Matilija Creek ( ) is a major stream in

Ventura County Ventura County () is a county located in the southern part of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 843,843. The largest city is Oxnard, and the county seat is the city of Ventura. Ventura County comprises ...

in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

. It joins with North Fork Matilija Creek to form the

Ventura River The Ventura River, in western Ventura County in southern California, United States, flows from its headwaters to the Pacific Ocean. The smallest of the three major rivers in Ventura County, it flows through the steeply sloped, narrow Ventura ...

. Many tributaries feed the mostly free flowing, creek,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data
The National Map
, accessed March 16, 2011 which is largely contained in the Matilija Wilderness. Matilija was one of the

Chumash Chumash may refer to: *Chumash (Judaism), a Hebrew word for the Pentateuch, used in Judaism *Chumash people, a Native American people of southern California *Chumashan languages, Indigenous languages of California See also

* Pentateuch (dis ...

rancherias under the jurisdiction of

Mission San Buenaventura Mission San Buenaventura (, Ventureño language, Ventureño: ), formally known as the Mission Basilica of San Buenaventura, is a parish (Catholic Church), Catholic parish and basilica in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles, Archdiocese ...

. The meaning of the Chumash name is unknown.

Course

From its headwaters south of

Sespe Creek Sespe Creek (Chumashan languages, Chumash: S'eqp'e', "Kneecap") is a stream, some long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed March 16, 2011 in Ventura County, California, Ve ...

in the Matilija Wilderness in

Santa Barbara County Santa Barbara County, officially the County of Santa Barbara (), is a county located in Southern California. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 448,229. The county seat is Santa Barbara, and the largest city is Santa M ...

, the creek flows east then south through a narrow V-shaped canyon into Ventura County. Below Matilija Falls it turns east and receives the Upper North Fork from the left, and almost immediately below that the West Fork (Murietta Canyon) from the right. The creek then flows east through a wider valley along the north side of the

Santa Ynez Mountains The Santa Ynez Mountains are a portion of the Transverse Ranges, part of the Pacific Coast Ranges of the west coast of North America. It is the westernmost range in the Transverse Ranges. The range is a large fault block of Cenozoic age created ...

before it empties into the mostly silted in Matilija Lake reservoir, formed by the high concrete arch Matilija Dam. Below the dam the creek flows southeast, through Matilija Hot Springs, and meets the North Fork Matilija Creek at the hamlet of Ojala, forming the Ventura River. The smaller North Fork Matilija Creek flows west and south from its headwaters near Rose Valley. The North Fork runs southwest, along Forest Route 6N31, and receives Cannon Creek from the right and Bear Creek from the left. It then cascades through the narrow Wheeler Gorge and through the community of Wheeler Springs. It flows briefly east and joins Matilija Creek shortly downstream. Highway 33 largely parallels the North Fork, from the top of Dry Lakes Ridge to the mouth. Fed by some perennial springs, despite its location in arid terrain, the creek flows year round, and can flood severely following winter storms.

Ecology

The name of the

Matilija poppy ''Romneya'' () is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the poppy family (Papaveraceae). There are two species in the genus ''Romneya'', which was named for Irish astronomer John Thomas Romney Robinson. They are known commonly as Matilija pop ...

(''

Romneya ''Romneya'' () is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the poppy family (Papaveraceae). There are two species in the genus ''Romneya'', which was named for Irish astronomer John Thomas Romney Robinson. They are known commonly as Matilija pop ...

'') is taken from the Matilija creek canyon. The Matilija Dam was constructed in 1947 on lower Matilija Creek for the purpose of supplying water storage and flood control, blocking access of anadromous

Steelhead trout Steelhead, or occasionally steelhead trout, is the anadromous form of the coastal rainbow trout or Columbia River redband trout (''O. m. gairdneri'', also called redband steelhead). Steelhead are native to cold-water tributaries of the Pacif ...

(''Oncorhynchus mykiss'') to over ten miles of upstream spawning areas. Historically 5,000 steelhead trout used the upper Matilija basin. The Robles Diversion Dam on the Ventura River downstream posed a barrier to trout migration until a $6 million fish ladder was constructed in 2006. Recent genetic analysis of the steelhead in Matilija Creek (both above and below Matilija Dam) has shown them to be of native and not hatchery stocks.

River modifications

The creek has one dam on it, Matilija Dam, built in 1947 to provide flood control and water supply for agricultural and urban uses in Ventura County. When completed, the dam was high and could impound more than of water. The reservoir has now almost completely filled with sediment, rendering it nearly useless. The dam was notched to reduce its height twice in the late 20th century, in order to allow some of the accumulated sediment to flow downstream. It is currently slated for removal.

References

External links

Matilija Dam.org
{{Ventura River Rivers of Southern California Rivers of Ventura County, California