Lakes & Streams

Loch Lomond

A watershed is the the entire geographical area drained by a waterway. The USGS recognizes the San Lorenzo-Soquel watershed, that basically covers the entire county. (Parts of the Pajaro River and Waddell Creek are included.) Since any basin can be a watershed, It is simple to create a watershed for political consideration. There are at least 1,500 watershed districts in California. In Santa Cruz County there are four major watersheds: San Lorenzo River watershed, Soquel Creek watershed, Aptos Creek watershed, and Pajaro River watershed. Politically, the county has six government water districts, 19 political watersheds, and numerous private and company water systems. Technically, the more political divisions on a river, the more likely it will be protected. The State of California only assesses about 15½% of the 211,513 miles of streams and rivers in California.

Santa Cruz County has 770 miles of waterways (compared to 1,870 miles of roadways). Of the 607 square miles of Santa Cruz County, 162 square miles are water (26.67%). Many small streams are unnamed.

Fishing in Santa Cruz County:

Several sites on the internet list lakes for fishing. It appears that some just take a list of lakes in California and assume they all have fish. In Santa Cruz County, the following bodies of water are available for fishing; Loch Lomond, Pinto Lake, and Monterey Bay. River and streams that flow into the ocean may have fish. Fishing in rivers and streams are subject to special laws. Kelly Lake has fish but is on private property.

The natural and constructed bodies of water in Santa Cruz County.

Lakes

College Lake (Watsonville)
Drew Lake (Watsonville)
Freedom Lake/Corralitos Lagoon (Corralitos)
Kelly Lake (Watsonville)
Loch Lomond (Lompico)
Merk Lake (Corralitos)
Moran Lake (Eastside)
Pinto Lake (Watsonville)
Ramer Lake (DeLaveaga Golf Course)
Schwan Lake (Eastside)
Simas Lake (Northeast of Watsonville)
Soda Lake (Aromas)
Lake Tynan (Watsonville)

Pond

Lagoons & Marshes

Springs

Rivers

Swimming Holes

Larger Creeks

Aptos Creek
Branciforte Creek
Boulder Creek
Fall Creek
Moore Creek
Scott Creek
Soquel Creek and West Branch Soquel Creek
San Vicente Creek
Waddell Creek (Includes East Waddell Creek and West Waddell Creek)

Smaller Creeks

Lacking distinguishing features, most creeks look alike. This stream is Fall Creek. In 2008, Santa Cruz County began a project to put a sign identifying a stream where it crosses a road. This is an effort to make people more aware of the water resources.