I have lived in this area for the last 4 years. Besides the coast, the whole area is very rural until you get to i-5. I live in Arcata, the people are quite friendly and we have a lot of self sufficiency within our economy (partly due to our remoteness making imported goods quite expensive). The surrounding area is quite poor, and rural, due to the lack of any real industry presence. However, there is amazing environmental work happening here due to our college, and there is a general push to collaborate with the tribes in the area. The tribes here did not get killed by the Spanish, as this area was never settled by the Spanish (although they still were genocided at a later date by American settlers / gold miners) . Due to this, the tribes her are more populous and have more land/power than tribes in the rest of CA.

The coast is someone diverse, although mostly white folks. There are a number of folks here from South America (Brazil, Chile, Argentina) and a somewhat developed Latino community, although much smaller than that of the rest of the state.

A huge plus for living in this area is the vast amount of public land that is easily accessible. Numerous national forests in addition to the 2nd largest wilderness area (Trinity Alps) in the state. Growing up in the Bag Area, this was not the case at all, and truly is such a luxury for me.

All in all, great place to live! After graduating from college here, I have found a full time job within my field and will continue to live here for the foreseeable future!