The topography of the Great Meadow rises in gently undulating steps from the base of campus to the elevation of the top of the bike path and the East Fields. The gently undulating steps or benches are marine terraces, each of which represents old ocean floor that has been uplifted to its present position.
Marine terraces are common all along coastal California.
In Santa Cruz, there are at least five terraces, the first of which is called the Mission Street or Highway 1 terrace. The corner of Laural and California Streets lies at the seaward edge of the Highway 1 terrace. The second terrace is the Western Drive terrace, and the third terrace is represented on campus by the flat area near the Carriage House, the Campus Facilities Office, the faculty apartments, and the campus garage, and is just visible in the photograph to the left. Terraces higher then the third are older and less well preserved on campus. One reason the upper terraces are not well preserved on campus is the role of the underlying marble in the development of karst topography.