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A small town in central California proudly claims to be the “Earthquake Capital of the World”. Parkfield, California sits right on the San Andreas fault where residents have become used to feeling the earth move.

As you drive into the Parkfield, you cross a one-lane bridge built over a dry creek bed. The San Andreas Fault runs right under this bridge and it’s here where two of the earth’s tectonic plates, the North American and Pacific Plate meet. At either end of the bridge, there are signs letting you know which tectonic plate you’re driving on. The plates are moving – slowly bumping up against one another and the movement is visible on the bridge.

The Pacific Plate is moving north at about a half an inch a year,” says Jack Varian, a longtime rancher in Parkfield. He points out a visible bow in the bridge from the stress of the plates moving against one another.

“If you look down the bridge you can see it has a slight bow and over time the Pacific Plate end of the bridge will continue to move north.”

Parkfield sits among the rolling hills of the Cholame Valley. It’s listed as the smallest most southern town in Monterey County with a population of just 18. But the town’s claim to being the “Earthquake Capital of the World”, has nothing to do with the magnitude of quakes there. It has to do with the frequency of the earthquakes. According to the US Geological Survey, since 1857 here have been six moderate earthquakes, in the 6.0 magnitude range, at intervals of 22 years or so.

Varian experienced his first earthquake in Parkfield in the 1960s, shortly after moving to the small town. He says it wasn’t the earthquake that was a big deal but the aftershocks that continued for over a month after the original temblor were unnerving. Overall, Varian says earthquakes in Parkfield are “much ado about nothing”.

The Parkfield earthquakes take place on what’s known as a strike-slip fault. Bacially, the movement of the fault is horizontal instead of vertical.

In the 1980s, because of the regular pattern of earthquakes along the San Andreas in Parkfield, the USGS decided to begin research there. It was an attempt to learn what happens before, during and after an earthquake on the San Andreas Fault. Scientists also hoped it would help them better predict earthquakes. It’s known as the Parkfield Earthquake Experiment.

Throughout the Cholame Valley seismometers and other instruments were installed, many of them set up on Varian’s ranch. While the hope was to help predict future quakes in Parkfield, one quake slipped through – outside the previously established timeline. A magnitude 5.9 quake struck Parkfield in 2004. No matter what timeline set by previous earthquakes in Parkfield – it appears the earth moves on its own timeline.

Parkfield is listed as the smallest town in Monterey County, but it does have a school, forestry service, the USGS station, rodeo arena, town hall, and library. During the summer months, the town is filled with visitors.

The rolling hills of the Cholame Valley make it worth the drive to Parkfield. The landscape is beautiful with plenty of wildlife.

Residents in Parkfield are used to the earthquakes and welcome visitors to “Be Here When It Happens”. That’s what is written on an old boiler sitting outside the Parkfield Lodge.

Jack Varian and his family run the Parkfield Lodge, V6 Ranch and host events in Parkfield and at his cattle ranch – everything from festivals to horsemanship clinics to weddings. And the V6 continues to be a working cattle ranch. Varian and his family incorporated cattle drives and even a dude ranch for those wanting to escape city life and get back on the land. Varian and his son got the idea after seeing the film City Slickers.

Jack Varian’s blog can also be found on the V6 Ranch webpage. The 86-year-old shares his thoughts on life, the ranch and being a steward. If you’re lucky maybe you’ll get the chance to meet him on your visit to Parkfield.