![]() Of the three original arches only the middle one remains. Wave erosion carved the arches and then cut away the cliffs leaving only islands. The arches formed over a million years ago when a combination of silt, clay and diatoms were solidified into a mixture of stone that formed the three original arches of the beach. Natural Bridges State Beach is named for the naturally occurring mudstone bridges that were carved by the Pacific Ocean into cliffs that jutted out into the sea. The intertidal zone is home to mussels, sea stars, sea anemones and limpets, seen here being studied by children. Geology The natural bridge, as seen at dusk. The park is now surrounded by beach development and commercial properties. The land surrounding the park was largely wild and undeveloped until the 1970s. The land was purchased by the State of California in 1933 and construction of the state beach facilities began in 1954. The area in and around the park later supported a dairy farm, a brussels sprouts farm, hotel, housing for mill workers, a South Seas movie set and a failed housing development. California became part of the United States after the Mexican–American War. The citizens of Mexico used what is now Natural Bridges State Beach as pasture land for their cattle. Governance of the area was transferred from Spain to Mexico after the Mexican War of Independence. ![]() The population of Native Americans was greatly reduced by European diseases to which they had no resistance. The displacement of the natives began with the Spanish colonization of the Americas when missionaries and soldiers brought the Ohlone into the missions. Their crafts included shellfish jewelry and baskets. They made tools from locally found stones and shells. The Ohlone raised medicinal plants and herbs. The Ohlone were a semi-nomadic tribe that hunted game and marine mammals and supplemented their diets with shellfish, fish, edible roots and shoots, acorns, nuts, and seeds. The first inhabitants in the Santa Cruz area were small groups of Native Americans. History Arches at Natural Bridges in 1970 A 1975 view of Natural Bridges from the south The Monarch Butterfly Natural Preserve is home to up to 150,000 monarch butterflies from October through early February. It is also well known as a hotspot to see monarch butterfly migrations. The park features a natural bridge across a section of the beach. Natural Bridges State Beach is a 65-acre (26 ha) California state park in Santa Cruz, California, in the United States. It is a great place to take your kids and family to get some fresh air and beautiful views.Location of Natural Bridges State Beach in California ![]() They have a store and a museum in the park with some history on the animals and these butterflies. This lovely place is also the home to the Monarch Butterflies. It is best to go during low tide to really see what this place has to offer: star fish, shore crabs, sea anemones, and other colorful ocean life. They are a park and a beach with public access to tide pools. Natural bridges is located on the west side of Santa Cruz, at the end of the beautiful west cliff drive and Swanton Blvd. If you love the beach and the outdoors, you’ll most likely end up in Santa Cruz. However, as a local I park outside and walk in to enjoy all the goodies this place has to offer. The best of all is that they are free, unless you want to pay to use the park for the day. Being a local Realtor in the area, I wanted to start posting some helpful insights and photos of the local places to explore. I remember coming here for field trips and thinking how amazing it is to have this so close at our finger tips. What an amazing place! One of my childhood favorites.
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