San Juan Creek - Course

Course

San Juan Creek begins high in the Santa Ana Mountains southwest of Lake Elsinore, at the head of the steep and narrow San Juan Canyon, at roughly 1,690 feet (520 m) in elevation where Morrell Canyon Creek, draining the western Elsinore Mountains and southernmost Santa Ana Mountains, has its confluence with Bear Canyon Creek. From there, it flows steeply downhill over riffles and waterfalls, and paralleling California State Route 74, here known as the Ortega Highway, as it winds through the rocky gorge. It drops over San Juan Falls, a 15-foot (4.6 m) cascade, then crosses under an arch bridge that carries the Ortega Highway. It is joined by Hot Springs Creek and Cold Springs Creek on the right bank, while Lucas Canyon Creek meets it on the left.

Once out of the mountains, San Juan Creek proceeds to meander through a broad and shallow farming and ranching valley underlain by thick alluvial deposits. The creek swings west to receive Bell Canyon on the right, from several residential communities that overlook, but do not border, it. and Verdugo Canyon Creek from the left. Trampas Canyon enters from the left and Cañada Gobernadora and Cañada Chiquita enter from the right. The creek then crosses under Interstate 5, and enters a flood control channel, turning south and receiving El Horno Creek on the right. It receives its largest tributary, Trabuco Creek, on the right bank, then continues south and east to the Pacific Ocean. Before it reaches the sea, however, it enters a lagoon at the northern end of Doheny State Beach, which occasionally spills into Capistrano Bay.