Pescadero Creek (Pajaro River)
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| Pescadero Creek Arroyo de Pescadero | |
|---|---|
  Location of mouth | |
| Location | |
| Country | United States |
| State | California |
| Region | Santa Clara and Santa Cruz Counties |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Source | Southern Santa Cruz Mountains |
| • location | 2.5 mi (4 km) southwest of Gilroy |
| • coordinates | 36°59′00″N 121°37′23″W / 36.98333°N 121.62306°W[1] |
| • elevation | 1,820 ft (550 m) |
| Mouth | Pajaro River |
• location | 9.5 mi (15 km) east of Watsonville |
• coordinates | 36°54′01″N 121°35′12″W / 36.90028°N 121.58667°W[1] |
• elevation | 138 ft (42 m) |
| Length | 9 mi (14 km) |
| Basin features | |
| Tributaries | |
| • right | West Fork Pescadero Creek |
Pescadero Creek is a 9-mile-long (14 km)[2] southward-flowing stream originating in the southern Santa Cruz Mountains. It begins in Santa Clara County, California and flows into Santa Cruz County, before joining the Pajaro River, and thence to Monterey Bay and the Pacific Ocean. Pescadero Creek is the center of a critical linkage connecting the wildlife of the southern Santa Cruz Mountains to the Gabilan Range to the south.[3]
"Pescadero" is Spanish for "fishing place". In 1861 Manuel Larios testified in the Rancho Las Animas land grant case that "the Castros had an Indian boy who went to this creek to fish". Then John Gilroy testified "the Pescadero draws its name from the fact of our catching salmon there" and "the Castros, I, and an Indian gave it that name in 1814, being a place where we used to catch salmon." Arroyo de Pescadero is shown on diseños from the 1830s.[4]
Watershed and Course
Pescadero Creek runs southerly through the southern Santa Cruz Mountains about 2.5 miles (4.0 km) southwest of Gilroy, California. At about two-thirds of its course it is joined by Castro Valley Road, which passes with the stream through Hatfield Canyon,[5] then crosses into Santa Cruz County and receives from the right Star Creek,[6] which drains the eastern flank of 1,618 feet (493 m) tall Atherton Peak.[7] Next, Pescadero Creek passes to the east of 1,575 feet (480 m) tall Mount Pajaro[8] on its way to its confluence with the Pajaro River, about 9.5 miles (15.3 km) east of Watsonville, California.