Where does Northern California end and Southern California begin? (San Jose: palm trees, weather)

[SOON2BNSURPRISE]

Originally Posted by jcastab

Do you have Safeway or Vons? That's one criteria I've used.

We have Vons in Oxnard, Ventura area. Haven't seen a Safeway in years. They used to be in Oxnard, along with Smith's Food King, Alpha-Beta and many others. I prefer to shop at Food 4 Less.

Using that as a marker, does that mean Oxnard and Ventura are in Northern or Southern California? Where are Safeways located now?

[vdy1985]

I know Central Coast is Central Coast, and the Central Valley is the Central Valley. But when I travel down I-5, you get this feeling that you left NorCal at the Kern County line and at the San Luis Obispo County line... They just feel more SoCal if I had to draw a definite boundary.

But SoCal is definitely Ventura County, LA County, Riverside County, San Bernardino County, OC, SD County, and Imperial County without a doubt. Santa Barbara can be argued, but it is more of a cultural thing, since it has colonized by LA folk. But historically, SB is Central Coast without a doubt.

[SOON2BNSURPRISE]

Originally Posted by vdy1985

I know Central Coast is Central Coast, and the Central Valley is the Central Valley. But when I travel down I-5, you get this feeling that you left NorCal at the Kern County line and at the San Luis Obispo County line... They just feel more SoCal if I had to draw a definite boundary.

But SoCal is definitely Ventura County, LA County, Riverside County, San Bernardino County, OC, SD County, and Imperial County without a doubt. Santa Barbara can be argued, but it is more of a cultural thing, since it has colonized by LA folk. But historically, SB is Central Coast without a doubt.

I know that the Federal Government considers the Channel Islands National Park as only having one Island in Southern California and the rest in Northern California. They consider them to be in the Santa Barbara Channel. Which is funny since three of the islands are off the coast of Ventura County. Who knows other than having a Northern or Southern state of mind. I for one have always thought of myself as a Southern California guy and I grew up in Port Hueneme and lived most of my adult life in Oxnard.

[jdavid93225]

Originally Posted by MimzyMusic

Big Sur is culturally and geographically Northern California, but lies in the southern half of the state.

How can Big Sur be geographically in Northern California if it's in the southern half of the state? This sounds contradictory.

Originally Posted by MimzyMusic

Death Valley and Lake Mono are in the northern half of the state, but being desert are part of Southern California.

Geographically, Death Valley is very close to the halfway point in the state, while Mono Lake is just a little north of it. Culturally, the communities in those areas align themselves more with those in northern California than southern California.

Originally Posted by MimzyMusic

I think the border is where the rivers stop flowing south and flow north into the San Joaquin River, and in the east where the Sierra Nevadas turn into the desert. On the coast, San Simeon is where you enter Southern California.

Again, you have to decide if you're talking culturally, or geographically. If you are talking about a cultural dividing line, you can't really split north and south. You would actually have to split more on the lines of coastal and inland, or urban and rural to reflect the cultural differences in the state.

[jdavid93225]

Originally Posted by Caliguy2007

I live in Kern County and most of us here don't consider our area as a part of Southern California,but more of Central California.

Same goes for me. Personally, if the state were divided, I would want to be in the part that does not include L.A. or San Francisco.

Originally Posted by Caliguy2007

Many of us feel that Southern California begins at the L.A County Line.

Many do indeed feel that way, but personally, I feel that some parts of L.A. County would be identified more as Central than Southern CA. The area immediately around Gorman may actually be the only area in L.A. County where this is the case, though.

[jdavid93225]

Originally Posted by SOON2BNSURPRISE

We have Vons in Oxnard, Ventura area. Haven't seen a Safeway in years. They used to be in Oxnard, along with Smith's Food King, Alpha-Beta and many others. I prefer to shop at Food 4 Less.

Using that as a marker, does that mean Oxnard and Ventura are in Northern or Southern California? Where are Safeways located now?

Safeway stores are located in the northern parts of the state. Vons stores, which are owned by safeway, are located in the southern parts of the state. That was the reason for using that as a definition, as jcastab did.

Another poster suggested using Disneyland's criteria. Zip codes higher than 93599 would be Northern.

These are both examples of the corporate divide in the state.

[nmnita]

Originally Posted by sav858

I think most people consider anything from Santa Barbara and the Grapevine south as Southern CA but would also include the large desert areas east of the Sierra Nevada's that stretch north of that area, like you said. Basically everything south of Santa Barbara, Los Angeles, San Bernardino/Inyo Counties is Southern CA.

I agree, another division I have seen, which would be similar, is above Bakersfield versus Bakersfield and south.

[BlackShoe]

California is much too complex to simply divide it into North and South.About twenty years ago a book was written that divided the state into about ten or twelve regions that the author called,I believe,nations,or a similar name.Each region had a distinct geo-political characteristic as well as economic features.Am unable to recall the books title or the authors name at this time.At the very least,California should be divided into three parts.Draw a line from San Luis Obispo to Las Vegas.Below this line is SoCal.Draw a line from Santa Rosa to Reno.Below this line to the first line is CenCal.Above the line is NoCal.These are my opinions,but they are based as much on politics,attitudes,and econonics as geography.

[Winston Smith]

I still say an east-west divide makes more sense than north-south. L.A. has a lot more in common with the greater Bay Area than it (the Bay) has in common with Sacramento. Kern might border Ventura but the former has far more in common with Yolo than anything to the west -- north or south.

[mysticaltyger]

Originally Posted by 18Montclair

Every county fully visible in this map is Southern California.


Its irksome to see maps that actually claim San Jose, Monterey and Yosemite as part SoCal....as if.

Actually, I would not consider San Luis Obispo and Kern Counties as SoCal. I do agree that they do retain a bit of SoCal flavor, but one could also say that of San Jose.