Theory that Santa Cruz is the hellmouth (in Buffy)

Where is Sunnydale located? - BuffyGuide.com Forums: "Theory Four: 380 miles between Sunnydale and Los Angeles.

from bcb83:

How do I know........?

Well as you may know they (Marti and Joss) used all of the collages from the University of California at Santa Cruz for the UC Sunnydale campus. And for my money Sunnydale IS Santa Cruz.

If you've lived there, or even visited for an extended amount of time than you know,.......it's a natural fit.

Santa Cruz is a sleepy and creepy little town just above Montery CA. It's fairly warm and has great beaches. The town is fairly low-rise and has the density and feel to be Sunnydale.

Do to an unfortunate comment by the local district attorney, Santa Cruz was nicknamed the 'Murder Capital' of the country in the early seventies.

Santa Cruz has numerous beautiful old cemetaries (five come to mind immediately and there are probably more). And a gratiutous amount of churches. Practically every flavor and splinter of Christian, Pagan, Buddist, Jew and Moslem (not to mention Masonic and Magical organizations) are staunchly represented in town even if it's just one guy shouting at the mall or praying in a basement.

The town is close to San Jose and the greater baya"