Given the amount of natural beauty that Santa Cruz County offers on dry land alone, it can be easy to forget that the region sits on the doorstep of one of the world’s premier diving locations.

Day by day, Matthew Abraham is recovering from a severe head injury he sustained in March that rendered him confused and caused him to leave his home without letting anyone know. The 21-year-old Scotts Valley resident’s disappearance launched an interstate search effort before he eventually realized that he might be missed and his traveling companion contacted authorities in Salt Lake City, Utah, three days after he left home.

A Felton-based poet has recently released “On the Cruz: Poems of Santa Cruz,” a compilation of more than 20 years’ worth of poems highlighting the unique culture, history, and landscape of the county.

In true grassroots fashion, Santa Cruz County Supervisor Bruce McPherson has called on community members in Felton, Ben Lomond and Boulder Creek to form advocacy groups to help implement the ideas each town came up with this spring.

For those with the eyes to see it, the rich history of Santa Cruz County – human and natural history alike – is visible at virtually every turn.