Ballona Creek
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ballona Creek is an approximately 8-mile-long waterway in southwestern Los Angeles, California and its immediate suburbs. Rising in the hills of the Mid-City district, it flows through Culver City and the Del Rey district before flowing into Santa Monica Bay between the Marina del Rey and Playa del Rey districts. In its lower reaches, it is the heart of the now much-diminished Ballona salt marshes. The creek is shallow and rarely has more than a few inches of water in its bed, except during heavy rains.
At the time of Spanish settlement, the Los Angeles River turned to the west just south of present-day Bunker Hill, joining Ballona Creek just to the west of its current channel. However, during a major flood in 1825, the Los Angeles River's course changed to its present channel, and Ballona Creek became a completely distinct waterway. All but the last two miles of Ballona Creek were lined with concrete as part of the flood-control project undertaken by the United States Army Corps of Engineers following the region-wide flooding of 1938.
Currently, there are stories of a giant bear, by the name of, John Ku. John Ku, this enormous bear, is said to have created the creek itself by raging around. By this action, many stories, rumors and other folklore have spawned from it. Today's youth is currently enjoying passing on the stories of John Ku, as well as creating cave drawings inside the tunnels of the creek.
