Cobb is a census-designated place in Lake County, California, set on the forested slopes of Cobb Mountain at an elevation of about 2,631 feet in the North Coast Range, above the Clear Lake basin. The community lies about a mile northwest of Whispering Pines and is reached by Highway 175, which winds through the mountain highlands of southern Lake County. Cobb sits within one of the most geologically distinctive areas in California. The Geysers, the world's largest geothermal complex, wraps around the northwest and south sides of Cobb Mountain, and the region's volcanic history is visible in its rhyolite deposits and hot springs. Geothermal energy development in the 1980s brought an influx of population to the area, and the geothermal facilities remain a notable feature of the local landscape and economy. The community is best known nationally for a difficult chapter in its history: the 2015 Valley Fire, which ignited on Cobb Mountain and became one of the most destructive wildfires in California's history, devastating much of the town of Cobb along with several geothermal facilities. In the years since, the community has rebuilt, and its recovery has shaped both its housing stock and its identity. The 2020 census recorded a population of about 1,300, down from roughly 1,800 a decade earlier, reflecting the fire's impact. Cobb is served by the Middletown Unified School District, with Cobb Mountain Elementary School educating the community's youngest students on Highway 175. Recreation centers on the surrounding forest: Boggs Mountain Demonstration State Forest offers hiking and mountain biking through wooded terrain, and Clear Lake — the largest natural freshwater lake entirely within California — lies a short drive down the mountain for fishing and boating. For residents, Cobb offers a secluded, forested mountain lifestyle in one of Lake County's most distinctive natural settings.