The Rio Hondo (

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

: ''Río Hondo'', meaning "Deep River") is a tributary of the

Los Angeles River The Los Angeles River (), historically known as by the Tongva and the by the Spanish, is a major river in Los Angeles County, California. Its headwaters are in the Simi Hills and Santa Susana Mountains, and it flows nearly from Canoga Park ...

Los Angeles County, California Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles and sometimes abbreviated as LA County, is the List of United States counties and county equivalents, most populous county in the United States, with 9,663,345 residents estimated in 202 ...

, approximately long.U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data
The National Map
accessed March 16, 2011 As a named river, it begins in Irwindale and flows southwest to its confluence in South Gate, passing through several cities (though not the city of Los Angeles). Above Irwindale, its main stem is known as Santa Anita Creek, which extends to another northwards into the

San Gabriel Mountains The San Gabriel Mountains () are a mountain range located in Los Angeles and San Bernardino counties, California, United States. The mountain range is part of the Transverse Ranges and lies between the Los Angeles Basin and the Mojave Desert ...

where the source, or

headwaters The headwater of a river or stream is the geographical point of its beginning, specifically where surface runoff water begins to accumulate into a flowing channel of water. A river or stream into which one or many tributary rivers or streams flo ...

, of the river are found.

Background

The Rio Hondo has sometimes been described as a second channel of the San Gabriel River. For much of its length, the rivers flow parallel to each other about two miles (3 km) apart. Both rivers pass through the Whittier Narrows, a natural gap in the hills which form the southern boundary of the

San Gabriel Valley The San Gabriel Valley (), sometimes referred to by its initials as SGV, is one of the principal valleys of Southern California, with the city of Los Angeles directly bordering it to the west and occupying the vast majority of the southeastern ...

. Here, both rivers are impounded by the Whittier Narrows Dam, which the Army Corps of Engineers describes as, "the central element of the Los Angeles County Drainage Area (LACDA) flood control system". During major storms, the outlet works at Whittier Narrows Dam can direct water to either channel, or runoff can be stored. The Rio Hondo and San Gabriel River have both been part of a revitalization program called the Emerald Necklace. The goal of this program is to create a "necklace" of parks and reclaimed wild spaces with the two rivers. They are connected by a narrow strip in Irwindale and by Whittier Narrows to give them the appearance of a necklace if viewed from above. The project garnered broad support from organizations such as the Sierra Club along with the governments of the many cities the rivers pass through. Most of the Rio Hondo is a concrete-lined channel to serve its primary flood control function, but in two places the river flows over open ground: the Peck Road Water Conservation Park, and the Whittier Narrows Recreation Area. Large spreading grounds for

water conservation Water conservation aims to sustainably manage the natural resource of fresh water, protect the hydrosphere, and meet current and future human demand. Water conservation makes it possible to avoid water scarcity. It covers all the policies, strateg ...

surround much of the river, and its bike paths are very popular. The river passes through the location of the Battle of Rio San Gabriel, fought on January 8, 1847, and which resulted in a U.S. victory. Although the battle was actually fought on the west bank of the present-day Rio Hondo near where it is crossed by Washington Boulevard, the battle is named after the San Gabriel, which at that time flowed along these banks. A flood in 1867 caused the San Gabriel to change course, which it retains at present. The old San Gabriel was renamed the Rio Hondo after this flood. In

Downey, California Downey is a city located in Southeast Los Angeles County, California, United States, southeast of Downtown Los Angeles. It is considered part of the Gateway Cities. The city is the birthplace of the Apollo space program and Taco Bell. It is ...

, the Rio Hondo was once known as the "Old River", because it was the old course of the San Gabriel River. The Old River School was named for it, and Old River School Road was named for the school. The "New River" is the present course of the San Gabriel River.

Legacy

The Rio Hondo College and Rio Hondo Preparatory School were named after the river. In what is now the Bosque del Rio Hondo Natural Area, Marrano Beach was born on the riverfront property of El Rancho de Don Daniel, a Mexican land grant from the nineteenth century that had belonged the Repetto-Alvarado family, a prominent family of California land owners. El Rancho de Don Daniel encompassed riparian wetlands and ponds surrounding the Rio Hondo, which flowed year-round, and the seasonal Mission Creek. With few opportunities for respite after toiling in the fields, Mexican-American residents of the local barrios cultivated recreational lifestyles around this section of the river and embraced it as a bucolic resource for community and family activities.

Parks and recreation

The Rio Hondo River Trail is a multi-use trail that runs parallel to Rio Hondo through the San Gabriel Valley. The northern end starts along the reservoir at the Peck Road Water Conservation Park and continues along the channel to Whittier Narrows Recreation Area. The trail is 15.6 miles long. Allowed uses include hiking, mountain biking, horseback riding and walking dogs on leash. There is also bird and wildlife watching.

Crossings

Los Angeles River Rio Hondo confluence aerial

From mouth to source (year built in parentheses): *Railroad *Garfield Avenue (1957) *Southern Avenue / Stewart and Gray Road (1951) * Firestone Boulevard (1933) *Railroad *Rio Hondo Bicycle Path * Florence Avenue (1953) *Suva Street (1954) * - Santa Ana Freeway (1953) *Telegraph Road (1951) *Railroad *East Slauson Avenue (1954) *Railroad:

BNSF Railway BNSF Railway is the largest freight railroad in the United States. One of six North American Class I railroads, BNSF has 36,000 employees, of track in 28 states, and over 8,000 locomotives. It has three Transcontinental railroad, transcontine ...

(former Santa Fe Railway)/

Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak (; ), is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates intercity rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...

(

Pacific Surfliner The ''Pacific Surfliner'' is a passenger train service serving the communities on the coast of Southern California between San Diego and San Luis Obispo. The ''Pacific Surfliner'' is Amtrak's third-busiest service (exceeded in ridership only ...

Southwest Chief The ''Southwest Chief'' (formerly the ''Southwest Limited'' and ''Super Chief'') is a Amtrak Long Distance, long-distance passenger train operated by Amtrak on a route between Chicago and Los Angeles through the Midwest and American Southwest ...

)/ Metrolink ( Orange County Line/

91/Perris Valley Line The 91/Perris Valley Line, formerly known as the 91 Line, is a commuter rail route operated by Metrolink that runs from Los Angeles to Perris in Southern California, mostly paralleling State Route 91 between and stations. Operating since M ...

) * Washington Boulevard (1941) *Bridge to Rio Hondo Bicycle Path *Railroad:

Union Pacific Railroad The Union Pacific Railroad is a Railroad classes, Class I freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Pacific is the second largest railroad in the United Stat ...

(ex- LA&SL), Metrolink Riverside Line * Whittier Boulevard (1921) *East Beverly Boulevard (1952) * Whittier Narrows Dam *San Gabriel Boulevard (1982) * - Pomona Freeway (1966) *Garvey Avenue (1936) * Rosemead Boulevard / CA-164 (1937) * - San Bernardino Freeway (1956) * El Monte Busway (1972) *Railroad: Metrolink San Bernardino Line * Valley Boulevard (1956) *Railroad: Union Pacific Railroad former

Southern Pacific Railroad The Southern Pacific (or Espee from the railroad initials) was an American Railroad classes#Class I, Class I Rail transport, railroad network that existed from 1865 to 1996 and operated largely in the Western United States. The system was oper ...

/Amtrak

Sunset Limited The ''Sunset Limited'' is a long-distance passenger train run by Amtrak, operating on a route between New Orleans and Los Angeles. Major stops include Houston, San Antonio and El Paso in Texas, as well as Tucson, Arizona. Opening in 1894 thr ...

*Lower Azusa Road (1959) *Santa Anita Avenue (1959) *Rio Hondo Bicycle Path at Peck Road Park Lake

References

External links