California has the Sierra Nevada mountain range.
California . California 's diverse geography ranges from the Pacific Coast in the west to the Sierra Nevada mountain range in the east ; and from the redwood -- Douglas fir forests in the northwest to the Mojave Desert in the southeast . The Sierra Nevada ( [ siˈɛrə_nᵻˈvɑːdə ] or [ nᵻˈvædə ] , [ ˈsjera neˈβaða ] , snowy range ) is a mountain range in the Western United States , between the Central Valley of California and the Basin and Range Province . The vast majority of the range lies in the state of California , although the Carson Range spur lies primarily in Nevada .