The Santa Fe Dam Recreation Area is a county park located in

Irwindale, California } Irwindale is a city in the San Gabriel Valley, in Los Angeles County, California. The population was 1,472 at the 2020 census, 1,422 at the 2010 census. The ZIP Codes serving the area are 91010, which is shared with Duarte, 91702, which i ...

, US, in 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 ...

, inside the Santa Fe Dam. The park and dam are nestled among gravel quarries in the area, many of which are currently inactive. The dam is a flood-control dam on the San Gabriel River. The dam functions as a dry dam most of the time. The San Gabriels produce more gravel than most other mountains. The park is maintained and operated by the Los Angeles County Department of Parks and Recreation. The park, located off the San Gabriel River Freeway ( Interstate 605), contains a 70-acre (280,000 m²) lake for year-round fishing and non motorized watercraft. The dam is a popular

tourist attraction A tourist attraction is a place of interest that tourists visit, typically for its inherent or exhibited natural or cultural value, historical significance, natural or built beauty, offering leisure and amusement. Types Places of natural beaut ...

, most likely due to the views of 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 ...

. Recreational activities at the park include seasonal

swimming Swimming is the self-propulsion of a person through water, such as saltwater or freshwater environments, usually for recreation, sport, exercise, or survival. Swimmers achieve locomotion by coordinating limb and body movements to achieve hydrody ...

fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment (Freshwater ecosystem, freshwater or Marine ecosystem, marine), but may also be caught from Fish stocking, stocked Body of water, ...

, non-motorized

boating Boating is the leisurely activity of travelling by boat, or the recreational use of a boat whether powerboats, sailboats, or man-powered vessels (such as rowing and paddle boats), focused on the travel itself, as well as sports activities, suc ...

cycling Cycling, also known as bicycling or biking, is the activity of riding a bicycle or other types of pedal-driven human-powered vehicles such as balance bikes, unicycles, tricycles, and quadricycles. Cycling is practised around the world fo ...

birdwatching Birdwatching, or birding, is the observing of birds, either as a recreational activity or as a form of citizen science. A birdwatcher may observe by using their naked eye, by using a visual enhancement device such as binoculars or a telescop ...

, and

hiking A hike is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century. Long hikes as part of a religious pilgrimage have existed for a much longer time. "Hi ...

. In 2005, the annual Renaissance Pleasure Faire of Southern California was relocated to the park from its long-established location at the Glen Helen Regional Park in Devore, California. The San Gabriel River Bike Trail runs through the recreation area. The bike path traces the rim of the dam around to the east of the flood basin and park, with access at Azusa Canyon Drive (main entrance to park) SantaFeDamRecreational 2-3-21

Fish found in the lake include

largemouth bass The largemouth bass (''Micropterus nigricans'') is a carnivorous, freshwater fish, freshwater, ray-finned fish in the Centrarchidae (sunfish) family, native to the eastern United States, eastern and central United States, southeastern Canada an ...

bluegill The bluegill (''Lepomis macrochirus''), sometimes referred to as "bream", "brim", "sunny", or, in Texas, "copper nose", is a species of North American freshwater fish, native to and commonly found in streams, rivers, lakes, ponds and wetlands ea ...

crappie Crappies () are two species of North American freshwater fish of the genus ''Pomoxis'' in the family Centrarchidae (sunfishes). Both species of crappies are popular game fish among recreational anglers. Etymology The genus name ''Pomoxi ...

, and

carp The term carp (: carp) is a generic common name for numerous species of freshwater fish from the family (biology), family Cyprinidae, a very large clade of ray-finned fish mostly native to Eurasia. While carp are prized game fish, quarries and a ...

Rainbow trout The rainbow trout (''Oncorhynchus mykiss'') is a species of trout native to cold-water tributary, tributaries of the Pacific Ocean in North America and Asia. The steelhead (sometimes called steelhead trout) is an Fish migration#Classification, ...

are stocked in the cooler months, and

channel catfish The channel catfish (''Ictalurus punctatus''), known informally as the "channel cat", is a species of catfish native to North America. They are North America's most abundant catfish species, and the official state fish of Kansas, Missouri, Nebra ...

are stocked in the summer months. Some of the rare plants and wildlife found in the river fan include the alluvial fan sage scrub, cactus wrens, California gnatcatchers, scissor-tail flycatchers,

horned lizard ''Phrynosoma'', whose members are known as the horned lizards, horny toads, or horntoads, is a genus of North American lizards and the type genus of the Family (biology), family Phrynosomatidae. Their common names refer directly to their horns or ...

s, and

kangaroo rat Kangaroo rats, small mostly nocturnal rodents of genus ''Dipodomys'', are native to arid areas of western North America. The common name derives from their bipedal form. They hop in a manner similar to the much larger kangaroo, but developed thi ...

Santa Fe Dam Nature Center

The focus of the Santa Fe Dam Nature Center is the plant life and wildlife of the

alluvial fan An alluvial fan is an accumulation of sediments that fans outwards from a concentrated source of sediments, such as a narrow canyon emerging from an escarpment. They are characteristic of mountainous terrain in arid to Semi-arid climate, semiar ...

of the San Gabriel River. The

nature center A nature center (or nature centre) is an organization with a visitor center or interpretive center designed to educate people about nature and the environment. Usually in a protected open space, nature centers often have trails through thei ...

is open Saturdays from 10 AM to 1 PM, and is operated by the San Gabriel Mountains Regional Conservancy. Programs include nature and bird walks, nature hobby presentations, insect identification,

Tongva The Tongva ( ) are an Indigenous peoples of California, Indigenous people of California from the Los Angeles Basin and the Channel Islands of California, Southern Channel Islands, an area covering approximately . In the precolonial era, the peop ...

cultural history and other special programs.

References

External links

Santa Fe Dam Recreational Area

The Natural History of Santa Fe Dam Recreation Area

Renaissance Pleasure Faire

Streaming Water

Santa Fe Dam Nature Center

Santa Fe Dam Fishing

San Gabriel River: Past and Present
Parks in Los Angeles County, California Nature centers in California Regional parks in California San Gabriel River (California) San Gabriel Valley Irwindale, California {{losAngelesCountyCA-geo-stub