Aliso Creek (also Aliso Canyon Wash or Aliso Wash) is a major
tributary
A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drainage ...
of the Upper
Los Angeles River
, name_etymology =
, image = File:Los Angeles River from Fletcher Drive Bridge 2019.jpg
, image_caption = L.A. River from Fletcher Drive Bridge
, image_size = 300
, map = LARmap.jpg
, map_size ...
in the
Santa Susana Mountains
The Santa Susana Mountains are a transverse range of mountains in Southern California, north of the city of Los Angeles, in the United States. The range runs east-west, separating the San Fernando and Simi valleys on its south from the Santa Cla ...
in
Los Angeles County
Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles, and sometimes abbreviated as L.A. County, is the most populous county in the United States and in the U.S. state of California, with 9,861,224 residents estimated as of 2022. It is the ...
and western
San Fernando Valley
The San Fernando Valley, known locally as the Valley, is an urbanized valley in Los Angeles County, California. Located to the north of the Los Angeles Basin, it contains a large portion of the City of Los Angeles, as well as unincorporated ar ...
in the
City of Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
,
California
California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
.
It has a
watershed
Watershed is a hydrological term, which has been adopted in other fields in a more or less figurative sense. It may refer to:
Hydrology
* Drainage divide, the line that separates neighbouring drainage basins
* Drainage basin, called a "watershe ...
of .
[Section 2: Site Descriptions](_blank)
/ref> It is the second major tributary, after Browns Canyon Wash−Creek, to enter the Los Angeles River
, name_etymology =
, image = File:Los Angeles River from Fletcher Drive Bridge 2019.jpg
, image_caption = L.A. River from Fletcher Drive Bridge
, image_size = 300
, map = LARmap.jpg
, map_size ...
downstream of its headwaters
The headwaters of a river or stream is the farthest place in that river or stream from its estuary or downstream confluence with another river, as measured along the course of the river. It is also known as a river's source.
Definition
The ...
at the confluence
In geography, a confluence (also: ''conflux'') occurs where two or more flowing bodies of water join to form a single channel. A confluence can occur in several configurations: at the point where a tributary joins a larger river (main stem); o ...
of Bell Creek and Arroyo Calabasas
Arroyo Calabasas (also known as Calabasas Creek) is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed March 16, 2011 tributary of the Los Angeles River, in the southwestern San Fernando ...
in Canoga Park
Canoga Park is a neighborhood in the San Fernando Valley region of the City of Los Angeles, California. Before the Mexican–American War, the district was part of a rancho, and after the American victory it was converted into wheat farms and t ...
.
Course
The stream runs about from Aliso Canyon below Oat Mountain
Oat Mountain is a mountain, peak of the Santa Susana Mountains overlooking the San Fernando Valley (near Los Angeles, California) to the south and southeast. Oat Mountain is the highest peak in the Santa Susana Mountains of California. The Los A ...
in the Santa Susana Mountains to its confluence with the Los Angeles River.
During its first , it is a free-flowing stream mostly contained within Aliso Canyon Park and Eddlestone Park on the border of Granada Hills and Porter Ranch
Porter Ranch is a suburban neighborhood in the northwest San Fernando Valley region of the City of Los Angeles, California.
History
New home construction that was completed in the Porter Ranch area in the 1990s–2000s, including the Renaissan ...
. After it passes under State Route 118 (Simi Valley Freeway) and enters Northridge, it empties into a retention basin
A retention basin, sometimes called a wet pond, wet detention basin, or stormwater management pond (SWMP), is an artificial pond with vegetation around the perimeter and a permanent pool of water in its design. It is used to manage stormwater r ...
and from there on is encased in a concrete
Concrete is a composite material composed of fine and coarse aggregate bonded together with a fluid cement (cement paste) that hardens (cures) over time. Concrete is the second-most-used substance in the world after water, and is the most wi ...
flood control channel
Flood control channels are large and empty basins which let water flow in and out (except during flooding) or dry channels that run below the street levels of some larger cities, so that if and when a flood occurs, the water will run into these ch ...
flowing southward across the San Fernando Valley. Upstream of Plummer Street Wilbur Canyon Wash enters it, and shortly after that downstream Limekiln Wash enters it, both on the right bank
In geography, a bank is the land alongside a body of water. Different structures are referred to as ''banks'' in different fields of geography, as follows.
In limnology (the study of inland waters), a stream bank or river bank is the terrai ...
.
In Reseda the Aliso Creek channel makes a 90-degree bend to the east, south of Vanowen Avenue and west of West Valley Park, flowing a short distance to its confluence with the Los Angeles River, north of Victory Boulevard between Wilbur Avenue and Reseda Boulevard
Reseda Boulevard, named Reseda Avenue until May 1929, is a major north–south arterial road that runs through the western San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles, California.
Reseda Boulevard runs approximately from the Santa Monica Mountai ...
.Google Maps
/ref>
Crossings and tributaries
From northern Santa Susana Mountains
The Santa Susana Mountains are a transverse range of mountains in Southern California, north of the city of Los Angeles, in the United States. The range runs east-west, separating the San Fernando and Simi valleys on its south from the Santa Cla ...
source to southern mouth (year built in parentheses):
*Rinaldi Street
*California State Route 118
State Route 118 (SR 118) is a state highway in the U.S. state of California that runs west to east through Ventura and Los Angeles counties. It travels from State Route 126 at the eastern edge of Ventura immediately northwest of Saticoy, then ...
- Ronald Reagan Freeway
Ronald is a masculine given name derived from the Old Norse ''Rögnvaldr'', Hanks; Hardcastle; Hodges (2006) p. 234; Hanks; Hodges (2003) § Ronald. or possibly from Old English '' Regenweald''. In some cases ''Ronald'' is an Anglicised form of ...
(1980)
*Concrete flood channel opening
*San Fernando Mission Road
*Tribune Street
*Chatsworth Street
*San Jose Street edestrian Bridge(1967)[http://clkrep.lacity.org/onlinedocs/2007/07-2474_rpt_boe_10-02-07.pdf ]
*Service bridges
*Devonshire Street
*Lemarsh Street
*Reseda Boulevard
Reseda Boulevard, named Reseda Avenue until May 1929, is a major north–south arterial road that runs through the western San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles, California.
Reseda Boulevard runs approximately from the Santa Monica Mountai ...
(1950)
*Lassen Street (1966)
*Yolanda Avenue (1963)
*Limekiln Canyon Wash enters
*Wilbur Avenue (1969)
*Plummer Street (1967)
*Nordhoff Street (1969)
*Wilbur Canyon Wash enters
*Railroad: Union Pacific
The Union Pacific Railroad , legally Union Pacific Railroad Company and often called simply Union Pacific, is a freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Paci ...
Coast Line, Metrolink Ventura County Line
The Metrolink Ventura County Line is a commuter rail line serving Ventura County and the San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles County and the City of Los Angeles, in the Southern California system. The line is the successor of the short lived CalTr ...
*Parthenia Street (1955)
*Chase Street edestrian Bridge(1958)
*Roscoe Boulevard (1955)
*Wilbur Avenue (1955)
*Strathern Street (1952)
*Arminta Street edestrian Bridge(1960)
*Saticoy Street (1954)
*Valerio Street edestrian Bridge(1976)
*Sherman Way (1954)
*Hart Street edestrian Bridge(1954)
*Vanowen Street (1954)
*Confluence
In geography, a confluence (also: ''conflux'') occurs where two or more flowing bodies of water join to form a single channel. A confluence can occur in several configurations: at the point where a tributary joins a larger river (main stem); o ...
with the Los Angeles River
, name_etymology =
, image = File:Los Angeles River from Fletcher Drive Bridge 2019.jpg
, image_caption = L.A. River from Fletcher Drive Bridge
, image_size = 300
, map = LARmap.jpg
, map_size ...
channel
See also
*Aliso Canyon gas leak
The Aliso Canyon gas leak (also called Porter Ranch gas leak and Porter Ranch gas blowout) was a massive natural gas leak in the Santa Susana Mountains near Porter Ranch, Los Angeles, California. Discovered on October 23, 2015,Sharon McNary ( ...
*Aliso Canyon Oil Field
The Aliso Canyon Oil Field (also Aliso Canyon Natural Gas Storage Field, Aliso Canyon Underground Storage Facility) is an oil field and natural gas storage facility in the Santa Susana Mountains in Los Angeles County, California, north of the Port ...
*
*
References
{{Los Angeles San Fernando Valley, state=collapsed
Rivers of Los Angeles County, California
Tributaries of the Los Angeles River
Geography of the San Fernando Valley
Santa Susana Mountains
Granada Hills, Los Angeles
Northridge, Los Angeles
Porter Ranch, Los Angeles
Reseda, Los Angeles
Rivers of Southern California