The Guadalupe River is a short stream, with headwaters in the Santa Cruz Mountains and flows north through San Jose, California. The entire course of the river is in Santa Clara county and drains into San Francisco Bay at Alviso. The major part of the Guadalupe River is bounded by parks and snakes through the Almaden Quicksilver County Park – home to former mercury mines dating back to when the region was governed by Mexico. The entire three-mile stretch, which extends from I-280 to I-880, is part of the Guadalupe River Park and Gardens complex – one of the largest urban parks currently under development in the United States. The Guadalupe River is famous as home to one of two known salmon spawning runs through a major United States downtown area (the other being Anchorage, Alaska). Fishing is not allowed in the river, however, as the salmon run is considered endangered. Angling for other types of fish in the river is also discouraged, owing to the mercury contamination. Mission Santa Clara de Asis and el Pueblo de San José de Guadalupe were founded along the Guadalupe River, in 1777, but both settlements had to relocate from the riverside because of mosquitoes in summer and flooding during the winter. Occasionally the river floods downtown San Jose as well as in Alviso. The regions were declared as National Disaster Areas by President Bill Clinton after the floods of 1995 and 1997. Today, the Guadalupe River, with its banks lined by huge bald cypress trees, is the most outstanding natural feature of the surrounding parks.