Willow Creek, California

Willow Creek, California
Census-designated place
The "Bigfoot Museum" in Willow Creek
Location in Humboldt County and the state of California
Coordinates: 40°56′22″N 123°37′53″W / 40.93944°N 123.63139°W / 40.93944; -123.63139
Country	United States
State	California
County	Humboldt
Area [1]
• Total	30.610 sq mi (79.281 km2)
• Land	30.310 sq mi (78.504 km2)
• Water	0.300 sq mi (0.777 km2)  0.98%
Elevation [2]	610 ft (186 m)
Population  (2020)[3]
• Total	1,720
• Density	56/sq mi (22/km2)
Demonym	Willow Creeker
Time zone	UTC−8 (Pacific (PST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC−7 (PDT)
ZIP Code	95573
Area code	530
FIPS code	06-85642
GNIS feature ID	1660182
U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Willow Creek, California

Willow Creek (formerly China Flat)^[4] is a census-designated place (CDP) in Humboldt County, California, United States. The population was 1,710 at the 2010 census, down from 1,743 at the 2000 census. The town is located around 30 miles (48 km) from county seat and harbor city Eureka.

Willow Creek sits along the Trinity River. Willow Creek is described as a "rugged mountain community nestled in the heart of the Six Rivers National Forest." This area of California is located in the Trinity/Shasta/Cascade Region, near the Oregon border, and is easily reached via State Routes 299 and 96 (the "Bigfoot Scenic Byway").

The town is approximately 50 miles (80 km) south of where the Patterson-Gimlin film was made. Willow Creek calls itself the Bigfoot capital of the world, has a Bigfoot Museum and holds an annual "Bigfoot Daze" festival in September in honor of the creature, followed by various festivities in a local park.^[5] The roadhead of the Bluff Creek / Fish Lake Road, near which many alleged Bigfoot sightings and footprint finds occurred, is about 50 miles (80 km) north, along Route 96.