Chino Hills

Chino Hills
Highest point
Elevation	485 m (1,591 ft)
Geography
<div style="padding:2px 2px 5px 2px;> Location of the Chino Hills in California [1]
Country	United States
State	California
District	San Bernardino County
Range coordinates	33°56′02″N 117°44′16″W / 33.9339°N 117.7378°W / 33.9339; -117.7378Coordinates: 33°56′02″N 117°44′16″W / 33.9339°N 117.7378°W / 33.9339; -117.7378
Topo map	USGS Prado Dam

An insect inside a flower in Chino Hills.

The Chino Hills are a mountain range on the border of Orange, Los Angeles, and San Bernardino Counties, California, with a small portion in Riverside County. The Chino Hills State Park preserves open space and habitat in them.^[2]

Geography

The Chino Hills are separated from the Santa Ana Mountains to the south by the Santa Ana River (Santa Ana Canyon). On the northwest, Brea Canyon separates the Chino Hills from the Puente Hills.^[3] To the north of the Puente Hills and San Jose Creek lie the San Jose Hills.^[4] The only paved road crossing the Chino Hills is Carbon Canyon Road (State Route 142).^[3]

Recreation in Chino Hills

The City of Chino Hills provides a variety of options for residents and non-residents within the area ranging from sports, equestrian activities, and locations to host private events. Big League Dreams Sports Park, is a multi-use sports facility, its 33 acres attracts tournaments, visitors, and new commercial ventures. Chino Hills is home of the McCoy Equestrian and Recreation Center, the facility has a large community room, outdoor wedding areas along with three lighted horse arenas, covered bleachers, gazebo, and connections to the trail system. McCoy is utilized for community events, horse show competitions and also for private events such as small receptions and parties. Recently added to the city is the Chino Hills Community Center, the city's largest complex which hosts numerous classes, large events such as weddings and banquets. The Chino Hills Community Center is located between the McCoy Center and Community Park. Chino Hills is also home of the Los Serranos Golf & Country Club which opened in 1925 and continues to be a favored community attraction. Chino Hills has recently built a new state of the art library, James S. Thalman Chino Hills Branch with excellent reading and technology use opportunities.

Flora

The Chino Hills are in the California chaparral and woodlands ecoregion of the California Floristic Province. The California native plants here are in the chaparral and oak woodland plant communities, with remnant stands of native grasses of California.

Chino Hills earthquake

On July 29, 2008, a magnitude 5.5 earthquake was located 3 miles southwest of Chino Hills that was felt throughout Southern California and felt as far east as the Las Vegas Valley and as far south as San Diego. It occurred at 11:42 am PDT and caused structural damage to buildings, including to St. Jude Centers for Rehabilitation and Wellness and to the Pomona City Hall. Water mains were ruptured in limited areas of Los Angeles, and superficial damage was done to the facades of businesses and other buildings. Many businesses, including Wal-Mart, reported damage to merchandise which was knocked to the floor and South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa suffered damage to a portion of the ceiling which was knocked to the chair of a restaurant.

There were reports of minor injuries but no fatalities.^[5]

Fauna

The famed Cliff Swallows of Mission San Juan Capistrano are now nesting in the Chino Hills. Thousands of the small birds, up from 'wintering' in Argentina, have built their mud nests in the eaves of the Vellano Country Club, a community situated around a golf course in the hills.^[6]

Adjacent ranges

• Puente Hills
• San Rafael Hills
• San Joaquin Hills
• Santa Ana Mountains
• San Gabriel Mountains
• San Bernardino Mountains

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Chino Hills (landform).

See also

• Pasinogna, California
• Rancho Santa Ana del Chino
• Chino Hills State Park

References