There’s more to the meandering 55-mile tidal river than meets the above-water eye. An astounding assortment of creatures dwell beneath the surface where most people never get a glimpse. Some are considered tasty. Some can make you sick.
Ask a dozen individuals what the Napa Watershed looks like, and you’ll get a different story every time. It all depends on perspective.
From the vantage point of a hot air balloon on a morning when the weather cooperates, the length of the river may be seen from rainfed tributaries in Calistoga to the Napa-Sonoma marsh complex. Aboard a gondola tour, the river offers an appealing panoply of postcard-perfect spaces.
Riverfront view of tourist gondola on the Napa River near downtown May 2022Photo byRandy Andy / Shutterstock
An angler in knee-deep muddy water could tell a tale or three about catching a fish with a lineage that dates back to the Jurassic Epoch. Not the most edible fish in Napa River, the toothless, bony-scaled sturgeon is prized for its caviar roe, explains NPR.