Waddell Creek (California)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Waddell Creek | |
|---|---|
 The mouth of Waddell Creek at Waddell Beach, in the Rancho Del Oso section of the Big Basin Redwoods State Park | |
 | |
| Location | |
| Country | United States |
| State | California |
| Region | Santa Cruz County |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Source | Confluence of East and West Waddell Creeks in the |
| • location | Big Basin Redwoods State Park |
| • coordinates | 37°08′02″N 122°16′03″W / 37.13389°N 122.26750°W[3] |
| • elevation | 82 ft (25 m)[4] |
| Mouth | Pacific Ocean |
• coordinates | 37°05′33″N 122°16′36″W / 37.09250°N 122.27667°W[3] |
• elevation | 0 ft (0 m)[3] |
| Basin features | |
| Tributaries | |
| • left | East Waddell Creek |
| • right | West Waddell Creek |
Waddell Creek is the name given to both the creek and the watershed that run through Big Basin Redwoods State Park in Santa Cruz County, California.[5] The Waddell Creek mainstem is formed by the confluence of East and West Waddell Creeks, and empties into the Pacific Ocean at Waddell Beach, just south of Año Nuevo Point.
The first European land exploration of Alta California, the Spanish Portolà expedition, passed through the area on its way north, camping for three days at Waddell Creek, October 20–22, 1769, and initially named the creek Cañada de San Luis Beltran. The longer stay was because of heavy rains, and fears that the weather would worsen the condition of those in the party who were sick. Instead, as Franciscan missionary Juan Crespi noted in his diary, "it seemed as though God had sent them health with the drenching, for to the surprise of everybody they began to improve, and in a short time were entirely recovered, thanks to God, to whom we attributed this special blessing. For this reason the valley was renamed Cañada de la La Salud."[6][1]
William Waddell of Kentucky came to California in 1851. The first American settler of the area (for whom the creek and valley are named), he built a sawmill on the creek in 1862 above the Waddell Forks and conducted an extensive timber harvesting operation in the area, a lumber-hauling tramway from the mill to the beach, and a wharf.[7] Waddell was killed by a California grizzly bear in 1875.[1]
Watershed and course
The Waddell Creek mainstem is 2.75 miles (4.43 km) long, although total distance from headwater source tributaries to the sea is 14 miles (23 km).[8] The Waddell Creek watershed drains 26 square miles (67 km2) and consists of many headwater creeks that feed its two tributaries, East and West Waddell Creeks. West Waddell Creek has its source at 1,800 feet (550 m) along the border of Santa Cruz and San Mateo Counties, while East Waddell Creek's source is at the confluence of Opal Creek and Blooms Creek at 915 feet (279 m) just below Big Basin Redwoods State Park headquarters in Santa Cruz County.[9][10][4] Some of the uppermost headwaters streams originate above 2,000 feet (610 m).[4]
