Otay River
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The Otay River is a river in southern San Diego County, California. The 25-mile long river begins at San Miguel Mountain, flows through Upper and Lower Otay reservoirs and then through the San Ysidro section of San Diego, just a couple of miles north of the Mexican border, and empties into San Diego Bay. Savage Dam, completed in 1919, forms the 49,510 acre-foot Lower Otay Reservoir, which is used to supply drinking water to the city of San Diego. The reservoir is also the terminus for Pipeline 3 of the Second San Diego Aqueduct, which delivers water from the Colorado River. The Upper Otay Reservoir is formed by Upper Otay Dam, built in 1901. The reservoir was established as a hatchery for the introduction of Florida-strain largemouth bass in 1959. The reservoir was chemically treated first, which killed all of the native fish. In 1996, the reservoir was opened to fishing, but all fish caught must be released. Since the river is used as a municipal water supply, there is no human contact allowed at either reservoir.
