Pine Mountain Lake, California
Pine Mountain Lake | |
|---|---|
View across a calm Pine Mountain Lake toward the Dunn Court area | |
Pine Mountain Lake Position in California. | |
| Coordinates: 37°51′36″N 120°11′04″W / 37.86000°N 120.18444°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | California |
| County | Tuolumne |
| Area | |
• Total | 19.241 sq mi (49.834 km2) |
| • Land | 18.961 sq mi (49.108 km2) |
| • Water | 0.280 sq mi (0.726 km2) 1.46% |
| Elevation | 2,795 ft (852 m) |
| Population | |
• Total | 2,636 |
| • Density | 140/sq mi (53/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC-8 (Pacific (PST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-7 (PDT) |
| ZIP Code | 95321 |
| Area code | 209 |
| GNIS feature ID | 2583115 |
| U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Pine Mountain Lake, California | |
Pine Mountain Lake (PML) is a private gated community and a census-designated place (CDP) in Groveland, California located in Tuolumne County, California.[2] It is located 0.8 miles (1.3 km) north and east of downtown Groveland. Pine Mountain Lake sits at an elevation of 2,795 feet (852 m).[2] The 2020 United States census reported Pine Mountain Lake's population was 2,636.
The ZIP Code is 95321. The community is inside area code 209.
The "Gateway to Yosemite", PML is an all-seasons vacation and retirement community. PML includes a private 202-acre (0.82 km2) lake with 6 miles (9.7 km) of shoreline. The community also hosts an 18-hole championship golf course, golf shop, lake lodge, tennis, hiking, horseback riding, swimming, fishing, an airport, and close proximity to local shopping, medical, and government services. PML is 26 miles (42 km) west of Yosemite National Park on State Highway 120. It gets a light dusting of snow in the winter, and has warm summer days, a green spring, and colorful fall.
About
The community of Big Oak Flat was founded by James D. Savage, who began mining the area about 1851. In "Discovery of the Yosemite and the Indian War of 1851 which led to that event" by Lafayette Bunnell, Savage is credited as the leader of the first group of non-Native Americans of European ancestry into Yosemite Valley, on March 27, 1851. Others of European ancestry may have seen the valley as early as 1833. From approximately 1916 to 1924, Big Oak Flat served as a staging area and housing location for workers constructing the Hetch Hetchy Railroad which was required to build the O'Shaughnessy Dam on the Tuolumne River in the Hetch Hetchy Valley. Big Oak Flat is now registered as California Historical Landmark #406.
The lake is spring-fed and is also fed by Big Creek. It has 210 acres (0.8 km2) of water and 6 miles (10 km) of shoreline. It affords water skiing, sailing, swimming and fishing. It has three sandy swim beaches, a boat launch marina and a fisherman's park. Pine Mountain Lake Association stocks the lake with trout. The lake is surrounded by pines and manzanitas, and most homes cannot be seen from the lake, preserving its wilderness feeling.
The Pine Mountain Lake subdivision was developed by Boise Cascade in the late 1960s with about 3,600 homesites averaging about one third to one half of an acre each. PML offers an equestrian center, tennis, a PGA rated golf course with a full-time golf pro, a "country club," and full-time mobile security patrol. The lake is about 2,546 feet (776 m) feet above mean sea level. The highest points in the community are about 3,100 feet (940 m) AMSL. Altitudes range from about 2,600 to 3,100 ft (940 m). Temperatures range from the 20–30 °F in winter to 80–90 °F in the summer.
Groveland has Tenaya Elementary School (grades K–8) and Tioga High School (grades 9–12), part of the Big Oak Flat-Groveland Unified School District.[4] Columbia College (California) is about 25 miles (40 km) down the hill in Columbia, 2 miles (3 km) from Sonora (about 22 miles (35 km) from Groveland).
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP covers an area of 19.2 square miles (49.8 km2), 19.0 square miles (49.1 km2) of it land and 0.3 square miles (0.7 km2) of it (1.46%) water.[1]
Demographics
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 2,796 | — | |
| 2020 | 2,636 | −5.7% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census[5] 2010[6] | |||
Pine Mountain Lake first appeared as a census designated place in the 2010 U.S. Census.[6]
The 2020 United States census reported that Pine Mountain Lake had a population of 2,636. The population density was 139.0 inhabitants per square mile (53.7/km2). The racial makeup of Pine Mountain Lake was 84.8% White, 0.4% African American, 0.9% Native American, 1.4% Asian, 0.2% Pacific Islander, 2.8% from other races, and 9.5% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 8.2% of the population.[7]
The census reported that 99.7% of the population lived in households, 0.3% lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and no one was institutionalized.[7]
There were 1,292 households, out of which 13.4% included children under the age of 18, 51.7% were married-couple households, 6.1% were cohabiting couple households, 21.7% had a female householder with no partner present, and 20.5% had a male householder with no partner present. 31.7% of households were one person, and 18.7% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.03.[7] There were 805 families (62.3% of all households).[8]
The age distribution was 9.7% under the age of 18, 3.8% aged 18 to 24, 14.5% aged 25 to 44, 25.3% aged 45 to 64, and 46.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 63.2 years. For every 100 females, there were 106.3 males.[7]
There were 3,055 housing units at an average density of 161.1 units per square mile (62.2 units/km2), of which 1,292 (42.3%) were occupied. Of these, 83.2% were owner-occupied, and 16.8% were occupied by renters.[7]
Pine Mountain Lake, as well as the greater Groveland area, sits within Census Block 06109004200, which includes large portions of both southern Tuolumne County, as well as northern portions of Mariposa County.
Government
In the California State Legislature, Pine Mountain Lake is in the 8th senatorial district, represented by Democrat Angelique Ashby, and the 5th Assembly district, represented by Republican Joe Patterson.[9]
In the United States House of Representatives, Pine Mountain Lake is in California's 4th congressional district, represented by Democrat Mike Thompson.[10]
Airport
The Pine Mountain Lake Airport is five miles (8 km) from the intersection of Ferretti Road and SR120. The facility has an FAA identifier of E45 and features a roughly-3,600-foot (1,100 m) runway.
See also
Sources
- Map: "Stanislaus National Forest, California," U.S. Forest Service, 1979.
- Map: "Groveland, California," U.S. Geological Survey, 1987.
- Airport Facility Directory: Southwest U.S., U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation Administration, unknown date.
References
- ^ a b "2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved July 1, 2025.
- ^ a b c U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Pine Mountain Lake, California
- ^ "US Census Bureau". www.census.gov. Retrieved August 18, 2024.
- ^ Big Oak Flat Groveland Unified School district
- ^ "Decennial Census by Decade". United States Census Bureau.
- ^ a b "2010 Census of Population - Population and Housing Unit Counts - California" (PDF). United States Census Bureau.
- ^ a b c d e "Pine Mountain Lake CDP, California; DP1: Profile of General Population and Housing Characteristics - 2020 Census of Population and Housing". US Census Bureau. Retrieved May 31, 2025.
- ^ "Pine Mountain Lake CDP, California; P16: Household Type - 2020 Census of Population and Housing". US Census Bureau. Retrieved May 31, 2025.
- ^ "Find Your California Representative". California State Legislature. Retrieved November 14, 2018.
- ^ "California's 4th Congressional District - Representatives & District Map". Civic Impulse, LLC. Retrieved September 28, 2014.