Laguna Canyon (also called Cañada de las Lagunas, meaning "Lake Canyon" in
Spanish
Spanish might refer to:
* Items from or related to Spain:
**Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain
**Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries
**Spanish cuisine
Other places
* Spanish, Ontario, Can ...
)
[ is a canyon that cuts through the ]San Joaquin Hills
The San Joaquin Hills are a low mountain range of the Peninsular Ranges System, located in coastal Orange County, California.
They extend in a northwest–southeast direction, starting in the northwest in Newport Beach at the southern edge of t ...
in southern Orange County
Orange County most commonly refers to:
*Orange County, California, part of the Los Angeles metropolitan area
Orange County may also refer to:
U.S. counties
*Orange County, Florida, containing Orlando
*Orange County, Indiana
*Orange County, New ...
, California
California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
, in the United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
, directly south of the city of Irvine. The canyon runs from northeast to southwest, and is drained on the north side by tributaries of San Diego Creek
San Diego Creek is a urban waterway flowing into Upper Newport Bay in Orange County, California in the United States. Its watershed covers in parts of eight cities, including Irvine, Tustin, and Costa Mesa. From its headwaters in Laguna Woo ...
and on the south by Laguna Canyon Creek. It is deeper and more rugged on the southwestern end near Laguna Beach
Laguna Beach (; ''Laguna'', Spanish for "Lagoon") is a seaside resort city located in southern Orange County, California, in the United States. It is known for its mild year-round climate, scenic coves, environmental preservation efforts, and a ...
.
Geologically, the canyon likely originated millions of years ago as the result of San Diego Creek cutting through the San Joaquin Hills. Uplift diverted that stream to its present course, leaving Laguna Canyon as a wind gap
A wind gap (or air gap) is a gap through which a waterway once flowed that is now dry as a result of stream capture. A water gap is a similar feature, but one in which a waterway still flows. Water gaps and wind gaps often provide routes which ...
. California State Route 133
State Route 133 (SR 133) is a state highway in the U.S. state of California, serving as an urban route in Orange County, California, Orange County. It connects California State Route 1, SR 1 in Laguna Beach, California, Laguna Beach thr ...
runs the entire length of the canyon connecting Laguna Beach and Irvine, while California State Route 73
State Route 73 (SR 73) is an approximately state highway in Orange County, California. The southernmost of the highway is a toll road operated by the San Joaquin Hills Transportation Corridor Agency named the San Joaquin Hills Transporta ...
crosses it, running southeast–northwest. A majority of the canyon is located within the Laguna Coast Wilderness Park
Laguna Coast Wilderness Park is a wilderness area in the San Joaquin Hills surrounding Laguna Beach, California. This park features coastal canyons, ridgeline views and the only natural lakes in Orange County, California. Trails are maintained f ...
; small portions are part of Aliso and Wood Canyons Wilderness Park
Aliso and Wood Canyons Wilderness Park is a major regional park in the San Joaquin Hills of Orange County, California in the United States. Comprising of rugged coastal canyons, open grassland, and riparian woodland, the park borders the sub ...
and the cities of Irvine, Laguna Beach, Laguna Woods
Laguna Woods (''Laguna'', Spanish for "Lagoon") is a city in Orange County, California, United States. The population was 16,192 at the 2010 census, down from 16,507 at the 2000 census, with a median age of 78.
Laguna Woods became Orange Count ...
and Aliso Viejo
Aliso Viejo (Spanish for "Old Sycamore") is a city in the San Joaquin Hills of southern Orange County, California. It had a population of 47,823 as of the 2010 census, up from 40,166 as of the 2000 census. It became Orange County's 34th city on ...
.
Geography and geology
Laguna Canyon is approximately long and wide at the widest points. The city of Irvine lies to the northeast, Lake Forest and Aliso Viejo
Aliso Viejo (Spanish for "Old Sycamore") is a city in the San Joaquin Hills of southern Orange County, California. It had a population of 47,823 as of the 2010 census, up from 40,166 as of the 2000 census. It became Orange County's 34th city on ...
to the east, the undeveloped San Joaquin Hills to the west, and Laguna Beach to the south. The drainage divide of the canyon near its northern end separates Laguna Canyon Creek from the San Diego Creek watershed.
State Route 133, locally called Laguna Canyon Road, winds through Laguna Canyon for the entire length of the gorge. California State Route 73
State Route 73 (SR 73) is an approximately state highway in Orange County, California. The southernmost of the highway is a toll road operated by the San Joaquin Hills Transportation Corridor Agency named the San Joaquin Hills Transporta ...
bisects the gorge east–west. The lower section of the canyon is part of the Laguna Coast Wilderness, while the upper section also has a few smaller wilderness preserves. The upper section contains the Laguna Lakes, a series of small natural lakes formed by groundwater rising along a local fault line
In geology, a fault is a planar fracture or discontinuity in a volume of rock across which there has been significant displacement as a result of rock-mass movements. Large faults within Earth's crust result from the action of plate tectonic ...
, which are the namesake of the canyon. A section of the lower canyon within the city limits of Laguna Beach is heavily developed. The northernmost extreme of the canyon lies near a residential area that adjoins Interstate 405.[
The canyon was most likely formed by San Diego Creek cutting through the rising San Joaquin Hills over a span of about 1.22 million years. At some point, however, the creek changed course, and the ]water gap
A water gap is a gap that flowing water has carved through a mountain range or mountain ridge and that still carries water today. Such gaps that no longer carry water currents are called wind gaps. Water gaps and wind gaps often offer a prac ...
it had formed was walled off by the mountains and became a separate watershed. The gradient of the drainage divide separating Laguna Canyon and the San Diego Creek watershed is very small, allowing for the canyon's modern use as a transportation route.
The creek
Laguna Canyon Creek begins as an ephemeral creek draining a mountainside west of the valley floor down into the canyon. It is briefly culverted where it crosses under Laguna Canyon Road, but most of the upper course flows in a natural channel. It soon passes the Laguna Lakes[ and receives Little Sycamore Canyon from the right; this creek drains a narrow side canyon which runs about eastward. The creek continues southward, and then passes beneath Laguna Canyon Rd. again and receives Camarillo Canyon, a short and steep tributary, from the right.]
The stream then runs south under the twin California State Route 73
State Route 73 (SR 73) is an approximately state highway in Orange County, California. The southernmost of the highway is a toll road operated by the San Joaquin Hills Transportation Corridor Agency named the San Joaquin Hills Transporta ...
bridges and enters an underground culvert beneath an onramp. While in this culvert, Laurel Canyon (which harbors a waterfall) and larger Willow Canyon join from the right, then about later, the creek re-emerges from underground and flows in a riprap
Riprap (in North American English), also known as rip rap, rip-rap, shot rock, rock armour (in British English) or rubble, is human-placed rock or other material used to protect shoreline structures against scour and water, wave, or ice erosion. ...
lined channel for the next few miles. It receives its major tributary, El Toro Creek, from the left. El Toro Creek, which follows El Toro Road
There are 34 routes assigned to the "S" zone of the California Route Marker Program, which designates county routes in California. The "S" zone includes county highways in Imperial, Orange, Riverside, San Diego, and Santa Barbara counties.
S ...
for much of its length, drains parts of Laguna Hills and Aliso Viejo before emptying into Laguna Canyon Creek.[
The creek turns sharply west and then back south, then shortly after, is forced into a concrete-lined box culvert that carries it through downtown Laguna Beach (This stretch is also known as Broadway Creek.) It then is diverted completely underground and its channel winds to an outfall at Main Beach, one of the most popular beaches in Laguna Beach.][
]
Modifications
Laguna Canyon and its side tributaries have received some flood control modifications. These include debris basin
Debris flows are geological phenomena in which water-laden masses of soil and fragmented rock rush down mountainsides, funnel into stream channels, entrain objects in their paths, and form thick, muddy deposits on valley floors. They generally ...
s at the mouth of nearly every major tributary, stretches of lined or unlined 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 ...
s, and other structures. The debris basins, sometimes called ''retention basins'', are circular depressions constructed by the Orange County Flood Control Division to slow down flash floods. The upper Laguna Canyon area has a few flood control channels and the lower creek is encased entirely in one; this begins as a riprap
Riprap (in North American English), also known as rip rap, rip-rap, shot rock, rock armour (in British English) or rubble, is human-placed rock or other material used to protect shoreline structures against scour and water, wave, or ice erosion. ...
channel with an unlined bottom, which transitions to a concrete culvert. These improvements help to protect infrastructure in the canyon from storm and landslide damage.
There is little development within the main canyon, although the El Toro Creek area is primarily residential. There is also some residential and commercial development downstream of State Route 73. The concrete channel in this area is small and undersized for major floods, which caused it to overflow in the late 1990s and again in 2010.
Wildlife
Animals
The Laguna Canyon area supports a variety of native Southern California wildlife, including large mammals such as mountain lion
The cougar (''Puma concolor'') is a large cat native to the Americas. Its range spans from the Canadian Yukon to the southern Andes in South America and is the most widespread of any large wild terrestrial mammal in the Western Hemisphere. ...
s, bobcats, coyotes and mule deer
The mule deer (''Odocoileus hemionus'') is a deer indigenous to western North America; it is named for its ears, which are large like those of the mule. Two subspecies of mule deer are grouped into the black-tailed deer.
Unlike the related whi ...
. Like Aliso and Wood Canyons Regional Park to the south, the canyon supports over one hundred species of birds. Some of its endangered species include California gnatcatcher
The California gnatcatcher (''Polioptila californica'') is a small long insectivorous bird which frequents dense coastal sage scrub growth. This species was recently split from the similar black-tailed gnatcatcher of the Sonoran and Chihuahuan ...
, cactus wren
The cactus wren (''Campylorhynchus brunneicapillus'') is a species of wren endemic to the deserts of the southwestern United States and northern and central Mexico. It is the state bird of Arizona, and the largest wren in the United States. ...
, and orange-throated whiptail. Except for the Laguna Lakes, the canyon has no fish habitat, and riparian
A riparian zone or riparian area is the interface between land and a river or stream. Riparian is also the proper nomenclature for one of the terrestrial biomes of the Earth. Plant habitats and communities along the river margins and banks a ...
habitat is sparse because the local creeks have only seasonal flow.
Plants
The dominant vegetation cover of coastal sage scrub
Coastal sage scrub, also known as coastal scrub, CSS, or soft chaparral, is a low scrubland plant community of the California coastal sage and chaparral subecoregion, found in coastal California and northwestern coastal Baja California. It is ...
typically goes through approximately 25-year cycles, with its peak biodiversity reached in roughly 10 years after the beginning of a new 25-year period. Such periods are typically separated by wildfire
A wildfire, forest fire, bushfire, wildland fire or rural fire is an unplanned, uncontrolled and unpredictable fire in an area of combustible vegetation. Depending on the type of vegetation present, a wildfire may be more specifically identi ...
s, which clear away dead or dying vegetation and leave bare ground for new growth.[ The canyon is one of the last remaining sanctuaries for many plants native to Southern California. Approximately one hundred species of plants, most native to California, are found in Laurel and Willow Canyons alone. These include ]monkey flower Erythranthe, Monkey flower can refer to:
*Several genera of plant family Phrymaceae, including:
** ''Diplacus''
** ''Erythranthe''
** ''Mimulus''
*Various snapdragon-like Lamiales, including:
** ''Linaria vulgaris''
** ''Phyllocarpus septentrionali ...
, goldenrod
Goldenrod is a common name for many species of flowering plants in the sunflower family, Asteraceae, commonly in reference to the genus '' Solidago''.
Several genera, such as '' Euthamia'', were formerly included in a broader concept of the gen ...
, and sagebrush
Sagebrush is the common name of several woody and herbaceous species of plants in the genus '' Artemisia''. The best known sagebrush is the shrub '' Artemisia tridentata''. Sagebrushes are native to the North American west.
Following is an al ...
.
Recreation
Laguna Canyon forms the center section of an approximately strip of wilderness preserve running northeast–southwest along the Pacific coast. Most of the canyon is covered Laguna Coast Wilderness Park
Laguna Coast Wilderness Park is a wilderness area in the San Joaquin Hills surrounding Laguna Beach, California. This park features coastal canyons, ridgeline views and the only natural lakes in Orange County, California. Trails are maintained f ...
, which is . It is bordered on the south by Aliso and Wood Canyons Regional Park, and on its north by Crystal Cove State Park. The parks are managed by the County of Orange and the California Department of Fish and Game
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW), formerly known as the California Department of Fish and Game (CDFG), is a state agency under the California Natural Resources Agency. The Department of Fish and Wildlife manages and protec ...
, while portions of Laguna Coast are also owned by the City of Laguna Beach. Although there is no trail that follows the main canyon (as it is traversed by State Route 133), there are many trails, mostly hiking, that lead up narrow side canyons, as well as a trail that circumnavigates Laguna Lakes. Several connecting trails run east-south towards Aliso and Wood Canyons, providing access between the two watersheds.
History
Lying to the north of Aliso Canyon
Aliso Canyon is a canyon located in Orange County, California in the United States. The canyon is a water gap across the San Joaquin Hills carved out by Aliso Creek, possibly as recently as the last ice age. Located in a semi-arid climate, it ...
, the Laguna Canyon area lay within the tribal boundary of the Tongva
The Tongva ( ) are an Indigenous people of California from the Los Angeles Basin and the Southern Channel Islands, an area covering approximately . Some descendants of the people prefer Kizh as an endonym that, they argue, is more historically ...
, a Native American group whose territory expanded from north-central Orange County well past the San Gabriel River and into the Los Angeles Basin
The Los Angeles Basin is a sedimentary Structural basin, basin located in Southern California, in a region known as the Peninsular Ranges. The basin is also connected to an wikt:anomalous, anomalous group of east-west trending chains of mountai ...
. Aliso Creek, whose watershed borders Laguna Canyon to the east, formed the tribal boundary between the Tongva and Acjachemen.
Laguna Canyon Creek was a seasonal stream but the Laguna Lakes, formed by springs arising from a minor fault zone, stayed year round. A Native American path ran through the canyon to the present-day Laguna Beach area, where they fished and collected abalone and limpets. The Tongva lived in villages of 50-100 people, in huts made of brushes and tules on a wooden framework. When Spanish explorers arrived in the mid-18th century, they named the canyon "Cañada de las Lagunas", referring to the Laguna Lakes. A land grant
A land grant is a gift of real estate—land or its use privileges—made by a government or other authority as an incentive, means of enabling works, or as a reward for services to an individual, especially in return for military service. Grants ...
called La Bolsa de San Joaquín occupied the canyon area up to the 19th century. By 1905, Laguna Beach began to draw municipal water from springs in Laguna Canyon.
Before Laguna Canyon became a wilderness park, a housing development was proposed to be built in and around the canyon, tentatively called "Laguna Laurel". The community, which was proposed to contain 3,200 housing units as well as a number of businesses, was canceled in the 1990s after the City of Laguna Beach purchased four of its parcels in order to provide space for a wilderness park, while the City of Irvine purchased one, and Laguna Coast Wilderness Park was opened and dedicated in 1993. Occasionally, the park system (which adjoins Aliso/Wood Canyons Regional Park) is augmented by donations of vacant land.
The proposal to stop the development was supported by a crowd of eight to eleven thousand on November 11, 1989. This large group gathered in downtown Laguna Beach and marched out to the photographic mural "The Tell", created by the Laguna Canyon Project
The Laguna Canyon Project (1980–2010), a long-term environmental art project, used a variety of tactics and techniques to focus attention on the bucolic Laguna Canyon Road, one of the last undeveloped passages to the Pacific Ocean. The project, ...
, in the Sycamore Hills area of Laguna Canyon. This protest was called the "Walk to Save Laguna Canyon". Several years later, two to three thousand gathered to protest the construction of California State Route 73
State Route 73 (SR 73) is an approximately state highway in Orange County, California. The southernmost of the highway is a toll road operated by the San Joaquin Hills Transportation Corridor Agency named the San Joaquin Hills Transporta ...
(which would cross the canyon), but the highway was built eventually.
In 1993, a massive wildfire
A wildfire, forest fire, bushfire, wildland fire or rural fire is an unplanned, uncontrolled and unpredictable fire in an area of combustible vegetation. Depending on the type of vegetation present, a wildfire may be more specifically identi ...
burned over in Laguna Canyon and Laguna Beach, and ranked behind the 1948 Santa Ana Canyon fire as one of the worst fires in Orange County history. The fire was in part caused by strong Santa Ana Winds
The Santa Ana winds (sometimes devil winds) "Scholars who have looked into the name's origins generally agree that it derives from Santa Ana Canyon, the portal where the Santa Ana River -- as well as a congested Riverside (CA-91) Freeway -- leav ...
, which caused flames that rose up to high.
Future
The canyon is one of the last remaining wild areas in Orange County in a strip of preserves along the San Joaquin Hills about long and wide. Recently, State Route 133 between the 405 and 73 freeways has been expanded to four lanes from the original two lanes, and much of the original road down the center of the canyon has been demolished and re-vegetated. The new road was constructed further from the creek bed to lessen environmental impacts. The northernmost extreme of the canyon is being developed into a residential area consisting of 590 homes, called Laguna Crossing, the first phase of which was opened in 2013.
Other parts of Laguna Canyon has been impacted by development. The last of the canyon, closest to downtown Laguna Beach, are urbanized, containing the Laguna College of Art and Design
Laguna College of Art and Design (LCAD) is a private college in Laguna Beach, California. With an enrollment of more than 700 students, the college offers Bachelor of Fine Arts degrees in 11 majors and three Master of Fine Arts degree programs as w ...
, the Sawdust Art Festival
The Sawdust Art Festival, also known as The Sawdust or The Sawdust Festival, is an art festival held annually from late June through August in Laguna Beach, California. The festival features handicrafts as well as traditional fine art. It is non-j ...
venues and other establishments. Most of the remaining wild areas are now found in the side canyons. Urban runoff
Urban runoff is surface runoff of rainwater, landscape irrigation, and car washing created by urbanization. Impervious surfaces (roads, parking lots and sidewalks) are constructed during land development. During rain , storms and other precip ...
has resulted in bacterial pollution downstream at Main Beach in Laguna Beach. Several organizations are now dedicated to preserving the remaining wild areas of the canyon, including the Laguna Canyon Foundation.
See also
* Biology of Aliso and Wood Canyons Regional Park
* Wildlife of Aliso Creek
* Mark Chamberlain (photographer)
References
External links
Laguna Canyon Foundation
Laguna Coast Wilderness Park
Introduction to Laguna Canyon Watershed
Orange County Watershed Information
{{good article
Canyons and gorges of California
Landforms of Orange County, California
Rivers of Orange County, California
San Joaquin Hills
Laguna Beach, California
Rivers of Southern California
Wind gaps of the United States