Merced, CA

Merced, a charter city that operates under a council-manager government, is in Merced County, California in the San Joaquin Valley of Central California. Merced, known as the "Gateway to Yosemite", is less than two hours by car from Yosemite National Park to the east and to the west are Monterey Bay, the Pacific Ocean, and miles of beaches. Amtrak serves passengers through the Merced Municipal Airport and there are also three bus lines. The city became home to the tenth University of California campus, University of California, Merced (UCM), the first research university built in the U.S. in the 21st century.