San Gregorio Beach and Creek

Towards the end of the summer season and into the fall, creek flow in areas like San Gregorio in north-central California is very low. This is because there is little to no rain nor snowmelt feeding the creek. Low flow often leads to the creation of a natural sand levee on the beach where the creek meets the ocean. Creek water builds up into a big lagoon behind the levee. With the arrival of the first rains of the season, or perhaps a storm that causes big waves, the sand levee will be breached as creek flow again reaches the ocean. This whole process is natural and is beneficial to fish and other aquatic species... but sometimes man takes over, and either "for fun" or for fishing, we often see someone digging a channel to encourage an unnatural breach. —Contributed by Laura Torresan