San Tomas Aquino Creek facts for kids
Quick facts for kids San Tomas Aquinas Creek |
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San Tomas Aquino Creek in Santa Clara
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| Other name(s) | Arroyo de San Tomás Aquinas, San Tomas Aquino Creek |
| Country | United States |
| State | California |
| Region | Santa Clara County |
| Cities | Saratoga, Monte Sereno, Los Gatos, Campbell, Santa Clara, San Jose |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Main source | El Sereno Summit in the Santa Cruz Mountains Saratoga, California 2,400 ft (730 m) 37°13′04″N 122°01′32″W / 37.21778°N 122.02556°W |
| River mouth | Guadalupe Slough in South San Francisco Bay Sunnyvale, California 13 ft (4.0 m) 37°23′20″N 121°58′07″W / 37.38889°N 121.96861°W |
| Basin features | |
| Tributaries |
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San Tomas Aquinas Creek, also known as San Tomas Aquino Creek, is a stream about 16.5 miles (26.6 kilometers) long. It starts on El Sereno mountain in the El Sereno Open Space Preserve in Saratoga, California. This area is part of Santa Clara County, California, in the United States.
The creek flows north through several cities. These include Saratoga, Monte Sereno, Los Gatos, Campbell, Santa Clara, and San Jose. Finally, it joins the Guadalupe Slough in the southern part of San Francisco Bay.
Contents
History of the Creek's Name
Back in the 1850s, this creek appeared on old land maps. It was called San Tomas Aquinas Creek and Arroyo de San Tomás Aquinas. An "arroyo" is a Spanish word for a small stream or dry creek bed.
Historically, San Tomas Aquino Creek was an important boundary. It marked the eastern edge of the 1841 Rancho Quito land grant. It also formed the western edge of the 1840 Rancho Rinconada de Los Gatos land grant.
Where the Creek Flows
The San Tomas Aquinas Creek watershed covers about 44.8 square miles. A watershed is an area of land where all the water drains into a single river or creek.
The main smaller streams that flow into San Tomas Aquino Creek are called tributaries. These include Mistletoe Creek, Wildcat Creek, Smith Creek, and Saratoga Creek.
Smith Creek
Smith Creek is a small stream that feeds into San Tomas Aquino Creek. It is mostly dry except during the winter months when it rains. It starts in the hills of the Santa Cruz Mountains near Monte Sereno, California. Then, it flows north through parts of Los Gatos and Campbell.
Saratoga Creek
Saratoga Creek is the largest tributary of San Tomas Aquino Creek. It joins the main creek south of Highway 101. Saratoga Creek is so big that it is often thought of as its own separate watershed.
Long ago, San Tomas Aquino Creek used to flow into Saratoga Creek. Then, Saratoga Creek would flow into the Guadalupe River. But the Guadalupe River was changed to make it easier for boats to travel. So, San Tomas Aquino Creek was extended to flow directly into Guadalupe Slough. This made Saratoga Creek a tributary of San Tomas Aquino Creek instead.
Vasona Creek
Vasona Creek is a short stream that flows through West Valley College. It joins Wildcat Creek just before Wildcat Creek reaches San Tomas Aquino Creek.
Since 2011, parts of Vasona Creek have been restored. This project helped fix problems with the creek bed and brought back plants that grow along the water.
The Creek's Path
The middle part of San Tomas Aquino Creek runs under or next to the San Tomas Expressway. Some parts of the creek are open to the sky, but much of it flows completely underground.
A special path, the San Tomas Aquino bicycle and pedestrian trail, follows the creek. You can use this trail from the San Francisco Bay all the way to Homestead Road.
Animals and Plants in the Creek
In 1898, a scientist named John Otterbein Snyder found steelhead trout in what is now Saratoga Creek. Steelhead trout are a type of rainbow trout that live in the ocean but return to freshwater to lay eggs.
A survey in 1985 found that San Tomas Aquino Creek was an important place for steelhead and king salmon to lay their eggs. Today, rainbow trout still live in the Saratoga Creek watershed. However, steelhead fish from the Bay cannot swim upstream to lay eggs because of a barrier where San Tomas Aquino Creek and Saratoga Creek meet.
Scientists have studied the trout in the San Tomas Aquino watershed. They found that these trout are native to the area, meaning they are not from fish farms.
Fish Species
In 2007, a study identified several native fish species in San Tomas Aquino Creek. These include:
- Hitch
- California roach
- Sacramento sucker
- Three-spined stickleback
- Rainbow trout
- Possibly Chinook salmon
Even though Chinook salmon were thought to be gone from the creek, a large one was found in 1996. Roger Castillo, who helps restore salmon and steelhead, found a huge Chinook salmon under Highway 237.
Some non-native fish have also been found in the creek. These include:
Images for kids
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Roger Castillo, a founder of the Salmon and Steelhead Restoration Group, with a huge Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha), now a taxidermy wall mount specimen, that he recovered from San Tomas Aquino Creek below Highway 237 in mid-October, 1996.
