Mount Vaca
Encyclopedia
Mount Vaca is a mountain in Napa
and Solano
counties of Northern California
. The summit is the highest point in Solano County
and is one of several peaks in the San Francisco Bay Area
that receive winter snow.
While vaca is the Spanish
word for cow, and cattle ranching has played an important role in the vicinity, the peak and nearby city of Vacaville
are named for Juan Manuel Cabeza Vaca who was the co-owner of Rancho Los Putos
, a Mexican land grant
.
, the San Francisco CBS affiliate, built a Doppler weather radar
of their own on top of Mt. Vaca, as the mountain was blocking information about storms coming from the Northwest which could then be missed and cause flooding, heavy rains, and high winds without prior warnings. The new radar gives meteorologists a more complete view of the precipitation
distribution in the Bay Area and allows better interpretation the temperature distribution.
Napa County, California
Napa County is a county located north of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is coterminous with the Napa, California, Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of 2010 the population is 136,484. The county seat is Napa....
and Solano
Solano County, California
Solano County is a county located in Bay-Delta region of the U.S. state of California, about halfway between San Francisco and Sacramento and is one of the nine San Francisco Bay Area counties. The county's population was reported by the U.S. Census to be 413,344 in 2010...
counties of Northern California
Northern California
Northern California is the northern portion of the U.S. state of California. The San Francisco Bay Area , and Sacramento as well as its metropolitan area are the main population centers...
. The summit is the highest point in Solano County
and is one of several peaks in the San Francisco Bay Area
San Francisco Bay Area
The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a populated region that surrounds the San Francisco and San Pablo estuaries in Northern California. The region encompasses metropolitan areas of San Francisco, Oakland, and San Jose, along with smaller urban and rural areas...
that receive winter snow.
While vaca is the Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
word for cow, and cattle ranching has played an important role in the vicinity, the peak and nearby city of Vacaville
Vacaville, California
Vacaville, California is a city located in the northeastern portion of the San Francisco Bay Area in Solano County. The city is nearly half way between Sacramento and San Francisco on I-80. It sits approximately from Sacramento, and from San Francisco...
are named for Juan Manuel Cabeza Vaca who was the co-owner of Rancho Los Putos
Rancho Los Putos
Rancho Los Putos was a Mexican land grant in present day Solano County, California given in 1843 by Governor Manuel Micheltorena to Juan Felipe Peña and Juan Manuel Cabeza Vaca. The Los Putos name comes from the nearby Putah Creek...
, a Mexican land grant
Ranchos of California
The Spanish, and later the Méxican government encouraged settlement of territory now known as California by the establishment of large land grants called ranchos, from which the English ranch is derived. Devoted to raising cattle and sheep, the owners of the ranchos attempted to pattern themselves...
.
Public Access
Access to the Mt. Vaca summit is via Mix Canyon Road or Gates Canyon Road in Vacaville California. Both roads intersect the Blue Ridge Road (aka: County Road 354) which spans the summit ridge of the mountain. Both Gates Canyon and Mix Canyon Roads are illegally posted "No Trespassing". Public access to this road can be confirmed by the Solano County Surveyors Office. Lands on either side of Blue Ridge road are private property however. There are also gates placed across Blue Ridge Road, but these are Fire Department gates which are closed during extreme fire danger periods.High-definition Doppler weather radar
The San Francisco Bay Area is surrounded by mountain ranges. These mountains obstruct radars, even government ones, leaving blind spots. KPIX-TVKPIX-TV
KPIX-TV is the CBS owned and operated television station in San Francisco, California. Through its parent company CBS Corporation, KPIX is co-owned with The CW affiliate KBCW-TV ....
, the San Francisco CBS affiliate, built a Doppler weather radar
Weather radar
Weather radar, also called weather surveillance radar and Doppler weather radar, is a type of radar used to locate precipitation, calculate its motion, estimate its type . Modern weather radars are mostly pulse-Doppler radars, capable of detecting the motion of rain droplets in addition to the...
of their own on top of Mt. Vaca, as the mountain was blocking information about storms coming from the Northwest which could then be missed and cause flooding, heavy rains, and high winds without prior warnings. The new radar gives meteorologists a more complete view of the precipitation
Precipitation (meteorology)
In meteorology, precipitation In meteorology, precipitation In meteorology, precipitation (also known as one of the classes of hydrometeors, which are atmospheric water phenomena is any product of the condensation of atmospheric water vapor that falls under gravity. The main forms of precipitation...
distribution in the Bay Area and allows better interpretation the temperature distribution.