Permanente Creek
Encyclopedia
Permanente Creek is a 12.1 miles (19.5 km) stream
originating on Black Mountain
in Santa Clara County, California
, United States
. It is the namesake for the Kaiser Permanente
health maintenance organization. Named by early Spanish explorers as Arroyo Permanente or Rio Permanente because of its perennial flow, the creek descends the east flank of Black Mountain then courses north through Los Altos
and Mountain View
culminating in southwest San Francisco Bay
historically at the Charleston Slough but now diverted to the Mountain View Slough.
passed through this area in March of 1776 as he forged the first overland route from Monterey
to San Francisco Bay
. Mission Santa Clara de Asis
was founded in October of the same year, where many of the local Indians were taken. Governor Alvarado granted Rancho San Antonio
to Juan Prado Mesa in 1839. This 440 acres (1.8 km²) rancho was bounded by Adobe Creek to the north and Stevens Creek to the south, and included Permanente Creek. On a diseño of Rancho San Antonio in 1839 Permanente Creek is shown as Arroyo Permanente. Mesa had been a soldier at the Presidio of San Francisco
since 1828, served as a corporal in the Santa Clara Guard, and had won fame as a soldier and Indian fighter. Mesa died in 1845.
Permanente Creek is also the namesake for Kaiser Permanente
. Bess Kaiser and her spouse, industrialist Henry Kaiser
, had a lodge on the creek's headwaters above the large Permanente Quarry and Cement Plant, and, in 1945, Bess felt that the name of their attractive and dependable stream would be a good name for their medical program at the shipyards. That medical program became Kaiser Permanente
.
just north of the peak of Black Mountain (and just east of the Black Mountain Trail), Permanente Creek descends along the Lehigh Southwest Cement Plant and Quarry (formerly the Permanente Cement Quarry), and continues easterly through unincorporated County land for about five miles (8 km), then turns to the north at the base of the foothills and continues another eight miles (13 km) along the valley floor. It has two major tributaries, the West Branch Permanente Creek and Hale Creek
. West Branch Permanente Creek begins on the east side of 1253 feet (381.9 m) Ewing Hill, and runs easterly until it is joined by 1.7 miles (2.7 km) long Ohlone Creek south of Mora Drive, on its 3.2 miles (5.1 km) run to the Permanente Creek mainstem which it joins 0.5 mile (0.80467 km) south of Interstate 280
. Flows are perennial in the upper watershed but ephemeral on the valley floor, with the exception of the Hale Creek tributary, which manages a minimal flow through the summer. The creek consists of approximately 12 miles (19.3 km) of channel draining a watershed area of 17 square miles (44 km²).
After Permanente Creek flows northbound past Loyola Corners in Los Altos, the Permanente Creek Diversion, constructed in 1959, diverts nearly all of the creek's water east (between Berry Avenue and Eastwood Drive at Miramonte Avenue), passing behind Blach Intermediate School
), and on to Stevens Creek where it drops over ten feet (creating an impassable barrier to steelhead trout coming up from the Bay). Although now severely depleted of water, the natural creek channel continues north from the Diversion Channel another 1.5 miles (2.4 km) to its confluence with Hale Creek
just upstream from McKelvey Park. Permanente Creek's natural channel then goes on to pass under U. S. Highway 101, along the west side of the Google
campus, and out to the Bay at the Mountain View Slough just east of Shoreline Park, the latter built on a reclaimed San Francisco garbage dump in 1983. This lowest part of the creek originally disappeared into the marshland before reaching the Bay, and its channel was extended to the Bay in the nineteenth century. Obviously it naturally connected to the Bay at times of high winter flows since Steelhead trout were able to access Permanente Creek historically. Saltwater is pumped from Charleston Slough into Shoreline Lake and from there it flows to Permanente Creek and then back into the Bay.
The Santa Clara Valley Water District
plans to excavate as much as 23 feet (7 m) down to create flood detention basins to protect homes from a 100 year Permanente Creek flood at Cuesta Park Annex, Blach Intermediate School, McKelvey Park and Rancho San Antonio County Park. Despite considerable community opposition, the Santa Clara Valley Water District Board approved the decision to go ahead on June 17, 2010.
Leidy's 2007 report also recorded the fish still inhabiting Permanente Creek - including native California roach
(Lavinia symmetricus), Sacramento sucker (Catostomus occidentalis occidentalis), Threespine stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus), and non-native Bluegill
(Lepomis macrochirus), Common carp
(Cyprinus carpio), Rainwater killifish
(Lucania parva), and Western mosquitofish (Gambusia affinis).
Shoreline Park meadows near the mouth of Permanente Creek provide critical remnant habitat for the Western Burrowing Owl
(Athene cunicularia), a bird that has vanished from many counties in the Bay Area
. The owl was listed as a Species of Special Concern
(a pre-listing category under the Endangered Species Act
) by the California Department of Fish and Game
in 1979, and its Bay Area population continues to decline. Although there were hundreds of burrowing owls in Santa Clara County when monitoring began in the 1980's, now there are only 35, with three breeding pairs raising ten eggs at Shoreline in 2011 (less than half the number of young in 2003).
In August, 2003 the Stevens & Permanente Creeks Watershed Council was officially formed to support stewardship of the watersheds.
. The 3988 acres (16.1 km²) Open Space Preserve, combined with the adjoining 165 acre (0.6677319 km²) County Park, in area and contains 23 miles (37 km) of hiking trails. A one-mile walk from the County Park's main parking lot leads to the historic 10-acre Deer Valley Farm.
There is a trail that runs along the creek, beginning at the historic Rengstorff House
in Shoreline Park where it is connected to the San Francisco Bay Trail
. The Permanente Creek Trail runs from there south to Charleston Road, where an extension is being built which includes a pedestrian bridge over U.S. Highway 101, to extend the trail south to just past Old Middlefield Way (completion scheduled for spring, 2012).
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 on Black Mountain
Black Mountain (near Los Altos, California)
Black Mountain is a summit on Monte Bello Ridge in the Santa Cruz Mountains of west Santa Clara County, California, south of Los Altos and west of Cupertino. It is located on the border between Rancho San Antonio Open Space Preserve and Monte Bello Open Space Preserve, with the summit located in...
in Santa Clara County, California
Santa Clara County, California
Santa Clara County is a county located at the southern end of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. As of 2010 it had a population of 1,781,642. The county seat is San Jose. The highly urbanized Santa Clara Valley within Santa Clara County is also known as Silicon Valley...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It is the namesake for the Kaiser Permanente
Kaiser Permanente
Kaiser Permanente is an integrated managed care consortium, based in Oakland, California, United States, founded in 1945 by industrialist Henry J. Kaiser and physician Sidney Garfield...
health maintenance organization. Named by early Spanish explorers as Arroyo Permanente or Rio Permanente because of its perennial flow, the creek descends the east flank of Black Mountain then courses north through Los Altos
Los Altos, California
Los Altos is a city at the southern end of the San Francisco Peninsula, in the San Francisco Bay Area. The city is in Santa Clara County, California, United States. The population was 28,976 according to the 2010 census....
and Mountain View
Mountain View, California
-Downtown:Mountain View has a pedestrian-friendly downtown centered on Castro Street. The downtown area consists of the seven blocks of Castro Street from the Downtown Mountain View Station transit center in the north to the intersection with El Camino Real in the south...
culminating in southwest San Francisco Bay
San Francisco Bay
San Francisco Bay is a shallow, productive estuary through which water draining from approximately forty percent of California, flowing in the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers from the Sierra Nevada mountains, enters the Pacific Ocean...
historically at the Charleston Slough but now diverted to the Mountain View Slough.
History
The Ohlone Indians lived in the area for over 3,000 years prior to the arrival of the Europeans. A large village, known as Partacsi, was located in this general area. An expedition led by Colonel Juan Bautista de AnzaJuan Bautista de Anza
Juan Bautista de Anza Bezerra Nieto was a Novo-Spanish explorer and Governor of New Mexico for the Spanish Empire.-Early life:...
passed through this area in March of 1776 as he forged the first overland route from Monterey
Monterey, California
The City of Monterey in Monterey County is located on Monterey Bay along the Pacific coast in Central California. Monterey lies at an elevation of 26 feet above sea level. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 27,810. Monterey is of historical importance because it was the capital of...
to San Francisco Bay
San Francisco Bay
San Francisco Bay is a shallow, productive estuary through which water draining from approximately forty percent of California, flowing in the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers from the Sierra Nevada mountains, enters the Pacific Ocean...
. Mission Santa Clara de Asis
Mission Santa Clara de Asís
Mission Santa Clara de Asís was founded on January 12, 1777 and named for Santa Clara de Asis , the foundress of the order of the Poor Clares. Although ruined and rebuilt six times, the settlement was never abandoned.-History:...
was founded in October of the same year, where many of the local Indians were taken. Governor Alvarado granted Rancho San Antonio
Rancho San Antonio (Mesa)
Rancho San Antonio was a Mexican land grant in present day Santa Clara County, California given in 1839 by Governor Juan Alvarado to Juan Prado Mesa...
to Juan Prado Mesa in 1839. This 440 acres (1.8 km²) rancho was bounded by Adobe Creek to the north and Stevens Creek to the south, and included Permanente Creek. On a diseño of Rancho San Antonio in 1839 Permanente Creek is shown as Arroyo Permanente. Mesa had been a soldier at the Presidio of San Francisco
Presidio of San Francisco
The Presidio of San Francisco is a park on the northern tip of the San Francisco Peninsula in San Francisco, California, within the Golden Gate National Recreation Area...
since 1828, served as a corporal in the Santa Clara Guard, and had won fame as a soldier and Indian fighter. Mesa died in 1845.
Permanente Creek is also the namesake for Kaiser Permanente
Kaiser Permanente
Kaiser Permanente is an integrated managed care consortium, based in Oakland, California, United States, founded in 1945 by industrialist Henry J. Kaiser and physician Sidney Garfield...
. Bess Kaiser and her spouse, industrialist Henry Kaiser
Henry Kaiser
Henry Kaiser may refer to:People*Henry Felix Kaiser , American academic known for the varimax rotation*Henry J. Kaiser , American industrialist and shipbuilder who founded Kaiser Permanente...
, had a lodge on the creek's headwaters above the large Permanente Quarry and Cement Plant, and, in 1945, Bess felt that the name of their attractive and dependable stream would be a good name for their medical program at the shipyards. That medical program became Kaiser Permanente
Kaiser Permanente
Kaiser Permanente is an integrated managed care consortium, based in Oakland, California, United States, founded in 1945 by industrialist Henry J. Kaiser and physician Sidney Garfield...
.
Watershed
From its origination at 2421 feet (737.9 m) in headwaters protected by the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space DistrictMidpeninsula Regional Open Space District
The Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District is a special-purpose district that manages over of open space in 25 preserves in the San Francisco Bay Area. It includes parts of Santa Clara, San Mateo and Santa Cruz Counties. The District was created by voter initiative in 1972...
just north of the peak of Black Mountain (and just east of the Black Mountain Trail), Permanente Creek descends along the Lehigh Southwest Cement Plant and Quarry (formerly the Permanente Cement Quarry), and continues easterly through unincorporated County land for about five miles (8 km), then turns to the north at the base of the foothills and continues another eight miles (13 km) along the valley floor. It has two major tributaries, the West Branch Permanente Creek and Hale Creek
Hale Creek
Hale Creek is a short stream originating in the foothills of Los Altos Hills, California in Santa Clara County, California, United States. Its source is in the Rancho San Antonio Open Space Preserve upstream and east of Neary Quarry...
. West Branch Permanente Creek begins on the east side of 1253 feet (381.9 m) Ewing Hill, and runs easterly until it is joined by 1.7 miles (2.7 km) long Ohlone Creek south of Mora Drive, on its 3.2 miles (5.1 km) run to the Permanente Creek mainstem which it joins 0.5 mile (0.80467 km) south of Interstate 280
Interstate 280 (California)
Interstate 280 is a 57-mile long north–south Interstate Highway in the San Francisco Bay Area of Northern California. It connects San Jose and San Francisco, running along just to the west of the cities of San Francisco Peninsula for most of its route.I-280 from its northern end at King...
. Flows are perennial in the upper watershed but ephemeral on the valley floor, with the exception of the Hale Creek tributary, which manages a minimal flow through the summer. The creek consists of approximately 12 miles (19.3 km) of channel draining a watershed area of 17 square miles (44 km²).
After Permanente Creek flows northbound past Loyola Corners in Los Altos, the Permanente Creek Diversion, constructed in 1959, diverts nearly all of the creek's water east (between Berry Avenue and Eastwood Drive at Miramonte Avenue), passing behind Blach Intermediate School
Blach Intermediate School
Blach Intermediate School is a middle school serving grades 7–8 in Los Altos, California, United States. It is part of the Los Altos School District. Founded in 1958, Blach was named after Georgina P. Blach in a dedication ceremony on December 11 of the same year. Blach Intermediate School is a...
), and on to Stevens Creek where it drops over ten feet (creating an impassable barrier to steelhead trout coming up from the Bay). Although now severely depleted of water, the natural creek channel continues north from the Diversion Channel another 1.5 miles (2.4 km) to its confluence with Hale Creek
Hale Creek
Hale Creek is a short stream originating in the foothills of Los Altos Hills, California in Santa Clara County, California, United States. Its source is in the Rancho San Antonio Open Space Preserve upstream and east of Neary Quarry...
just upstream from McKelvey Park. Permanente Creek's natural channel then goes on to pass under U. S. Highway 101, along the west side of the Google
Google
Google Inc. is an American multinational public corporation invested in Internet search, cloud computing, and advertising technologies. Google hosts and develops a number of Internet-based services and products, and generates profit primarily from advertising through its AdWords program...
campus, and out to the Bay at the Mountain View Slough just east of Shoreline Park, the latter built on a reclaimed San Francisco garbage dump in 1983. This lowest part of the creek originally disappeared into the marshland before reaching the Bay, and its channel was extended to the Bay in the nineteenth century. Obviously it naturally connected to the Bay at times of high winter flows since Steelhead trout were able to access Permanente Creek historically. Saltwater is pumped from Charleston Slough into Shoreline Lake and from there it flows to Permanente Creek and then back into the Bay.
The Santa Clara Valley Water District
Santa Clara Valley Water District
The Santa Clara Valley Water District provides stream stewardship, wholesale water supply and flood protection for Santa Clara County, California, in the southern San Francisco Bay Area. The district encompasses all of the county’s and serves the area’s 15 cities, 1.7 million residents and more...
plans to excavate as much as 23 feet (7 m) down to create flood detention basins to protect homes from a 100 year Permanente Creek flood at Cuesta Park Annex, Blach Intermediate School, McKelvey Park and Rancho San Antonio County Park. Despite considerable community opposition, the Santa Clara Valley Water District Board approved the decision to go ahead on June 17, 2010.
Habitat and conservation
Leidy reported Steelhead trout (Onchorhynchus mykiss) as once native to Permanent Creeek but now extinct. In 1940, a California Department of Fish and Game stream survey noted a resident’s account of Permanente Creek as formerly a “fine trout stream" from which anglers caught large fish. Sampling of the creek in 1981 and electrofishing in 1986 revealed no steelhead trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss). Of relevance, the cement company operating in the upper part of the watershed has discharged sediment-laden water into Permanente Creek and has undertaken corrective actions.Leidy's 2007 report also recorded the fish still inhabiting Permanente Creek - including native California roach
California roach
The California roach, Hesperoleucus symmetricus, is a cyprinid fish native to western North America and abundant in the intermittent streams throughout central California. It is the sole member of its genus....
(Lavinia symmetricus), Sacramento sucker (Catostomus occidentalis occidentalis), Threespine stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus), and non-native Bluegill
Bluegill
The Bluegill is a species of freshwater fish sometimes referred to as bream, brim, or copper nose. It is a member of the sunfish family Centrarchidae of the order Perciformes.-Range and distribution:...
(Lepomis macrochirus), Common carp
Common carp
The Common carp is a widespread freshwater fish of eutrophic waters in lakes and large rivers in Europe and Asia. The wild populations are considered vulnerable to extinction, but the species has also been domesticated and introduced into environments worldwide, and is often considered an invasive...
(Cyprinus carpio), Rainwater killifish
Rainwater killifish
The rainwater killifish, is a species of fish in the Fundulidae family. Its range is from Massachusetts in the north to Yucatán in the south.-Synonyms:Cyprinodon parvas...
(Lucania parva), and Western mosquitofish (Gambusia affinis).
Shoreline Park meadows near the mouth of Permanente Creek provide critical remnant habitat for the Western Burrowing Owl
Burrowing Owl
The Burrowing Owl is a tiny but long-legged owl found throughout open landscapes of North and South America. Burrowing Owls can be found in grasslands, rangelands, agricultural areas, deserts, or any other open dry area with low vegetation. They nest and roost in burrows, such as those excavated...
(Athene cunicularia), a bird that has vanished from many counties in the Bay Area
San Francisco Bay Area
The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a populated region that surrounds the San Francisco and San Pablo estuaries in Northern California. The region encompasses metropolitan areas of San Francisco, Oakland, and San Jose, along with smaller urban and rural areas...
. The owl was listed as a Species of Special Concern
California species of special concern
"Species of special concern" is a protective legal designation assigned by the California Department of Fish & Game to wildlife species that are at risk...
(a pre-listing category under the Endangered Species Act
Endangered Species Act
The Endangered Species Act of 1973 is one of the dozens of United States environmental laws passed in the 1970s. Signed into law by President Richard Nixon on December 28, 1973, it was designed to protect critically imperiled species from extinction as a "consequence of economic growth and...
) by the California Department of Fish and Game
California Department of Fish and Game
The California Department of Fish and Game is a department within the government of California, falling under its parent California Natural Resources Agency. The Department of Fish and Game manages and protects the state's diverse fish, wildlife, plant resources, and native habitats...
in 1979, and its Bay Area population continues to decline. Although there were hundreds of burrowing owls in Santa Clara County when monitoring began in the 1980's, now there are only 35, with three breeding pairs raising ten eggs at Shoreline in 2011 (less than half the number of young in 2003).
In August, 2003 the Stevens & Permanente Creeks Watershed Council was officially formed to support stewardship of the watersheds.
Recreation
Above Interstate 280 (and below the Quarry) a large section of the creek mainstem and all of the West Fork Permanente Creek tributary, and the Ohlone Creek sub-tributary, is protected by Rancho San Antonio County Park and Rancho San Antonio Open Space PreserveRancho San Antonio Open Space Preserve
Rancho San Antonio County Park is a public recreational area in the Santa Cruz Mountains, Santa Clara County, in northern California. It's approximately in area and contains of hiking trails. It is managed by the Santa Clara County Parks department...
. The 3988 acres (16.1 km²) Open Space Preserve, combined with the adjoining 165 acre (0.6677319 km²) County Park, in area and contains 23 miles (37 km) of hiking trails. A one-mile walk from the County Park's main parking lot leads to the historic 10-acre Deer Valley Farm.
There is a trail that runs along the creek, beginning at the historic Rengstorff House
Rengstorff House
The Rengstorff House was one of the first houses to be built in Mountain View, California. It was built by Henry Rengstorff, who operated a ferry between San Francisco and Mountain View. It is in the Italianate Victorian architecture style....
in Shoreline Park where it is connected to the San Francisco Bay Trail
San Francisco Bay Trail
The San Francisco Bay Trail is a bicycle and pedestrian trail that will eventually allow continuous travel around the shoreline of San Francisco Bay. As of 2011, approximately 310 miles of trail have been completed...
. The Permanente Creek Trail runs from there south to Charleston Road, where an extension is being built which includes a pedestrian bridge over U.S. Highway 101, to extend the trail south to just past Old Middlefield Way (completion scheduled for spring, 2012).
External links
- Stevens Creek and Permanente Creek Watershed Council
- Santa Clara County Creeks Coalition
- Permanente Creek Historic and Watershed maps page at Guide to San Francisco Bay Area Creeks
- Hiking trails map - Rancho San Antonio County Park map]
- Rancho San Antonio Open Space Preserve and County Park map
- Burrowing Owl Conservation organization
- GreenTown Los Altos
- Santa Clara Valley Audubon Society