Real Creek of the Week #2

Lower Franklin Creek restoring itself.

Following Fake Creek of the Week #2, correctly identified by commenter Oona Martin as the fake creek at Coldwater Canyon Park, is our Real Creek, or in this case, real creeks.  Coldwater Canyon’s stream is gone, culverted away, but the creek in Franklin Canyon remains.  Franklin Canyon was damned, or dammed, last century to create drinking water reservoirs. 

The upper dam is a familiar site to hikers at Franklin Canyon Park, or rather, its artificial lake is.  Fun fact:  DWP told me in my watershed coordinator days that they don’t fill that lake.  What you see there is perennial groundwater or spring flow.  Downstream of the dam, the creek runs through a sycamore woodland, and in a few locations springs can be observed. 

Can't touch this! Off-limits creek in lower reservoir area.

The lower dam area remains off limits.  Drained of imported water, a creek there has been restoring itself. 

Downstream of the dam, and above our Fake Creek #2 is an old orange grove.  It appears to be a remnant of the agricultural legacy of Hollywood and environs. 

The once/would-be Rodeo de las Aguas.

Beverly Drive joins Franklin Canyon near this grove, leading to the third canyon/creek comprising this Rodeo de las Aguas – Higgins Canyon.  Most of the creek, as with Coldwater Canyon’s flows, are confined to a culvert.  At the far end of Beverly Drive, right where the public street ends and a private street begins, however, you can observe a small spring-fed creek flowing through private yards to its culvert coffin.  But if you choose to go observe, please be mindful of the residents who live there.

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