Sonoma County Points of Interest
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Goat Rock Beach at the Mouth of the Russian River
24 September 2004
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Goat Rock is the large, flat rock separated from the mainland by a causeway.
24 September 2004
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Arch at Goat Rock Beach
27 April 2022
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Skerries at Goat Rock Beach
27 April 2022
(Click photos to zoom)
Coastal Highway at the Mouth of the Russian River
Jenner
Goat Rock Beach is at the mouth of the Russian River. Goat Rock, which protrudes into the Pacific Ocean, can be accessed via a low isthmus. The separation of Goat Rock from the mainland is not natural but is the result of quarrying in the 1920s.
The naming of Goat Rock is uncertain. Local lore maintains that early 20th century goatherds used the flat, grassy top of the formation for grazing goats. Few other species could scale the steep slopes.
Along Goat Rock Beach and adjoining beaches, massive rock outcroppings are located both on the shore and protruding from the ocean as small skerries. Some skerries have natural arches formed by wave action selectively eroding weaker strata of the rock formations.
Source: Wikipedia