Cattaraugus Creek
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Cattaraugus Creek | |
|---|---|
 The mouth of Cattaraugus Creek on Lake Erie near Sunset Bay, New York. | |
 Cattaraugus Creek Watershed (Interactive map) | |
  Location of the mouth of Cattaraugus Creek in New York State.  Cattaraugus Creek (the United States) | |
| Location | |
| Country | United States |
| State | New York |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Source | Java Lake |
| • location | Java, Wyoming County |
| • coordinates | 42°37′43″N 78°20′24″W / 42.62861°N 78.34000°W[1] |
| Mouth | Lake Erie |
• location | Sunset Bay, Erie County |
• coordinates | 42°34′14″N 79°08′14″W / 42.57056°N 79.13722°W[1] |
| Length | 68 mi (109 km)[2] |
| Basin size | 559 sq mi (1,450 km2)[2] |
Cattaraugus Creek is a stream, approximately 68 miles (109 km) long, in western New York in the United States.[1][2][3][4] The creek drains a wooded rural portion of western New York southwest of Buffalo into Lake Erie.[2][3][4] In its lower course it flows primarily through the Cattaraugus Reservation of the Seneca tribe.[2][3][4] William Beauchamp identifies the name Cattaraugus as deriving from the Seneca word Gah-ta-ra-ke-ras, meaning "stinking shore" or "foul-smelling river bank."[5] This in turn is likely a loanword from an extinct Attiwandiron, Erie, Wenro, or Wendat (Huron) language, combining the verb root -i'tar-, referring to clay or mud,[6] and -akera(n)-, describing a bad or strong odor:[7] hence, tke'tarakeras, place of strong-smelling mud or clay. (The Seneca language does not have a distinct R sound; the Seneca language equivalent, Canawaugus, was originally used for a site further east.[8]) This name is a result of the natural gas that oozes from the river mud.
The creek rises in Java Lake in Wyoming County. In the village of Arcade it is joined by Clear Creek. It flows westward out of Wyoming County to the hamlet of Yorkshire, where the creek becomes the boundary between Erie County to the north and Cattaraugus County to the south.[2] Near Springville, the creek is impounded by the Scoby Dam. From Springville to Gowanda, Cattaraugus Creek passes through the Zoar Valley Multiple Use Area.[2] This conservation zone is a favorite recreation area for fishing and rafting. The South Branch of Cattaraugus Creek, also known as Skinner Hollow, originates in East Otto and flows southwest into the village of Cattaraugus before veering northwest to Cattaraugus Creek along the Persia-Otto town line, joining the main creek just east of Gowanda, a village that straddles the main stem of the creek and is thereby in two counties.[2] Along its lower course Cattaraugus Creek flows past the hamlet of Versailles, on the south bank of the creek in the Cattaraugus Reservation.[2] For its final miles, the creek forms the border between Erie County and Chautauqua County, then flows into Lake Erie by Sunset Bay in the town of Hanover in Chautauqua County.[2]
Fishing
Each year around October to November, thousands of anglers descend on the lower course of Cattaraugus Creek to take advantage of the annual steelhead trout runs.[9][10][11]
Currently, the extent of steelhead migration up Cattaraugus Creek is limited by the Scoby Dam near Springville. However, a proposal to lower the currently 38-foot (12 m) dam by about 30 feet (9.1 m) was put forth by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in 2014. If approved, the dam's lowering and the installation of a fish ladder would allow steelhead to move into an additional 44 miles (71 km) of Cattaraugus Creek and its tributaries. The $6.6 million (USD) project would allow anglers to seek steelhead at an additional 34 miles (55 km) of public stream access, a large increase over the current four miles (6.4 km) of the stream that is currently publicly accessible for fishing below the dam.[12]
The dam's removal could also allow Cattaraugus Creek's steelhead populations to become more self-sustaining as they gain access to suitable spawning habitats available above the dam. Currently, the steelhead fishery is maintained only through annual stocking of fish.[12]
Critics of the project have raised concerns about impacts on resident brown and rainbow trout populations above the dam, and the possibility of introducing invasive species such as the sea lamprey into stretches of the creek currently free of such organisms. The USACE proposal includes barriers that are intended to restrict the movement of sea lamprey beyond the dam.[12]