SD Riverbed Census

Some 71 volunteers, six PATH outreach workers, four SD Park Rangers and one state Assembly member trudged through dense growth and spiderwebs at 6 a.m. to count tents, and to offer people hygiene kits, water, and connection to services. This quiet wave of volunteers spent four days (September 25-28) conducting field surveys for the fall census of unhoused individuals living in the riverbed.

In total, 323 people were counted, reflecting a 14.9% decrease since the spring census count (281). Organizers pointed out that it is important to consider that in the spring there are less people camping in the river because of the rain and the height of the river itself. The overall number is down by 100 people from fall of 2024 (423).

In the estuary reach, near the mouth of the river, there were 41 inhabited vehicles - home to 83 of the individuals counted. One other inhabited vehicle was counted in a tributary further up the river. This was the largest number of inhabited vehicles documented during a riverbed census count. The dedicated members of the San Diego River Park Foundation and SD Park Rangers who led us through overgrown, vague pathways used GPS tracking and photographs over time to identify which encampments were new and which had been in place for a long period of time. They also taught us which plants were native and which were invasive, the history of the river, and the complicated puzzle of land parcels surrounding the river. Besides the spring and fall census count, the SDRPF has many volunteer opportunities to do clean ups, trail clearing and other land management activities. https://sandiegoriver.org/ Thank you Ranger Tiffany!