Castaic, California Population 22,173 is a community in Los Angeles county. It lies north of Santa Clarita in Castaic Canyon, a few miles from the Santa Clarita Valley and Six Flags Magic Mountain amusement park. It is approximately 39 miles (63 km) from the downtown Los Angeles Civic Center.
Today it is a growing community near the San Fernando valley and Greater Los Angeles area and has many new suburban one and two story houses in new developments. It began life in 1915 at the opening of the original Ridge Rout which brought travelers looking for gasoline, water, food, and lodging. Many early day residents of Castaic were involved in providing for travelers' needs along the Ridge Route. Today travelers still enjoy stopping at Castaic for their needs but also enjoy nearby amenities including Castaic Lake and Piramid Lake where boating and swimming are favorite pastimes.
Castaic Lake is the terminus of the west branch of the State Water Project and an 1175 MW pumped storage hydroelectric plant located at the north end of Lake Castaic captures the energy from the falling water. From Castaic the water is delivered by pipelines to the Los Angeles area.
It covers 100 square miles (259 kmē) of area, and includes the Val Verde and Chiquito Canyon areas.
The origin of the name Castaic - misspelled by many over the decades - is the Native American word Kashtuk, meaning "eyes."
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