Eight weeks into the Woodman Creek fish passage restoration project, the historic mouth of Woodman Creek was just uncovered after having been buried for over a century! This is exciting news. Woodman Creek is a key tributary to the Eel River and we are getting closer to our goal of restoring access to high-quality salmon and steelhead habitat and reconnecting the watershed. Learn more about the project and follow along its progress with the images and video below:
Excavating the south side of the channel near the railroad bridge.
Work was focused on stockpiling rock for the channel plug and excavating railroad embankment material.
As of June 26, 2018, it was estimated that 25% to 30% of the material had been removed from the barrier.
View of excavated channel path and project site looking north.
Tailgate meeting with the work crew from Pacific Earthscape.
Excavating the new channel pathway downstream of the railroad alignment.
Excavators were busy stockpiling rock for the channel plug and excavating railroad embankment material.
Mike Love & Associates surveyed the excavated surface to provide a volume of excavated and removed material and stockpiled riprap. The design team and heavy equipment subcontractor painted-up and marked-out the designed channel plug.
The non-functional fish ladder rebar was cut off the bedrock at the fish barrier.
Heath Ford, owner of Pacific Earthscapes, constructed an onsite straw bale field-office.
The fish barrier has been lowered another 10 ft near the top of the excavation exposing large bedrock boulders and bedrock outcrops within the historic channel alignment. A temporary straw bale fence has been installed by laborers to prevent fill from entering Woodman Creek during construction of the channel.
The historic mouth of Woodman Creek uncovered for the first time in a century!
Photos courtesy: Pacific Watershed Associates
Drone photos: Bill Weaver
Excavation and reconstruction of the 200ft mouth of Woodman Creek is complete! Here are the latest updates:
Before the area can be dewatered for construction,
The crew must relocate species in the area using electrofishing. This method temporarily immobilizes them allowing the crew to safely move species without harming them.
they’ve relocated 3 juvenile steelhead, hundreds of Foothill Yellow Legged Frogs (now a candidate species for state listing).
they also found 2 Western Pond Turtles!
Thank you to our e-fishing crew for doing an awesome job!
With species relocated, we can now dewater and begin construction.
One step closer to restoring fish passage to Woodman Creek! Tune in next time for more updates.
The heavy equipment placed the riprap for the channel plug on the Eel River side of the channel plug.
The heavy equipment team and laborers shaped the core of the Woodman Creek side of the channel plug
Shaping the core.
The heavy equipment team excavated the compacted material for construction of the concrete footing and installation of the liner.
The heavy equipment team vacuumed and cleaned the excavated trench for the concrete footing.
Laborers constructed the back of the form for the concrete footing.
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Peter Moyle is the Distinguished Professor Emeritus in the Department of Wildlife, Fish and Conservation Biology and Associate Director of the Center for Watershed Sciences, at UC Davis. He is author or co-author of more than 240 publications, including the definitive Inland Fishes of California (2002). He is co-author of the 2017 book, Floodplains: Processes and Management for Ecosystem Services. His research interests include conservation of aquatic species, habitats, and ecosystems, including salmon; ecology of fishes of the San Francisco Estuary; ecology of California stream fishes; impact of introduced aquatic organisms; and use of floodplains by fish.
Robert Lusardi is the California Trout/UC Davis Wild and Coldwater Fish Researcher focused on establishing the basis for long-term science specific to California Trout’s wild and coldwater fish initiatives. His work bridges the widening gap between academic science and applied conservation policy, ensuring that rapidly developing science informs conservation projects throughout California. Dr. Lusardi resides at the UC Davis Center for Watershed Sciences and works closely with Dr. Peter Moyle on numerous projects to help inform California Trout conservation policy. His recent research interests include Coho salmon on the Shasta River, the ecology of volcanic spring-fed rivers, inland trout conservation and management, and policy implications of trap and haul programs for anadromous fishes in California.
Patrick Samuel is the Conservation Program Coordinator for California Trout, a position he has held for almost two years, where he coordinates special research projects for California Trout, including the State of the Salmonids report. Prior to joining CalTrout, he worked with the Fisheries Leadership & Sustainability Forum, a non-profit that supports the eight federal regional fishery management councils around the country. Patrick got his start in fisheries as an undergraduate intern with NOAA Fisheries Protected Resources Division in Sacramento, and in his first field job as a crew member of the California Department of Fish & Wildlife’s Wild and Heritage Trout Program.
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Great project, but I’ve never heard of Woodman Creek. I guess those whohave all the fun live where the fish are and the water. Here in So. Cal we just compound problems