Sisquoc River
The Sisquoc River is a westward-flowing river in northeastern Santa Barbara County, California. It runs about 57 miles (92 kilometers) from its source on the north slopes of Big Pine Mountain in the Los Padres National Forest to its confluence with the Cuyama River, just north of Garey on the Santa Barbara–San Luis Obispo county line. From there, the Santa Maria River forms downstream. The river’s watershed is bordered by the Sierra Madre to the north and the San Rafael Mountains to the south.
The name “Sisquoc” comes from the Chumash word for quail. The river and its land drain a Mediterranean-climate region with chaparral vegetation. It flows through the Los Padres National Forest, including the San Rafael Wilderness, and most of its course is free of major reservoirs or dams.
The Sisquoc River was designated as a National Wild and Scenic River on June 19, 1992, in recognition of its natural, unmodified character and scenic value.
Climate and flow: The watershed gets about 13 to 38 inches (330 to 970 mm) of rain each year, mostly from November through April. Because there are no large reservoirs, the river often dries out part of the year, and the surrounding vegetation can become very dry in summer, contributing to high fire risk.
Wildlife and habitat: Southern steelhead trout historically used the Sisquoc River to reach upstream spawning areas. Today, only a small fraction of the historic population remains, and many steelhead runs in the region have been reduced by dams on other rivers that block access to habitat. A major change occurred when Twitchell Dam on the nearby Cuyama River was built in the late 1950s, blocking thousands of miles of habitat in the Santa Maria watershed and reducing steelhead access to the Sisquoc system.
The Sisquoc itself remains undammed, which makes it an important potential refuge for steelhead recovery. A small dam once existed on Horse Creek (Horse Canyon), a tributary of the Sisquoc, built in 1968 and later removed in 2006 after silting created an impassable barrier. A beaver dam at the confluence of Horse Creek and the Sisquoc formed a large pool, and a snorkel survey noted steelhead in the area, including several fish in the 9 to 14 inch range. This is seen as a sign that suitable habitat can exist in the river when barriers are removed and natural processes are allowed to restore flow and pools.
Human effects and fire: The Zaca Fire in 2007 burned a large portion of the Sisquoc River watershed, impacting vegetation and habitat.
In summary, the Sisquoc River is a largely undammed, scenic river with a wild character, important for steelhead habitat in a changing landscape shaped by past and present dams, natural fires, and climate.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 22:30 (CET).