Bathymetry bounding Tomales Point

Bathymetry bounding Tomales Point. Rugged and massive granite outcrops extend offshore from Tomales Point to water depths of as much as 60 meters. Offshore sedimentary rock outcrops (lower left part of image) form distinctive “ribs” on the seafloor and have a notably different appearance. There is minimal sediment on this part of the California shelf because the watersheds draining the west flank of Tomales Point are very small and because Tomales Point and Tomales Bay block sediment transport from the north. Rocky-shelf outcrops and rubble are excellent habitats for rockfish and lingcod, recreationally and commercially important species. Tomales Bay, approximately 20-km long and 1- to 2-km wide, formed along a submerged portion of the San Andreas Fault (very shallow water depths preclude collection of high-resolution bathymetric data at the mouth of Tomales Bay).