Pudding Creek Coho

The coho have started arriving in Pudding Creek, which is located just on the north side of Fort Bragg.  Unfortunately, the rain pattern has been miserable, so the fish are only showing up two or three at a time.  I'm hoping for a good gully washer that will bring them in at 100 or so at a time.

All NCKA fish-heads are invited to stop by and watch us tag fish.  Unfortunately, they will only come with a decent rain, and it's a long haul for most of you.  So, if you're in the area and it's raining good, stop by or send me a PM.  I'll post when I think they're gonna be moving.  The Pudding creek dam is on the north side of City; you can see it when you drive over the pudding creek bridge on Highway 1.

here's some pics from last year:

Thanks for the invitation and the pictures Dave.  Nice works!

Cool Dave!  That big rosy buck is one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen.   

Cool Dave!  That big rosy buck is one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen.   

ditto.  that's a good looking fish

Seen the Pudding Creek dam many times as McKerricker has become my Thanksgiving week vacation spot . Is there a ladder for the fish to get around the dam ? If not something should be done to allow the fish access to the creek ! What is the reason for the dam ? Seems like a strange spot for a dam being only a couple 100 yds away from the surf line and as I recall from a Skunk Train ride years ago , nothing more than a small pond / marshy area above it the da m .

Cool that there is still run of fish trying to use the creek !

Dan, the dam is an artifact from our century long history of being a timber town.  There has been a dam there, in one form or another, for over 100 years.  It's purpose was to provide water to the mill for de-barking, fire suppression, and all the other things a 400 acre industrial mill site needs water for.  However, the mill closed in 2000, and for the most part has been completely dismantled.

The dam now serves no function other than to store water, and because it does have a fish ladder built in, to count fish.   The clean-up and eventual use for the mill site has been an ongoing heated debate since it closed.  THe site property is the only remaining coastal property in California that is still zoned as industrial.  The mill site is right on the ocean, with the town to the east, and it is nearly as big as the town itself.  As you can imagine, it is a contentious issue.

Oh, and I almost forgot to mention, Georgia Pacific (GP), the mill site owner, owns partial water rights to Pudding Creek and the Noyo River.  In the summer they pump water from the Noyo to Pudding to keep the pond filled.  Because this is California, water is gold, and State law says that to maintain water rights you must use the water.  So, GP pumps periodically just so they can maintain their right.  It's said that the water right is almost as valuable as the property.

Also, although Lagunitas Creek in Marin gets more press, Pudding generally has the highest coho counts south of the EEL river system.

Dave ,

Thanks for the responce , glad there is a ladder there , not really noticeable from the truck driving by at speed . Think next time I'll stop for a look , the Wife does not want to go down by the trestle / beach area . Guess next time I'll leave her in camp and go down there on my own .

Just looking at the area one would not think a sustained run would take place , much less high coho counts . Thanks again .

Very cool indeed, love Ft Bragg area,

Nice little chunk of local history, along with the cool salmon pics. Neat-o!
Thanks Dave!

Interesting stuff, Dave. Thanks for posting.