Elk Creek (Calif.)

Elk Creek is a census-designated place in Glenn County, California. It is located 19 miles (31 km) northwest of Willows, at an elevation of 745 feet (227 m). The 2010 census reported that Elk Creek's population was 163. It is home to the smallest public high school in California, which has an enrollment of about 35 students in grades 7 through 12. The Grindstone Indian Rancheria of Wintun-Wailaki Indians, founded in 1907, is located approximately seven miles north of the town and conducts business in Elk Creek. The best-known landmark nearby is a mountain named Bidwell Point. The first post office at Elk Creek opened in 1872. The town of Elk Creek is just north of Stony Gorge Reservoir. Elk Creek, the town's namesake, runs out of the Coast Range mountains to the east into Stony Creek. Stony Creek runs from the dam at Stony Gorge into another lake a bit further up the map called Black Butte Lake. Hunting is restricted to shotguns and bows.