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The Sacramento Valley is the portion of the California Central Valley that lies to the north of the San Joaquin-Sacramento Delta. It encompasses all or parts of ten counties.
Geography
The Sacramento River and its tributaries dominate the geography of the Sacramento Valley. Rising in the various mountain ranges (the various Northern Coast Ranges to the west, the southern Siskiyou Mountains to the north, and the northern Sierra Nevada to the east) that define the shape of the valley, they provide water for agricultural, industrial, residential, and recreation uses. Most of the rivers are heavily dammed and diverted.
The terrain of the Sacramento Valley is primarily flat grasslands that become lusher as one moves east from the rain shadow of the Coast Ranges toward the Sierras. Unlike the San Joaquin Valley, which in its pre-irrigation state was a vegetation-hostile desert, the considerably more humid Sacramento Valley had significant tracts of forest prior to the arrival of settlers of European ancestry. Most of it was cut down during the California Gold Rush and the ensuing wave of white American settlement.
One of the most unique geographic features of the Sacramento Valley is Sutter Buttes. Nicknamed the smallest mountain range in the world, it consists of the remnants of an extinct volcano and is located just outside of Marysville.
Agriculture
While citrus and nut orchards and cattle ranches are common to both halves of the Central Valley, the Sacramento Valley's agricultural mix is otherwise considerably different from that of the San Joaquin Valley to the south. Nuts (primarily almonds and walnuts) are of greater importance north of the Delta, and rice, which is unviable in the bone-dry deserts of the San Joaquin, is a major crop. The town of Corning proclaims itself "Olive City," producing olives for oil extraction and for consumption as fruit.
Climate
Weather patterns in the Sacramento Valley are very similar to those in San Joaquin Valley to the south, although the humidity and precipitation tends to be a bit higher to the north, especially in winter and spring. Summers are generally hot and dry with average daytime temperatures usually around the low 90s, but often reaching well over 100 and sometimes over 110. Falls tend to be an "extended summer" throughout California, with foliage generally not occurring until well into November. Winters are generally mild and wet with highs averaging in the mid-40s to low-50s, colder in the northern part of the valley and colder still in the foothils. The Sacramento Valley, more so than its southern counterpart, is prone to strong thunderstorms and, surprisingly, a fair number of tornadoes, mostly at F0 or F1 intensity but sometimes F2. Snow in the valley is rare, although Redding, being at the north end of the valley, often experiences a light dusting or two per year. During late fall and winter, the entire Central Valley is susceptible to dense tule fog that makes driving hazardous, especially at night.
Transportation
Interstate 5 is the primary route through the Sacramento Valley, traveling lengthwise roughly at the valley's center. Interstate 80 cuts a northeast-to-southwest swath through the southern end of the valley, mostly through Sacramento and Yolo Counties. Several secondary routes connect the two roads, including Interstate 505 and California State Highway 113. The Sacramento area has a large web of urban freeways.
Other principal routes in the region include California State Highway 99, which runs along the valley's eastern edge, roughly parallel to I-5, from Sacramento until its northern terminus in Red Bluff; California State Route 20, which traverses the valley from west to east on its route from California State Route 1 in Mendocino County to the Donner Pass; and California State Route 45, which runs along the course of the Sacramento River roughly ten miles (20 km) east of I-5.
The Union Pacific Railroad serves the valley, with its principal north-south line from Oakland to Portland, Oregon, via Sacramento, Marysville, Chico, and Redding. This is also the route of Amtrak's "Coast Starlight" passenger train. The Union Pacific also has two east-west lines, through Donner Pass (the former Central Pacific line), and through the Feather River gorge (the former Western Pacific line). Amtrak's "Zephyr" uses the Donner Pass route. The Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway has a line from Klamath Falls, Oregon, to a junction with the Union Pacific Feather River line at Keddie. The BNSF has trackage rights on both the UP east-west routes. In addition, the California Northern Railroad operates the former Southern Pacific line on the west side of the valley from Davis to Tehama (near Red Bluff).
Educational institutions
- University of California, Davis
- California State University, Chico
- California State University, Sacramento
- Simpson College, in Redding
- William Jessup University, in Loomis
Major Cities
Counties of the Sacramento Valley
"Sacramento Valley"