Shelter Cove, California

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Shelter Cove is a small town in Humboldt County, California, United States on California's Lost Coast. Lying where the King Range meets the Pacific Ocean, it is a principle population center in the Lost Coast region and is adjacent to the similarly situated Whitethorn, California.

Shelter Cove is located near Sinkyone Wilderness State Park. There are also State parks such as Black Sands Beach, Mal Coombs Park, Seal Rock Picnic Area and Abalone Point. Much of the land around Shelter Cove is publicly owned and managed by the Bureau of Land Management of the United States Department of the Interior. The town's golf course surrounds its one runway Shelter Cove Airport.

[edit] History

The area around Shelter Cove was originally home to Native Americans known as the Sinkyone people.

Because of the very steep terrain on the coastal areas surrounding Shelter Cove, the highway builders constructing California State Route 1 (the "Pacific Coast Highway") decided it was too difficult to build the coastal highway along a long stretch of what is now the Lost Coast. As a result, the small fishing village of Shelter Cove remained very secluded from the rest of the populous state, despite being only 230 miles north of San Francisco, and is accessible by boat, via small mountain road, or by a small airfield.

As a result of its seclusion, the Shelter Cove are has become a popular spot for those seeking quiet vacation respite or retirement area. Popular activities in the area include fishing, whale watching, hiking, diving for abalone, surfing and other outdoor activities.

The Cape Mendocino Light, a lighthouse from Cape Mendocino, was moved to Mal Coombs Park in 1998.