Rancho Marino Reserve

Rancho Marino Reserve is a coastal research reserve at the south end of Cambria on the San Luis Obispo County coast, operated by the University of California as part of its Natural Reserve System and named for Kenneth S. Norris. With no public access, it preserves a landscape shaped by faults, marine terrace, drainages, Monterey pine forest, prairie, scrub, and nearby kelp beds. The site also reflects a long human history, from Native Californian use five thousand years ago to Rancho Santa Rosa, later dairying, and Chinese seaweed farming. Today it supports long-term research, including studies of kelp forests, intertidal habitats, climate, Monterey pines, and southern sea otters, alongside continued cattle grazing.

Cambria, California · United States