Aliso Creek (Orange County)

Aliso Creek is a 19. 8-mile -long, mostly urban stream in south Orange County, California. It flows generally southwest and empties into the Pacific Ocean at Laguna Beach. The creek’s watershed drains 34. 9 square miles, and it is joined by seven main tributaries. As of 2018, the watershed had a population of 144,000 divided among seven incorporated cities.

About Aliso Creek (Orange County) in brief

Aliso Creek is a 19. 8-mile -long, mostly urban stream in south Orange County, California. Originating in the Cleveland National Forest in the Santa Ana Mountains, it flows generally southwest and empties into the Pacific Ocean at Laguna Beach. The creek’s watershed drains 34. 9 square miles, and it is joined by seven main tributaries. As of 2018, the watershed had a population of 144,000 divided among seven incorporated cities. Most of the creek’s course has been channelized or otherwise impacted by development. Pollution and erosion from urban runoff have become chronic issues. The word aliso means ‘alder’ in Spanish, and refers to the riparian forests that historically occurred along the creek. Several nearby geographical features also share the name, including the city of Aliso Viejo, Aliso Beach, and Aliso Peak. The California sycamore, Platanus racemosa, is also known as aliso in Spanish. It is common in the area around the creek, and is often found in Aliso and Wood Canyons Wilderness Park, which is at the northern tip of the Aliso Canyon Wilderness Park. Aliso Creek flows over highly erosive marine sedimentary rock of late Eocene to Pliocene age. It originally lay at the bottom of the Pacific ocean, before being uplifted as recently as 10 million years ago. About 1.2 million years ago, the San Joaquin Hills began to uplift in the path of Alisal Creek. The name ‘Aliso’ was first recorded for the Rancho Cañada de los Alisos Mexican land grant in 1841.

After California became part of the United States, the ranchos were gradually partitioned and sold off to farmers and settlers; starting in the 1950s, real estate companies acquired most of the land for development. In the 1840s the watershed was divided between several Mexican land grants. The rancho area was renamed El Toro sometime before 1900, but the name \”Aliso creek\” persisted. It has been the focus of projects to restore the stream channel and improve water quality. It also provides important regional wildlife habitat, especially in the Aliso Canyon section, where the creek carved the deep water gap known today as Aliso Canyon, the main feature of Alister Canyon Wilderness Park and Aliso Canyons National Park. It flows south along Country Home Road then begins to parallel Santiago Canyon Road, which becomes El Toro Road south of Cook’s Corner. It turns southwest, crossing under the 241 toll road and passing Saddleback Church, then receives an unnamed tributary from the right. It then enters Lake Forest, where it receives Munger Creek and English Canyon Creek from the left. It enters the Moul Parkway near Sheep Hills Park near the northernmost point of the valley. Below this point the creek widens at the tip of this point and widens to a greenbelt that stretches from here to the northwestern part of Laguna Niguel.

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