The Santa Monica Mountains rise
abruptly from the overwhelming flatness of the
Oxnard plain in southeast Ventura County, California.
Volcanic in nature, dry for all but a brief period during the
winter and spring, covered with tough, scrubby chaparral, these
mountains extend from the eastern edge of Camarillo southeast to
Malibu, and provide local residents with a welcome respite from
the pavement, noise and suburban sprawl so typical of much of
Southern California. Here in the mountains you can smell
sweet dry grasses and hear the whisper of wind or the calls of
birds that pierce the peaceful silence. You go away renewed,
aware that you're part of a living, breathing planet of which our
individual, man-made lives are only one small element.
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The Santa Monica Mountains as seen from the edge of
the Oxnard plain, just outside Camarillo.
At mid-picture, the California State University Channel Islands campus
lies tucked among the
trees. Note the landmark campus bell tower a little to the right
of center.
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Winding up Potrero Road (which is
actually much steeper than it appears
in this shot), toward the plateau above
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View of the edge of the Oxnard Plain as it meets the
mountains, which rise abruptly, as if they had been shoved up from
underneath by a giant hand. The back edge of the CSUCI campus sits
just to the right of this view.
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