Naples Creek facts for kids
Naples Creek is a cool stream in San Mateo County, California. It starts high up in the Santa Cruz Mountains. Then, it flows all the way down to the Pacific Ocean. The creek empties onto Naples Beach, which is part of the Half Moon Bay State Beach.
This creek runs right through the city of Half Moon Bay. The city helps protect the land around the creek. Naples Creek is super important because it has special wetland and riparian zone areas. These areas are home to many different plants and animals.
The city of Half Moon Bay wants to build a fun trail along Naples Creek. This trail would let people enjoy the creek's natural beauty even more. Parts of the creek's banks are already public land. The city sees the whole creek area as a valuable open space. They are even thinking about changing how some land is used to keep the creek area natural.
How Naples Creek Flows
Naples Creek begins high in the foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains. It starts at about 400 feet above sea level. From there, it flows southwest, heading towards the ocean. The creek passes through farmland and also through developed areas of Half Moon Bay.
Both the water on the surface and the water underground (called groundwater) flow in the same direction. They move from the northeast down to the southwest. Near the ocean, the groundwater is found about 20 to 80 feet below the surface. This water is in layers of sand and gravel left by the ocean long ago.
Sometimes, near where Naples Creek meets the ocean, salt water intrusion can happen. This means ocean saltwater can mix with the fresh groundwater. This is because there aren't many natural barriers underground to stop it. In the past, some groundwater in this area had more salt than usual. The land right next to the creek, near the ocean, is about 30 to 40 feet above sea level.
