Theodore J. Hoover Natural Preserve

This marsh is one of the few relatively undisturbed bodies of fresh water left along the West coast[citation needed].

It is part of the Rancho del Oso Big Basin Redwoods State Park, located approximately 65 miles south of San Francisco.

The park is also home to more than 200 species of native and migratory birds such as ducks, sparrows, wrens, kingfishers, Swainson’s thrush, and warblers.

[6] Working with experts from other areas, the Waddell Creek Association hopes to educate the public about wetlands, their value and necessity.

[6] The Skyline-to-the-Sea Trail threads its way through Big Basin Redwoods State Park along Waddell Creek to the ocean at Waddell Beach, a freshwater marsh adjacent called Theodore J. Hoover Natural Preserve.This trail has been considered by some to be one of the best overnight hikes in California.

It is named after Theodore J. Hoover, dean of engineering at Stanford University, and brother of President Hoover, whose family purchased Rancho del Oso in 1914, both for the purpose of building a family home and because of Theodore’s interest in the conservation of natural resources.

Hoover had owned the upper part of the valley, so when the plans for the train fell through, he bought the rest of it.