Milling Operations

Looking back, it’s clear that past land use and infrastructure have dramatically changed the Gualala River estuary. What we see today is a very different landscape from 200 years ago.

Several lumber mills were constructed and operated in the Gualala estuary from the 1850s through the early 1900s, including at China Gulch and Mill Bend Preserve. Remnants of the historic mill operations remain visible in the estuary today. This includes timber structures in the river, called crib walls, which were used to capture logs floating down the river and hold them in the estuary wetlands until they could be milled. Railroad equipment has also been uncovered, which used to run along the riverbank to transport lumber to ships waiting along the coast.

Early logging operations included clearcutting old growth redwood forest, burning vegetation, and roads that were constructed on top of tributary streams–all which had a significant impact on the ecosystem in the estuary.