Portal:San Francisco Bay Area/Selected article/11

Sonoma Mountain is a prominent landform within the Sonoma Mountains of southern Sonoma County, California. At elevation of 2463 ft, Sonoma Mountain offers expansive views of the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Sonoma Valley to the east. In fact, the viticultural area extends in isolated patches up the eastern slopes of Sonoma Mountain to almost 1700 ft in elevation.

The eastern and northern slopes are protected from afternoon heat and hence are more densely forested in oak woodlands, abetted by the well drained nutrient rich soils. The western and southern slopes, on the other hand, are drier and warmer, leading to fewer dense woodlands and more chaparral, grassland and oak savannah. (more...)