Parkfield, CA: Earthquake Capitol of the World

Part 1 of SoCal 2020, A Trip for the Soul

Parkfield, California, is home to only 18 people. It is nestled in the Monterey County wine country, roughly halfway between Highway 101 and Interstate 5, northeast of Paso Robles and southwest of Coalinga. On my way I pass golden-glazed hills and trees bent in stately poses, as if they were butlers holding up trays, with a handful of wineries and ranches interspersed.

The economy centers around cattle ranching, some wine grape production, and most notably, earthquakes. The Parkfield Cafe and the Parkfield Lodge are the only services.

I read about Parkfield in Simon Winchester’s book A Crack in the Edge of the World, a deep look into the geologic and historical forces leading up to the 1906 San Francisco earthquake. Parkfield sits astride the San Andreas Fault and experiences an earthquake of 6.0 magnitude or higher an average once every 22 years. The town’s nickname is “The Earthquake Capitol of the World.” Seismologists heavily monitor the area to better understand how, why, and when the earth shakes as it relates to the fault.

The web promises a great burger at the Parkfield Cafe. I try the bacon cheddar burger, and it explodes with the taste of those key ingredients, with a patty that oozes juices, a crunchy bun, and the taste of having been cooked over an open oak barbecue pit. This early autumn day there is a light, warm breeze, woodpeckers and other birds, and the murmuring of six motorcyclists at a neighboring table. Add the burbling of the water fountain, the fresh green lawn my wooden picnic table sits on under the shade of tall oaks, and the country music playing unobtrusively over the loudspeaker, and for thirty minutes there is no pandemic. Life is sweet.

The dining room features saddles for barstools and has cattle ranching paraphernalia hanging from the ceiling. The lobby sells plush steers and cowboys, cowboy-themed mugs and air fresheners, a jigsaw puzzle depicting a cattle drive, and other items. A bumper sticker features a cowboy banging a frying pan with a wooden spoon, calling out the town’s slogan “Be here when it happens.”

In 2004 Parkfield experienced its most recent 6.0 earthquake. My server was five and at a little white and blue schoolhouse just paces away from the lodge and cafe when it occurred.

“On average there’s 11 kids (at the school),” she says. “The most we had was 20. I was the only kid in my grade until the fourth grade, when my cousin came.”

A monument in the park bears witness to the theory of plate tectonics. Two concrete slabs, placed some 12 feet apart, show how much the ground has moved since 1931. About 31 million years from now, Los Angeles will slip past San Francisco, and Parkfield will be undersea. 

Thankfully that's plenty of time to visit this unique blip on the map.

Visited: October 23, 2020