California map

Where California is

California runs 770 miles along the Pacific coast from the Oregon border (42°N) to the Mexican border south of San Diego. Oregon lies to the north, Nevada to the east across the Sierra Nevada, and Arizona to the southeast across the Colorado River. It is the third-largest state by area after Alaska and Texas, and the most populous by a wide margin — one in eight Americans lives here.

Major cities

Geography

• Sierra Nevada — the eastern spine, with Mount Whitney (14,505 ft), the highest point in the contiguous US. See the Sierra Nevada map.
• Central Valley — 450 miles of farmland between the Sierra and the Coast Ranges, drained by the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers.
• Death Valley — Badwater Basin, 282 ft below sea level, the lowest point in North America, only 85 miles from Whitney.
• Deserts — the Mojave in the southeast and the Colorado Desert (part of the Sonoran) near the Mexican border.
• Coast — 840 miles of Pacific coastline, the third-longest of any state.

Borders

The straight northern border with Oregon follows the 42nd parallel. The eastern border with Nevada is two straight lines meeting at Lake Tahoe: due south along 120°W, then diagonally southeast to the Colorado River. The Colorado River then forms the border with Arizona. The southern border with Mexico is 140 miles long.

Regions of California

Northern California (Bay Area, Sacramento, the North Coast), the Central Valley, the Central Coast, and Southern California (Los Angeles, Inland Empire, San Diego). The Sierra Nevada, the deserts and the far north (Shasta, Redwood coast) are usually treated separately.

Related maps

• California county map — all 58 counties with seats.
• Blank California map — outline for printing.
• Printable California map.
• Sacramento — why the capital is not Los Angeles or San Francisco.
• Neighbors: Oregon, Nevada, Arizona.