The river now, looking downstream from Buellton towards the sea.
Santa Barbara, California (about an hour and a half north of LA) doesn’t exactly inspire images of deep canyons and emerald green water full of steelhead…but it would have back in the 1940’s, when the Santa Ynez River was home to annual runs of 25,000 anadramous rainbows!
But only a token handful of the great fish make it back each year now. The usual band of culprits did the river in: Water diversions, dams and development. etc. The biggest blow came in the early 1950’s when massive Cachuma Dam was completed, effectively blocking off the bulk of steelhead spawning habitat.
Jack says
Here is a link to a little piece with facts and photos that I scratched together on this topic: Native Steelhead of Yore
http://yankeebarbareno.com/2011/08/29/native-steelhead-of-yore/
tim says
I have been in that country to little caliente hot springs in the mountains east of santa barbara. we camped there for several days, the place is beautiful, I hope the water flow gets restored to the area someday. this is really a beautiful place.
jkrohn says
feather
river from the hatchery to the afterbay is a nightmare of scummmm!
does anyone care? instead of keeping a good flow of water which would clean the algea they bypass & ship the water south! still sick at my stomach!
Lost on the Feather River says
I did not know there is a hatchery above Lake Cachuma….where is its location and what afterbay are you talking about ???? After reading your entry I’m lost its like we aren’t talking about the same area….
jkrohn says
greed, & no respect for anything has turned our river into death holes for fish & game. it makes me sick to my stomach.
Larry Pealer says
When I lived in Solvang the old timers used to talk about a “Portuguese fly rod ” which was a pitch fork . They were able to wade into the river and throw big stealhead up on the bank .
Walter says
….sounds like the same demise as for Salmon on the Mattole.
Ever hear the story of the Mattole salmon that pulled a frog gigger out to sea? They heard hos screams for an hour. Justice!
Lost on the Feather River says
It has a lot of nice swimming holes above lake Cachuma and a few rattlesnakes too…
G Egan says
Releases to Hilton Creek are made from Bradbury Dam yearround and the steelhead spawn in the creek and the small steelhead travel to the ocean. Each year a major flood event has to occur to breach the sand bar at the ocean before the steelhead can migrate upstream. Some years this event does not occur. The local water users have spent a lot of time and money to restore the migration and spawning of steelhead in the river system.
Rudy Hernandez says
It’s hard to believe that stealhead once swam through that little stream……