Between California’s explosive growth following the discovery of gold in 1848, the fields of golden poppies that appear each spring throughout the state, the golden gate bridge, and the clear, golden coastal sunsets over the Pacific – California truly is the golden state! California stretches from the Mexican border along the Pacific for nearly 900 miles. Its terrain includes cliff-lined beaches, redwood forest, the Sierra Nevada Mountains, Central Valley farmland and the Mojave Desert. The city of Los Angeles is the seat of the Hollywood entertainment industry. Hilly San Francisco is known for the Golden Gate Bridge, Alcatraz Island and cable cars.