This index is the site map to all pages covering the state of California. Unless otherwise noted, all photographs taken by Alex Nitzman and Andy Field. Many thanks to Casey Cooper, Pete Sison, Joel Windmiller, Kevin Trinkle, Mike Ballard, Mark Furqueron, Russ Connelly, Trevor Carrier, and Steve Hanudel for participating in taking trips with us and submitting photos from California.
Population Statistics
State Population
33,871,648
Top County Populations
Los Angeles
9,519,338
Orange
2,846,289
San Diego
2,813,833
San Bernardino
1,709,434
Santa Clara
1,682,585
Riverside
1,545,387
Alameda
1,443,741
Sacramento
1,223,499
Contra Costa
948,816
Fresno
799,407
San Francisco
776,733
Ventura
753,197
Top City Populations
Los Angeles
3,694,820
San Diego
1,223,400
San Jose
894,943
San Francisco
776,733
Long Beach
461,522
Fresno
427,652
Sacramento
407,018
Oakland
399,484
Santa Ana
337,977
Anaheim
328,014
Riverside
255,166
Bakersfield
247,057
Stockton
243,771
Fremont
203,413
Glendale
194,973
Source: 2000 U.S. Census Data
Other Statistics
Capital: Sacramento
Nickname: Golden State
If it were its own country, California would rank sixth among the world's richest nations based on the value of goods and services the state produces (as of 2000).
California decommissioned (eliminated) most of its U.S. routes in 1964: U.S. 40, U.S. 60, U.S. 66, U.S. 70, U.S. 80, U.S. 91, U.S. 99, U.S. 299, U.S. 399, and U.S. 466. Other routes that were truncated or reduced in length include U.S. 6, U.S. 50, U.S. 101, and U.S. 395. Only U.S. 95, U.S. 97, and U.S. 199 were left alone.
California 49, the Gold Country Highway, is so numbered because gold was discovered in the Sierra Nevada Mountain foothills in 1848, with a plethora of treasure seekers traversing the foothills in the Gold Rush of 1849.
Area: 163,695.57 square miles or 411,049 square kilometers, 3rd largest
Statehood: 31st state; admitted September 9, 1850
Total Interstate Mileage: 2,457.34 miles
Highest Point: Mount Whitney (east of Lone Pine partially in Sequoia National Park and Inyo National Forest in the Sierra Nevada Mountains), 14,494 feet above sea level. This is the highest point in the 48 contiguous states.
Lowest Point: Death Valley National Park at Badwater Basin, -282 feet below sea level. This is the lowest point in the 48 contiguous states.
The San Gabriel Mountains north of the Los Angeles Basin run east-west, unlike the north-south alignment of the state's other mountain chains: Sierra Nevada, Coast Range, and Cascades.
The Central Valley (formed by the Sacramento and San Joaquin Rivers) is the chief agricultural area of the state, followed by the irrigated Imperial Valley in the southern desert.
California 259 - connector from I-215 north to California 210 east
California 260 - eastern approach to unconstructed Southern Crossing (including Webster and Posey Tubes under Inner Harbor between Oakland and Alameda)
California 261 - Eastern Transportation Corridor Connector to Jamboree Road
