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The Laguna Creek watershed consists of of land within northern California's
Morrison Creek and Mission Creek meet just before Mission Creek flows into Lake Elizabeth on the lake's southern shore. Much of what is now the
Alameda County
Alameda County ( ) is a county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 1,682,353, making it the 7th-most populous county in the state and 21st most populous nationally. The county seat is Oakland. Alam ...
. The watershed drains the foothills of the Diablo Range
The Diablo Range is a mountain range in the California Coast Ranges subdivision of the Pacific Coast Ranges in northern California, United States. It stretches from the eastern San Francisco Bay area at its northern end to the Salinas Valley are ...
south of Niles Canyon
Niles Canyon is a canyon in the San Francisco Bay Area formed by Alameda Creek, known for its heritage railroad and silent movie history. The canyon is largely in an unincorporated area of Alameda County, while the western portion of the cany ...
. To the southeast, the area of Mission Peak Regional Preserve around Mission Peak
Mission Peak is a mountain peak located east of Fremont, California. It is the northern summit on a ridge that includes Mount Allison and Monument Peak. Mission Peak has symbolic importance, and is depicted on the logo of the City of Fremont. It ...
is included. Agua Caliente, Canada del Aliso, Mission, Morrison, Sabercat, Vargas, and Washington creeks drain the area of the watershed. They drain into Laguna Creek and eventually Mud Slough.
Water from winter and spring storms feed the creeks and the watershed. Natural springs along Mission Peak are also a source of water. Many of the creeks are dry when there is no rain.
Background
Morrison Creek and Mission Creek meet just before Mission Creek flows into Lake Elizabeth on the lake's southern shore. Much of what is now the Fremont Central Park
Fremont Central Park is a park in the central area of Fremont, California on Paseo Padre Parkway at Stevenson Boulevard. It is easily accessible from I-880 and I-680. It began development in 1960, and contains Lake Elizabeth, a shallow man ma ...
was once the Stivers Lagoon. Water leaving the park divides between Laguna Creek and Irvington Creek. Irvington Creek is also known as Line G, or the Laguna Creek bypass flood control
Flood control methods are used to reduce or prevent the detrimental effects of flood waters."Flood Control", MSN Encarta, 2008 (see below: Further reading). Flood relief methods are used to reduce the effects of flood waters or high water level ...
channel.
At the time of the Spanish settlement and the construction of Mission San José Mission San José may refer to:
*Mission San José (California), a Spanish mission in Fremont, California
* Mission San Jose, Fremont, California, a neighborhood
* Mission San Jose High School, a high school in Fremont, California
*Mission San José ...
, groundwater was still readily available through the porous sandstone in the area. Development of water systems, and later residential and industrial development drained the water table, depleting the underground springs and leaving ground water sources only in areas close to the creeks.
Prior to settlement, the area was filled with wildlife. Sabercat Creek derives its name from pre-historic fossils found in that area. The watershed still has many of the plants and trees native to the area, including valley oak, Frémont's cottonwood, and California sycamore.
Mud Slough debouch
In hydrology, a debouch (or debouche) is a place where runoff from a small, confined space discharges into a larger, broader body of water. The word is derived from the French verb ''déboucher'' (), which means "to unblock, to clear". The term ...
es into the San Francisco Bay near the site of the ghost town of Drawbridge. Its proximity to the bay means its marshy end is affected by tidal action. It goes from freshwater, to brackish to saline. The slough passes the salt evaporation ponds
A salt evaporation pond is a shallow artificial salt pan designed to extract salts from sea water or other brines. The Salt pans are shallow and large of size because it will be easier for sunlight to travel and reach the sea water. Natural s ...
made by the Leslie Salt Company, where it joins the larger Coyote Creek and the bay.
Laguna Creek is the site of several flood control projects.
See also
*List of watercourses in the San Francisco Bay Area
These watercourses (rivers, creeks, sloughs, etc.) in the San Francisco Bay Area are grouped according to the bodies of water they flow into. Tributaries are listed under the watercourses they feed, sorted by the elevation of the confluence so tha ...
*Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge
Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge (DESFBNWR) is a United States National Wildlife Refuge located in the southern part of San Francisco Bay, California. The Refuge headquarters and visitor center is located in the Baylands dist ...
References
External links
* {{San Francisco Bay watershed Landforms of Alameda County, California Landforms of the San Francisco Bay Area San Francisco Bay watershed