Knowledge (XXG)

Lagunitas Creek

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405: 547:) and coho salmon spawning populations in the Lagunitas Creek watershed. The 50% of remaining historical salmon habitat in the Lagunitas Creek watershed is now also behind dams. Because dams also block sediment transport, there is a lack of suitable spawning gravel in many lower stream reaches for spawning. Most spawning in the Lagunitas Creek watershed now takes place in San Geronimo Creek, an unregulated tributary, and the region immediately downstream of its confluence with Lagunitas Creek. 535:," or CCC ESU, and are listed as "endangered" at both the state and federal level. The CCCESU has declined from an estimated 50,000–125,000 adult returns to only 500 spawning adults, and is at high risk for extinction, with only 67 adults returning in 2013. Significant efforts to protect and restore these fish have been underway in the Watershed since the 1980s. Before Seeger Dam was constructed in 1960 by the Marin Municipal Water District (MMWD), 467:. On the west side of the town, the creek is joined by Olema Creek, the largest tributary in the Lagunitas Creek watershed. Olema Creek receives Bear Valley Creek, and mainstem Olema Creek flows for 9 miles (14 km) along the San Andreas Fault Zone, with a catchment area of 14.5 square miles (38 km). After receiving the waters of Olema Creek, Lagunitas Creek turns northward and then empties into the wetlands at the southeast end of 52: 509: 33: 474:
The Lagunitas Creek watershed drains 103 square miles (270 km). Most of its major tributaries are dammed, including the Kent, Alpine, Bon Tempe, Lagunitas, and Nicasio reservoirs. The San Geronimo Valley is the last un-dammed headwater tributary of Lagunitas Creek. Each of the reservoirs in the
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Strong efforts are also being made to protect and restore undammed, headwater reaches of this Watershed in the San Geronimo Valley, where upwards of 40% of the Lagunitas Creek salmon spawn each year and where as much as 1/3 of the juvenile salmon (or fry) spend their entire freshwater lives. Roy's
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is also a significant problem in the watershed. Sedimentation from Lagunitas Creek into Tomales Bay resulted from nineteenth century logging and cattle grazing of riparian plants which otherwise slow erosion. However, sediment loads have been decreasing since the mid-twentieth century and the
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that had accumulated behind the dam. This re-opened critical spawning habitat no longer available on other Lagunitas Creek tributaries. The Salmon Protection and Watershed Network () leads winter tours for the public to learn about and view these spawning salmon, and also leads year-round
483:. The dams dewater the streambed, especially as the first winter rains fill the reservoirs instead of flowing downstream. Also, water from the late winter rains are partially lost from streamflows because of evaporation from the reservoir surfaces. 383:
tributary. The modern name, Lagunitas Creek, is derived from the several "lagunitas" (Spanish for "little lakes") which have now been turned into reservoirs by dams in the upper watershed. It was once known as
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opportunities for the public to get involved in stream restoration, monitoring spawning and smolt outmigration, juvenile fish rescue and relocation in the summer, and advocacy and policy development.
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although they were also reported in the San Lorenzo River in 1915. As of December 2017 a half dozen chum salmon and a dozen pink salmon were counted in Lagunitas Creek.
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Below Kent Lake and the San Geronimo Creek confluence, the mainstem Lagunitas Creek courses through Samuel P. Taylor State Park, which hosts 600 acres of
1095: 1203: 637:), a Federal Species of Concern and California Species of Special Concern, persist in Little Carson Creek and Big Carson Creek, tributaries of 440: 892:
Tina M. Niemi & N. Timothy Hall (1996). "Historical Changes in the Tidal Marsh of Tomales Bay and Olema Creek, Marin County, California".
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follows the course of San Geronimo Creek west and then north along mainstem Lagunitas Creek through Samuel P. Taylor State Park.
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Quantifying Current and Future Floodplain Habitat for Coho Salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch) in Lagunitas Creek (Marin County, CA)
431:. The creek begins as three forks, the East Fork, Middle Fork and West Fork. After about a mile (1,600 m), they all flow into 333: 157: 738: 651: 404: 680: 630: 497: 452: 448: 409: 1053:
Hallock, Richard J.; Fry, Donald H. Jr. "Five Species of Salmon, Oncorhynchus, in the Sacramento River, California".
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Under the name Paper Mill Creek, Lagunitas Creek is referred to, and crossed several times by car, in the course of
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at the mouth of the creek is no longer aggrading likely due to sediment capture in the many upstream reservoirs.
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Dam on San Geronimo Creek was built in the 1920s to supply water to a ranch. It was an obstacle for
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has a dam and the biggest problem in the watershed is their blocking of the streams, which prevents
1208: 567:. It was decided to lower the dam instead of completely removing it because of the large amount of 901: 596: 380: 301: 38: 987: 867: 810: 785: 600: 560: 460: 456: 781: 774: 1020: 389: 69: 603:
in November 1915. The southern limit of spawning chum salmon, also known as dog salmon, is
51: 721: 564: 556: 540: 447:. Just downstream of Kent Lake, San Geronimo Creek joins the creek, right before it forms 424: 340: 143: 1169: 837: 521: 463:. Shortly after this confluence, Lagunitas turns westward and flows through the town of 954: 656: 480: 476: 436: 432: 428: 356: 1134: 508: 1192: 623: 615: 604: 536: 416: 305: 104: 713:
U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data.
57: 1096:"Marin's Lagunitas Creek Welcomes Unexpected Guests in this Year's Spawning Season" 1075:
Scofield, N. B. (1916). "The humpback and dog salmon taken in San Lorenzo River".
396:. This mill, the Pioneer Paper Mill, was built in 1856, the first in California. 592: 584: 576: 575:
In the fall of 2017, two additional salmon species appeared in Lagunitas Creek,
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California Place Names: The Origin and Etymology of Current Geographical Names
531:) in Central California. These coho are part of the "Central California Coast 415:
Lagunitas Creek's major tributaries include San Geronimo Creek, Devils Gulch,
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Feasibility Study for the Reintroduction of the Foothill Yellow-legged Frog (
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U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Lagunitas Creek
744:(Report). Center for Watershed Sciences, University of California, Davis. 739:
Salmon, Steelhead and Trout in California – Status of an Emblematic Fauna
714: 568: 324:. It is critically important to the largest spawning runs of endangered 905: 486: 662:
Lagunitas Creek is cited in Jane Hirshfield's poem "Mountainal," from
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The Tomales Bay Watershed Stewardship Plan: A Framework for Action
507: 403: 379:, then Daniels creek. Now the "San Geronimo" survives only as the 813:(Report). Tomales Bay Watershed Council. July 2003. p. 137. 1131:) within the Mt. Tamalpais Watershed, Marin County, California 737:
Peter B. Moyle; Joshua A. Israel; Sabra E. Purdy (2008).
1133:(Report). Marin Municipal Water District. Archived from 339:
The stream's headwaters begin on the northern slopes of
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state, although they were reported as far south as the
928:(Thesis). California State University, Stanislaus. 294: 282: 274: 269: 261: 253: 243: 204: 192: 149: 139: 130: 120: 110: 100: 95: 75: 65: 21: 836: 776:Durham's Place Names of the San Francisco Bay Area 773: 676:List of watercourses in the San Francisco Bay Area 986:Brown, Larry R.; Moyle, Peter B. (July 1, 1991). 455:and is joined by Nicasio Creek, which flows from 316:is a 24-mile-long (39 km) northward-flowing 79: 955:Case Study Report #37 Nicasio Lake Nicasio Creek 1021:"Lagunitas Creek gets odd visitor: pink salmon" 843:. University of California Press. p. C-170 1160:SPAWN, Salmon Protection and Watershed Network 423:. The creek's source is the northern slope of 332:) in the Central California Coast Coho salmon 993:(Report). National Marine Fisheries Service. 805: 803: 801: 523:is home to the largest remaining wild run of 8: 1070: 1068: 870:. Marin County Department of Public Works. 862: 860: 1048: 1046: 767: 765: 451:. Lagunitas continues northwest through 25:Arroyo de San Geronimo, Paper Mill Creek 1125:Garcia and Associates (November 2010). 732: 730: 692: 351:, 1.5 miles (2.4 km) northwest of 1106:from the original on December 30, 2017 1031:from the original on December 30, 2017 1000:from the original on December 28, 2017 967:from the original on December 29, 2016 935:from the original on December 28, 2017 698: 696: 18: 1180:Video of North American river otter ( 427:, a few miles (~6–8 km) east of 7: 1175:Klamath Resource Information System 1094:Camhi, Tiffany (December 9, 2017). 988:Status of Coho Salmon in California 392:built a paper mill on the creek in 16:Stream in California, United States 1199:Rivers of Marin County, California 852:gudde place names lagunitas creek. 14: 666:(New York: Knopf, 2020), p. 111. 265:103 sq mi (270 km) 1019:Mark Prado (November 26, 2017). 50: 31: 874:from the original on 2017-12-28 817:from the original on 2017-12-28 751:from the original on 2012-05-21 533:Evolutionarily Significant Unit 353:Point Reyes Station, California 1184:) in Lagunitas Creek watershed 960:(Report). CalFed Water. 1977. 772:David L. Durham (2001-01-01). 659:, partly set in Marin County. 520:The Lagunitas Creek Watershed 206: • coordinates 151: • coordinates 1: 1204:Rivers of Northern California 334:Evolutionary Significant Unit 131:Physical characteristics 1170:Oakland Museum of California 724:, accessed December 27, 2017 652:Confessions of a Crap Artist 245: • elevation 1100:KQED News California Report 894:Journal of Coastal Research 835:Erwin Gustav Gudde (1960). 681:Samuel P. Taylor State Park 631:foothill yellow-legged frog 629:Remnant populations of the 498:Sir Francis Drake Boulevard 453:Samuel P. Taylor State Park 410:Samuel P. Taylor State Park 347:and terminate in southeast 56:Lagunitas Creek watershed ( 1225: 1165:Trout Unlimited California 1025:Marin Independent Journal 919:Adam Fleenor (May 2015). 375:, then by the Spanish as 188: 135: 49: 30: 1077:California Fish and Game 1055:California Fish and Game 563:upstream of the dam for 459:, another water storage 371:the stream was known as 322:Marin County, California 296: • right 868:"Tomales Bay Watershed" 284: • left 257:20 mi (32 km) 80: 581:Oncorhynchus gorbuscha 539:supported half of the 517: 412: 377:Arroyo de San Geronimo 228:38.08000°N 122.82694°W 173:37.94750°N 122.59722°W 559:trying access to the 511: 407: 620:Sequoia sempervirens 529:Oncorhynchus kisutch 439:, which drains into 435:, which drains into 400:Watershed and course 330:Oncorhynchus kisutch 249:0 ft (0 m) 233:38.08000; -122.82694 178:37.94750; -122.59722 1137:on November 6, 2014 545:Oncorhynchus mykiss 465:Point Reyes Station 408:Lagunitas Creek in 270:Basin features 224: /  169: /  720:2012-03-29 at the 655:, a 1975 novel by 518: 516:in Lagunitas Creek 413: 381:San Geronimo Creek 302:San Geronimo Creek 44:in Lagunitas Creek 1182:Lontra canadensis 791:978-1-884995-35-4 601:San Lorenzo River 589:Oncorhynchus keta 512:School of native 457:Nicasio Reservoir 311: 310: 1216: 1147: 1146: 1144: 1142: 1122: 1116: 1115: 1113: 1111: 1091: 1085: 1084: 1072: 1063: 1062: 1050: 1041: 1040: 1038: 1036: 1016: 1010: 1009: 1007: 1005: 999: 992: 983: 977: 976: 974: 972: 966: 959: 951: 945: 944: 942: 940: 934: 927: 916: 910: 909: 889: 883: 882: 880: 879: 864: 855: 854: 849: 848: 842: 832: 826: 825: 823: 822: 807: 796: 795: 779: 769: 760: 759: 757: 756: 750: 743: 734: 725: 715:The National Map 711: 705: 700: 390:Samuel P. Taylor 386:Paper Mill Creek 297: 285: 239: 238: 236: 235: 234: 229: 225: 222: 221: 220: 217: 184: 183: 181: 180: 179: 174: 170: 167: 166: 165: 162: 152: 91: 83: 54: 35: 19: 1224: 1223: 1219: 1218: 1217: 1215: 1214: 1213: 1189: 1188: 1156: 1151: 1150: 1140: 1138: 1124: 1123: 1119: 1109: 1107: 1093: 1092: 1088: 1074: 1073: 1066: 1052: 1051: 1044: 1034: 1032: 1018: 1017: 1013: 1003: 1001: 997: 990: 985: 984: 980: 970: 968: 964: 957: 953: 952: 948: 938: 936: 932: 925: 918: 917: 913: 891: 890: 886: 877: 875: 866: 865: 858: 846: 844: 834: 833: 829: 820: 818: 809: 808: 799: 792: 771: 770: 763: 754: 752: 748: 741: 736: 735: 728: 722:Wayback Machine 712: 708: 701: 694: 689: 672: 647: 557:steelhead trout 541:steelhead trout 506: 425:Mount Tamalpais 402: 365: 341:Mount Tamalpais 314:Lagunitas Creek 295: 283: 246: 232: 230: 226: 223: 218: 215: 213: 211: 210: 207: 177: 175: 171: 168: 163: 160: 158: 156: 155: 150: 144:Mount Tamalpais 85: 61: 58:Interactive map 45: 26: 23: 22:Lagunitas Creek 17: 12: 11: 5: 1222: 1220: 1212: 1211: 1206: 1201: 1191: 1190: 1187: 1186: 1177: 1172: 1167: 1162: 1155: 1154:External links 1152: 1149: 1148: 1117: 1086: 1064: 1042: 1011: 978: 946: 911: 884: 856: 827: 797: 790: 761: 726: 706: 691: 690: 688: 685: 684: 683: 678: 671: 668: 657:Philip K. Dick 646: 643: 505: 502: 481:fish migration 437:Bon Tempe Lake 433:Lake Lagunitas 429:Bolinas Lagoon 401: 398: 364: 361: 357:drinking water 309: 308: 300:Devils Gulch, 298: 292: 291: 286: 280: 279: 276: 272: 271: 267: 266: 263: 259: 258: 255: 251: 250: 247: 244: 241: 240: 208: 205: 202: 201: 196: 190: 189: 186: 185: 153: 147: 146: 141: 137: 136: 133: 132: 128: 127: 122: 118: 117: 112: 108: 107: 102: 98: 97: 93: 92: 77: 73: 72: 67: 63: 62: 55: 47: 46: 36: 28: 27: 24: 15: 13: 10: 9: 6: 4: 3: 2: 1221: 1210: 1207: 1205: 1202: 1200: 1197: 1196: 1194: 1185: 1183: 1178: 1176: 1173: 1171: 1168: 1166: 1163: 1161: 1158: 1157: 1153: 1136: 1132: 1130: 1121: 1118: 1105: 1101: 1097: 1090: 1087: 1082: 1078: 1071: 1069: 1065: 1060: 1056: 1049: 1047: 1043: 1030: 1026: 1022: 1015: 1012: 996: 989: 982: 979: 963: 956: 950: 947: 931: 924: 923: 915: 912: 907: 903: 900:(1): 90–102. 899: 895: 888: 885: 873: 869: 863: 861: 857: 853: 841: 840: 831: 828: 816: 812: 806: 804: 802: 798: 793: 787: 783: 778: 777: 768: 766: 762: 747: 740: 733: 731: 727: 723: 719: 716: 710: 707: 704: 699: 697: 693: 686: 682: 679: 677: 674: 673: 669: 667: 665: 660: 658: 654: 653: 645:In literature 644: 642: 640: 636: 635:(Rana boylii) 632: 627: 625: 624:virgin forest 621: 617: 612: 610: 606: 605:Tillamook Bay 602: 598: 594: 590: 586: 582: 578: 573: 570: 566: 562: 558: 554: 548: 546: 542: 538: 537:Nicasio Creek 534: 530: 526: 522: 515: 510: 503: 501: 499: 495: 493: 488: 484: 482: 478: 472: 470: 466: 462: 458: 454: 450: 446: 442: 438: 434: 430: 426: 422: 418: 417:Nicasio Creek 411: 406: 399: 397: 395: 391: 387: 382: 378: 374: 370: 362: 360: 358: 354: 350: 346: 342: 337: 335: 331: 327: 323: 319: 315: 307: 306:Nicasio Creek 303: 299: 293: 290: 287: 281: 277: 273: 268: 264: 260: 256: 252: 248: 242: 237: 209: 203: 200: 197: 195: 191: 187: 182: 154: 148: 145: 142: 138: 134: 129: 126: 123: 119: 116: 113: 109: 106: 105:United States 103: 99: 94: 89: 82: 78: 74: 71: 68: 64: 59: 53: 48: 43: 40: 34: 29: 20: 1181: 1141:December 28, 1139:. 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Index


endangered
coho salmon

Interactive map
Spanish
Coast Miwok
United States
California
Marin County
Mount Tamalpais
37°56′51″N 122°35′50″W / 37.94750°N 122.59722°W / 37.94750; -122.59722
Mouth
Tomales Bay
38°4′48″N 122°49′37″W / 38.08000°N 122.82694°W / 38.08000; -122.82694
Olema Creek
San Geronimo Creek
Nicasio Creek
stream
Marin County, California
coho salmon
Evolutionary Significant Unit
Mount Tamalpais
Coast Range
Tomales Bay
Point Reyes Station, California
drinking water
Coast Miwok
San Geronimo Creek
Samuel P. Taylor

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