Bear Creek (San Francisquito Creek)
Encyclopedia
Bear Creek is a 6.6 miles (10.6 km) southeastward-flowing stream
originating north of the summit of Sierra Morena in the Santa Cruz Mountains
, near the community of Kings Mountain
in San Mateo County, California
, United States
. It flows through the town of Woodside
before joining with Corte Madera Creek
to form San Francisquito Creek
in the Jasper Ridge Biological Preserve
at Stanford University
.
land grant. A foreclosure sale in 1861 records, "Arroyo de la Presa, now called by the Americans Bear Gulch...which heads near the summit of the mountains (Sierra Morena)". The Americans named Bear Creek Gulch for Mexican War veteran James "Grizzly" Ryder's near fatal encounter with the now extinct California Grizzly bear
(Ursus californicus).
In a 2001 report thirty four barriers to trout migration were identified within Bear Creek and its West Union Creek, Bear Gulch, Squealer Gulch, and McGarvey Gulch tributaries. That report identified the culvert for McGarvey Gulch creek at the Richards Road crossing in Huddart County Park as a significant migration barrier for adult and juvenile steelhead and was reconstructed with funds from the State Department of Transportation’s San Francisco Bay Salmonid Habitat Restoration Fund.
near the intersection of Kings Mountain Road and Highway 84
in Woodside, California. The candelabra pattern of the numerous creeks and gulches that culminate in Bear Creek formed due to the motion of the San Andreas fault
. West Union Creek originates in the Phleger Estate
, now part of the San Francisco State Fish and Game Refuge. The other Bear Creek tributaries flow through numerous additional public lands including Huddart County Park, Teague Hill Regional Open Space Preserve, and the northern edge of Wunderlich County Park.
Water diverted from Bear Gulch is stored in a reservoir and provides as much as 50% of Woodside’s drinking water in the winter months.
Stream
A stream is a body of water with a current, confined within a bed and stream banks. Depending on its locale or certain characteristics, a stream may be referred to as a branch, brook, beck, burn, creek, "crick", gill , kill, lick, rill, river, syke, bayou, rivulet, streamage, wash, run or...
originating north of the summit of Sierra Morena in the Santa Cruz Mountains
Santa Cruz Mountains
The Santa Cruz Mountains, part of the Pacific Coast Ranges, are a mountain range in central California, United States. They form a ridge along the San Francisco Peninsula, south of San Francisco, separating the Pacific Ocean from San Francisco Bay and the Santa Clara Valley, and continuing south,...
, near the community of Kings Mountain
Kings Mountain, California
Kings Mountain is an unincorporated community in San Mateo County, California, located along State Route 35 between Skeggs Point and Pise Mountain. This is about seven miles north of Woodside Road . In the U.S...
in San Mateo County, California
San Mateo County, California
San Mateo County is a county located in the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California. It covers most of the San Francisco Peninsula just south of San Francisco, and north of Santa Clara County. San Francisco International Airport is located at the northern end of the county, and...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It flows through the town of Woodside
Woodside, California
Woodside is a small incorporated town in San Mateo County, California, United States, on the San Francisco Peninsula. It uses a council-manager system of government. The U.S. Census estimated the population of the town to be 5,287 in 2010....
before joining with Corte Madera Creek
Corte Madera Creek (San Mateo County, California)
Corte Madera Creek is a creek that flows north-northwest to Searsville Dam and then joins with Bear Creek to form San Francisquito Creek in California...
to form San Francisquito Creek
San Francisquito Creek
San Francisquito Creek is a creek that flows into southwest San Francisco Bay in California, United States of America. Historically it was called the Arroyo de San Francisco by Juan Bautista de Anza in 1776...
in the Jasper Ridge Biological Preserve
Jasper Ridge Biological Preserve
The Jasper Ridge Biological Preserve is a 1,200 acre is a nature preserve and biological field station owned by Stanford University, located at south of Sand Hill Road and west of Interstate 280 in Portola Valley, California. It is used by students, researchers, and docents to conduct biology...
at Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
.
History
The Spanish called the creek Arroyo de la Presa, meaning "creek of the dam", and it was part of the Rancho Cañada de RaymundoRancho Cañada de Raymundo
Rancho Cañada de Raymundo was a Mexican land grant in present day San Mateo County, California given in 1840 by Governor Juan Alvarado to John Coppinger. The two and one half league long by three quarter league wide grant consisted the eastern slopes and valleys in the present day Woodside area...
land grant. A foreclosure sale in 1861 records, "Arroyo de la Presa, now called by the Americans Bear Gulch...which heads near the summit of the mountains (Sierra Morena)". The Americans named Bear Creek Gulch for Mexican War veteran James "Grizzly" Ryder's near fatal encounter with the now extinct California Grizzly bear
Grizzly Bear
The grizzly bear , also known as the silvertip bear, the grizzly, or the North American brown bear, is a subspecies of brown bear that generally lives in the uplands of western North America...
(Ursus californicus).
Ecology
In the Bear Creek sub-basin of the San Francisquito Creek watershed, adult Steelhead trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) migrate from the Bay to the freshwater streams of Bear, West Union, and Bear Gulch Creeks to spawn. They are listed as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act. Steelhead smolt spend the first two years of their lives in freshwater, requiring perennial streams, or at least pools, to survive. The anomalously low gradient of the channel of West Union Creek is also related to the fault and creates high quality steelhead habitat, as do the numerous seeps and springs along the fault. The permanent pools created by these seeps and springs are crucial to the survival of steelhead young.In a 2001 report thirty four barriers to trout migration were identified within Bear Creek and its West Union Creek, Bear Gulch, Squealer Gulch, and McGarvey Gulch tributaries. That report identified the culvert for McGarvey Gulch creek at the Richards Road crossing in Huddart County Park as a significant migration barrier for adult and juvenile steelhead and was reconstructed with funds from the State Department of Transportation’s San Francisco Bay Salmonid Habitat Restoration Fund.
Watershed
The Bear Creek mainstem is formed by the confluence of Bear Gulch Creek and West Union CreekWest Union Creek
West Union Creek is a stream originating on the east slope of Kings Mountain in the Santa Cruz Mountains, in San Mateo County, California, United States...
near the intersection of Kings Mountain Road and Highway 84
California State Route 84
State Route 84 is a split-section California State Highway consisting of two sections. The first section is an east–west arterial road running from San Gregorio to Menlo Park, across the Dumbarton Bridge through Fremont and Newark and ending at I-580 in Livermore. The route overlaps the...
in Woodside, California. The candelabra pattern of the numerous creeks and gulches that culminate in Bear Creek formed due to the motion of the San Andreas fault
San Andreas Fault
The San Andreas Fault is a continental strike-slip fault that runs a length of roughly through California in the United States. The fault's motion is right-lateral strike-slip...
. West Union Creek originates in the Phleger Estate
Phleger Estate
The Phleger Estate is a park in San Mateo County, California. The park is located outside the town of Woodside and adjacent to Huddart County Park...
, now part of the San Francisco State Fish and Game Refuge. The other Bear Creek tributaries flow through numerous additional public lands including Huddart County Park, Teague Hill Regional Open Space Preserve, and the northern edge of Wunderlich County Park.
Water diverted from Bear Gulch is stored in a reservoir and provides as much as 50% of Woodside’s drinking water in the winter months.
External links
- San Francisquito Watershed Council
- San Francisquito Creek Watershed prepared by the Oakland Museum of CaliforniaOakland Museum of CaliforniaOakland Museum of California or Oakland Museum is a museum dedicated to the art, history, and natural science of California located in Oakland, California....
- The Creeks that Flow through Woodside by the Bear Creek League of Advocates for the Watershed (Bear CLAW)