic structures and artifacts. The Department employs State Park Peace Officers Law Enforcement to protect and preserve
1023-485: The way." When Mission Santa Cruz was established in 1791, the area became part of the mission pasture lands. Secularization of the missions in 1834 divided the mission lands into large land grants called "ranchos". Wilder Ranch was part of Rancho Refugio , a Mexican land grant of 1839. Historic buildings include part of the adobe rancho house built around that time by rancho grantee Jose Bolcoff. Dairyman Delos D. Wilder, in partnership with L. K. Baldwin, acquired part of
Wilder Ranch State Park - Misplaced Pages Continue
1056-481: Was formed after the California Legislature called for the formation of a multidisciplinary advisory council to conduct an independent assessment and make recommendations. The commission issued a report in 2015 that noted the lack of maintenance for many parks along with visitors who do not reflect the diversity of California's population. The report also said the agency is using outdated technology for managing
1089-494: Was managed by an independent commission or agency. In 1927, the California Legislature, with the support of Governor C. C. Young , established the State Park Commission, and its original membership included: Major Frederick R. Burnham , W. F. Chandler, William E. Colby (Secretary), Henry W. O'Melveny, and Dr. Ray Lyman Wilbur . The following year, a newly established State Park Commission began gathering support for
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