page_title: Pacific Grove, California
section_title: Environmental features and geography
hierarchical_section_title: Pacific Grove, California / Environmental features and geography
caption_attribution_description: English: ICE PLANTS IN BLOOM IN MAY WHICH GO RIGHT DOWN TO THE SEA. PACIFIC GROVE PLANTS FLOWERS TO CONSTANTLY ATTRACT THE MONARCH BUTTERFLY FOR WHICH THE TOWN IS FAMOUS
context_page_description: Pacific Grove is a coastal city in Monterey County, California in the United States. The 2010 United States Census population is 15,041. Pacific Grove is located between Point Pinos and Monterey.
  Pacific Grove has numerous Victorian-era houses, some of which have been turned into bed and breakfast inns. The city is also the location of the Point Pinos Lighthouse, the Pacific Grove Museum of Natural History and the Pacific Grove Art Center. Author John Steinbeck resided in Pacific Grove for a number of years. Later, the area was a filming location for A Summer Place starring Sandra Dee, for Roger Spottiswoode's 1989 film Turner & Hooch, and for the TV series Big Little Lies.
context_section_description: Pacific Grove contains several habitat types including marine, littoral, pine forest and mixed oak woodland. The famed breeding habitat for the monarch butterfly is situated in the northwest part of town imbedded in residential neighborhoods in mixed oak forests. These monarchs migrate 2,000 miles (3,200 km) to reach Pacific Grove after their summer in the Rocky Mountains, often soaring as high as 3,000 meters (9,800 ft).
  The black-and-orange monarch butterflies spend much of the fall and winter in Monterey pine and eucalyptus trees, roughly from the vernal equinox through the spring equinox. The majority of butterflies are protected in the city's Butterfly Sanctuary. City Ordinance No. 352 makes it a misdemeanor to kill or threaten a butterfly, punishable by a $1000 fine.
  Pacific Grove Marine Gardens State Marine Conservation Area, Lovers Point State Marine Reserve, Edward F. Ricketts State Marine Conservation Area and Asilomar State Marine Reserve are marine protected areas in the waters around Pacific Grove. Like underwater parks, these marine protected areas help conserve ocean wildlife and marine ecosystems. Monterey Bay is a marine protected sanctuary.
  The principal noise source in Pacific Grove is State Route 68. There are approximately 800 residents exposed to sound levels of 60 CNEL or above, making Pacific Grove noticeably quieter than its neighbor Monterey, which has more tourist traffic and more through traffic.
  The town sits between its two well known neighbors, Pebble Beach and Monterey. Carmel-by-the-Sea is the next city, five miles to the south, and the community of Big Sur is 30 miles south. Pacific Grove is a favorite vacation getaway for San Francisco Bay Area residents, located one and a half hours south of San Francisco.
  The town does not allow development on the waterside of the ocean-front street, so that the beaches and scenic points are unobstructed.
  Pacific Grove is located at 36°37′9″N 121°55′16″W (36.619065, -121.921025). That places it on the Pacific Ocean between Monterey and Pebble Beach, about 40 miles south of Santa Cruz and about 100 miles south of San Francisco. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 4.0 square miles (10 km²). 2.9 square miles (7.5 km²) of it is land and 1.1 square miles (2.8 km²) of it (28.42%) is water. Asilomar, Lovers Point and the intervening coastline afford surfing, which is challenging due to near shore rocks, albeit waves are typically moderate in height.
  Pacific Grove's climate is mild throughout the year, essentially the same as in neighboring Monterey, with most of the rain falling from November through April. Extreme temperatures are rare and fog is common, especially in the late night and early morning, all year. (See Monterey for more details.)
caption: South African Drosanthemum floribundum bloom late spring between Lovers Point and the Point Pinos Lighthouse
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