Novato Creek

Novato Creek
	Novato Creek in summer 2016
	Location of the mouth within California
Native name	Spanish: Cañada de Novato [1]
Location
Country	United States
State	California
Region	Marin County
Cities	Novato, Bel Marin Keys
Physical characteristics
Source	Northeastern Marin County
- location	above Novato, California
- coordinates	38°8′36″N122°38′33″W / 38.14333°N 122.64250°W [2]
- elevation	1,100 ft (340 m)
Mouth
- coordinates	38°5′43″N122°29′18″W / 38.09528°N 122.48833°W Coordinates: 38°5′43″N122°29′18″W / 38.09528°N 122.48833°W [2]
- elevation	0 ft (0 m)
Basin features
Tributaries
- left	Bowman Canyon Creek
- right	Vineyard Creek, Arroyo Avichi, Arroyo San Jose

Last updated April 28, 2019

Novato Creek is a stream in eastern Marin County, California, United States. It originates in highlands between Red Hill and Mount Burdell above the city of Novato, California, and flows 17 miles (27 km) before emptying into San Pablo Bay south of Petaluma Point.

A stream is a body of water with surface water flowing within the bed and banks of a channel. The stream encompasses surface and groundwater fluxes that respond to geological, geomorphological, hydrological and biotic controls.

Marin County is a county located in the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2010 census, the population was 252,409. Its county seat is San Rafael. Marin County is included in the San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA Metropolitan Statistical Area across the Golden Gate Bridge from San Francisco.

The United States of America (USA), commonly known as the United States or America, is a country comprising 50 states, a federal district, five major self-governing territories, and various possessions. At 3.8 million square miles, the United States is the world's third or fourth largest country by total area and is slightly smaller than the entire continent of Europe's 3.9 million square miles. With a population of over 327 million people, the U.S. is the third most populous country. The capital is Washington, D.C., and the largest city by population is New York City. Forty-eight states and the capital's federal district are contiguous in North America between Canada and Mexico. The State of Alaska is in the northwest corner of North America, bordered by Canada to the east and across the Bering Strait from Russia to the west. The State of Hawaii is an archipelago in the mid-Pacific Ocean. The U.S. territories are scattered about the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, stretching across nine official time zones. The extremely diverse geography, climate, and wildlife of the United States make it one of the world's 17 megadiverse countries.

History

Miwok and Pomo people were the earliest residents of the watershed. Olompali, the site of a significant Miwok village, is located at the southern base of Mt. Burdell. In 1839 Mexican land grants established Rancho Novato. Grazing brought a host of invasive annual grassland plants that eventually dominated the deep-rooted native perennial grasses and altered runoff rates.

The Miwok are members of four linguistically related Native American groups indigenous to what is now Northern California, who traditionally spoke one of the Miwok languages in the Utian family. The word Miwok means people in the Miwok language.

The Pomo are an indigenous people of California. The historic Pomo territory in northern California was large, bordered by the Pacific Coast to the west, extending inland to Clear Lake, and mainly between Cleone and Duncans Point. One small group, the Northeastern Pomo of the Stonyford vicinity of Colusa County, was separated from the core Pomo area by lands inhabited by Yuki and Wintuan speakers.

By 1856 extensive apple orchards occupied the valley floor and many of the creeks had been channelized for irrigation. The tidal marshlands had also been diked and drained for agriculture (primarily oat-hay production) by the middle of the nineteenth century. In the 1880s the creek was dredged to make way for schooners bound for San Francisco.

Novato, one of the four townships in existence when Marin County formed in 1850, was incorporated in 1960. Ground was broken for Hamilton Air Force Base in 1932 and dedicated in 1935 (the base was decommissioned in 1974, and designated as a historic district in 1988).^[3]

Land use changes have increased sediment supply and decreased sediment transport, causing the lower reaches of Novato Creek to become shallower. In addition, the construction of Stafford Dam (starting in 1952^[4]) increased its drainage area by 5.2 square miles (13 km²).^[5]

Sediment is a naturally occurring material that is broken down by processes of weathering and erosion, and is subsequently transported by the action of wind, water, or ice or by the force of gravity acting on the particles. For example, sand and silt can be carried in suspension in river water and on reaching the sea bed deposited by sedimentation and if buried, may eventually become sandstone and siltstone.

Sediment transport is the movement of solid particles (sediment), typically due to a combination of gravity acting on the sediment, and/or the movement of the fluid in which the sediment is entrained. Sediment transport occurs in natural systems where the particles are clastic rocks, mud, or clay; the fluid is air, water, or ice; and the force of gravity acts to move the particles along the sloping surface on which they are resting. Sediment transport due to fluid motion occurs in rivers, oceans, lakes, seas, and other bodies of water due to currents and tides. Transport is also caused by glaciers as they flow, and on terrestrial surfaces under the influence of wind. Sediment transport due only to gravity can occur on sloping surfaces in general, including hillslopes, scarps, cliffs, and the continental shelf—continental slope boundary.

Aggradation The increase in land elevation due to the deposition of sediment

Aggradation is the term used in geology for the increase in land elevation, typically in a river system, due to the deposition of sediment. Aggradation occurs in areas in which the supply of sediment is greater than the amount of material that the system is able to transport. The mass balance between sediment being transported and sediment in the bed is described by the Exner equation.

Watershed and course

The Novato Creek watershed basin is 45 square miles (120 km²). Novato Creek is joined (heading downstream) by six major tributaries along its 17-mile (27 km) length: Leveroni, Bowman Canyon, Warner, Vineyard Creek, Arroyo Avichi, Arroyo de San Jose, and Simmonds Slough.^[3] Arroyo San Jose itself has two tributaries. It is joined on the left by Ignacio Creek and on the right by Pacheco Creek (at Pacheco Pond) just before entering Novato Creek. Novato Creek and its tributaries are often eroded, incised channels. It is one of the driest watersheds in Marin County.

Novato Creek begins to the west of Mount Burdell and initially descends to the west. However, it soon turns south, then east to feed into Stafford Lake. It descends through the city of Novato. East of Novato it crosses under U.S. Route 101 and State Route 37 before flowing through Bel Marin Keys and entering the northwest corner of San Pablo Bay.

Stafford Lake County Park is a park in the Marin County, California parks system, managed by the Marin County Department of Parks and Open Space. The 139 acres (0.56 km²) park is located in Novato, 33 miles (53 km) north of San Francisco California and is in a classic northern California valley among grazing farmland.

Novato, California City in California, United States

Novato is a city in northern Marin County, in the North Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2010 United States Census, its population was 51,904. Novato is located about 10 miles (16 km) northwest of San Rafael and about 30 miles (48 km) north of San Francisco on U.S. 101. Novato has been called one of the best places to live in the U.S.

State Route 37 is a state highway in the northern part of California that runs 21 miles (34 km) along the northern shore of San Pablo Bay. It is built from U.S. Route 101 in Novato and runs through the southern tip of Sonoma and Solano Counties to Interstate 80 in Vallejo. It serves as a vital connection between the four counties of the North Bay Area, north of San Francisco; Sonoma Raceway and Six Flags Discovery Kingdom are accessible from Route 37.

Just before entering the Bay, Novato Creek flows along Bel Marin Keys, an affluent community on the creek and a series of adjacent lagoons, at an elevation of 10 feet (3.0 m) above sea level.

Ecology

Salmonids (steelhead trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) and Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha)) are also found within the Novato Creek watershed. The Novato Creek watershed is known to support 10 extant fish species (6 native and 4 introduced). Native species include California roach, Sacramento pikeminnow, Sacramento sucker, steelhead, threespine stickleback, and Prickly sculpin. Introduced species include rainwater killifish, western mosquitofish, striped bass, and green sunfish.^[3] Fawcett (2000 and 2006) also noted the presence of non-native bluegill, largemouth bass, brown bullhead, chameleon goby, and inland silverside. Historically, the watershed supported native tidewater goby; the last collection occurred in 1945.^[6]

Wetland-adapted species occur along Rush Creek and the lower Novato Creek wetlands. Noteworthy species include San Pablo song sparrow, California black rail, saltmarsh common yellowthroat, and California clapper rail. Western pond turtles and naturalized bullfrogs are known to occur in Novato Creek.^[3]

Bridges

Novato Creek is spanned by many bridges, including:^[7]

at milepost 11.96 of State Route 37, a pair of 720 ft (219 m) prestressed concrete slabs built in 1959
at milepost 20.51 of U.S. 101, a pair of 192 ft (59 m) concrete continuous tee beams built in 1974
at Redwood Boulevard in Novato, a pair of 187 ft (57 m) concrete tee beams reconstructed in 1988
at Novato Boulevard in Novato, a 98 ft (30 m) concrete continuous tee beam built in 1969
at Seventh Street in Novato, a 60 ft (18 m) concrete continuous slab built in 1971
at Simmons Avenue in Novato, a 36 ft (11 m) concrete tee beam built in 1932 and reconstructed in 1970
at Grant Avenue in Novato, a 36 ft (11 m) concrete tee beam built in 1936
at Sutro Avenue in Novato, a 33 ft (10 m) concrete slab built in 1935 and reconstructed in 1972
at Diablo Avenue in Novato, a 32 ft (10 m) concrete slab built in 1966

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References

↑ Gudde, Erwin G (2010). California Place Names: A Geographical Dictionary. Berkeley, California: University of California Press. p. 264.
1 2 U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Novato Creek
1 2 3 4 "Novato Creek Watershed". Marin County. Retrieved 2010-08-31.
↑ "Novato History Museum". Archived from the original on 2007-12-26. Retrieved 2008-01-17.
↑ "Geomorphic Studies by Laurel Collins" . Retrieved 2008-01-17.
↑ Robert A. Leidy (2007). Ecology, Assemblage Structure, Distribution, and Status of Fishes in Streams Tributary to the San Francisco Estuary, California (Report). San Francisco Estuary Institute. Retrieved 2010-08-31.
↑ "National Bridge Inventory Database".

External links

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Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
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[Gudde-1] Gudde, Erwin G (2010). California Place Names: A Geographical Dictionary. Berkeley, California: University of California Press. p. 264.

[gnis-2] 1 2 U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Novato Creek

[Marin-3] 1 2 3 4 "Novato Creek Watershed". Marin County. Retrieved 2010-08-31.

[4] "Novato History Museum". Archived from the original on 2007-12-26. Retrieved 2008-01-17.

[5] "Geomorphic Studies by Laurel Collins" . Retrieved 2008-01-17.

[Leidy-6] Robert A. Leidy (2007). Ecology, Assemblage Structure, Distribution, and Status of Fishes in Streams Tributary to the San Francisco Estuary, California (Report). San Francisco Estuary Institute. Retrieved 2010-08-31.

[NBI-7] "National Bridge Inventory Database".

v t e San Francisco Bay watershed
Outline	Hydrography Ecology List of tributaries List of lakes
Subdivisions	Major San Francisco Bay Suisun Bay San Pablo Bay Minor Golden Gate Grizzly Bay Richardson Bay San Rafael Bay Richmond Inner Harbor San Leandro Bay Former Yerba Buena Cove Mission Bay
Waterways	Rivers San Joaquin Sacramento Napa Guadalupe Petaluma Creeks (discharging into the Bay) Alameda Baxter Cerrito Codornices Coyote (Santa Clara) Coyote (Marin) San Leandro San Lorenzo Schoolhouse Temescal Sausal Redwood San Mateo Sonoma Corte Madera Arroyo Corte Madera del Presidio San Rafael Miller Novato Tolay San Francisquito Pacheco Alhambra Adobe Rodeo Refugio Pinole Garrity Rheem Karlson San Pablo Castro Wildcat Fluvius Innominatus Marin (Alameda County) Strawberry Easton Mission Creek Reservoirs Calaveras Reservoir Lafayette Reservoir Straits and estuaries Sacramento–San Joaquin River Delta Carquinez Strait Oakland Estuary Raccoon Strait
Parks and protected areas	Don Edwards National Wildlife Refuge San Pablo Bay National Wildlife Refuge Eden Landing Ecological Reserve Hayward Regional Shoreline Hayward Shoreline Interpretive Center Crown Memorial State Beach McLaughlin Eastshore State Park Emeryville Crescent State Marine Reserve Point Isabel Regional Shoreline César Chávez Park Brooks Island Regional Preserve Point Pinole Regional Shoreline Antioch Dunes National Wildlife Refuge Coyote Point Park Middle Harbor Shoreline Park National Estuarine Research Reserve China Camp State Park San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park SF Bay Trail Oyster Bay Regional Shoreline Big Break Regional Shoreline
Islands and peninsulas	Major islands Alameda Alcatraz Angel Treasure Island Yerba Buena Minor Brooks Bair Bay Farm Belvedere Brother Castro Rocks Coast Guard Greco Mare Red Rock The Sisters Marin Islands Roe Ryer Seal Islands Peninsulas/infill Albany Bulb Point Isabel Foster City Fleming Point Hunters Point Steamboat Point Potrero Point
Wetlands	Chelsea Cordelia Crissy Field Hoffman Meeker Mowry Napa Sonoma Point Molate Seal Stege Suisun Westpoint
Bridges and tubes	Bridges San Francisco–Oakland Eastern span replacement Richmond–San Rafael San Mateo–Hayward Dumbarton Golden Gate Benicia–Martinez Antioch Carquinez Leimert Park Street Fruitvale High Street Bay Farm Island Tubes Posey/Webster Street Transbay
Ferries	Angel Island–Tiburon Ferry Blue & Gold Fleet Golden Gate Ferry San Francisco Bay Ferry (WETA)
Ports and marinas	Port of San Francisco Port of Oakland Port of Richmond Hunters Point Naval Shipyard Mare Island Naval Shipyard Port of Redwood City Berkeley Marina Oyster Point Marina/Park Clipper Yacht Harbor Westpoint Harbor Foster City Marina (proposed)
Other	Discovery Site Humphrey the Whale Cosco Busan oil spill Delta and Dawn Golden Gate Biosphere Reserve Ridgway's rail/California clapper rail Reber Plan San Leandro Oyster Beds Thicktail chub Delta smelt Richmond Shipyards U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Bay Model Guadalupe Watershed Clifton Court Forebay Conservation and Development Commission The Watershed Project Save The Bay Harold Gilliam Marincello Citizens for East Shore Parks Friends of Five Creeks Urban Creeks Council Cargill salt infill 1971 oil spill Greenbelt Alliance The Bay Institute San Francisco Baykeeper San Francisco Estuary and Watershed Science Water Trail Estuary Partnership Leslie Salt
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