The Salinas River (Rumsen: ua kot taiauačorx) is the longest river of the Central Coast region of California, running and draining . It flows north-northwest and drains the Salinas Valley that slices through the central California Coast Ranges south of Monterey Bay. The river begins in southern San Luis Obispo County, originating in the Los Machos Hills of the Los Padres National Forest. From there, the river flows north into Monterey County, eventually making its way to connect with the Monterey Bay, part of the Pacific Ocean, approximately south of Moss Landing. The river is a wildlife corridor, and provides the principal source of water from its reservoirs and tributaries for the farms and vineyards of the valley. Hydrology In 1769, when the river was first discovered by non-Native peoples via the Portola expedition, it was reported by them as being a "river watering a luxuriant plain" filled with fish weighing . As of the end of 2016, the river had been transformed into little more than a dry bedded run-off feature for the majority of its length. Until recently, the Salinas River had a continuous flow throughout the year, stretching back to at least 1941 – when United States Geological Survey (USGS) began complete monitoring records in the Salinas area – through 1989. Most probably primarily due to recent increases in agricultural water demand in the Salinas Valley, and the resultant lowering of water tables, the lower reaches of the Salinas river (north of King City) remained entirely dry during the three years 2013–2016. Nonetheless, with sufficiently heavy rains, and on rare occasions, this now normally dry runoff feature is still capable of quickly transforming itself back into a fast-flowing river. In rainfall-induced flood conditions, it can at times measure over a mile in width. During the 20th century, such flood conditions are reported to have generally occurred approximately once every 3–10 years. The last similar flooding event along the river was reported in 1998. The atypical drought-breaking rains of the winter of 2016–2017 restored the river's flow to its lower northern reaches in January 2017. The current most typical dry or zero flow state of the majority of the river may be more the result of human activity than of any recent changes in weather patterns. Rainfall patterns of recent years in the Salinas area have not significantly changed from historical average rainfall patterns; the 139-year average annual