The Central Coast is an area of California, roughly spanning the coastal region between Point Mugu and Monterey Bay. It lies northwest of Los Angeles County and south of San Mateo and Santa Clara County counties. Six counties make up the Central Coast: from south-to north, Ventura, Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, Monterey, San Benito, and Santa Cruz. The Central Coast includes 17 mile drive, Point Lobos and the rugged, undeveloped stretch of coastline known as Big Sur

The Central Coast is the location of the Central Coast wine growing region.

The Piedras Blancas Elephant Seal Rookery spreads over 6 miles of shoreline around Point Piedras Blancas on the central coast of California. Elephant seals come ashore and form colonies for only a few months of each year to give birth, breed, and molt. The rest of the year the colonies disperse and individuals spend most of their time in pursuit of food, a quest which involves swimming thousands of miles and diving to great depths.The breeding season begins in late November when mature bulls begin to arrive and fight to determine dominance. The females start arriving in the middle of December and continue to arrive until the middle of February. The first birth is around Christmas, but most births usually occur during the last two weeks of January. The females remain on the beach for about five weeks from the time they come ashore. Amazingly, the males are on the beach for up to 100 days. The seals are fasting while they are on land, and both males and females lose about 1/3 of their body weight during the breeding season.