Most of the water-related activities on the southern Salinas depend on dam release from the Nacimiento reservoir, and to a lesser extent the San Antonio reservoir. While you can get real-time flow information from the USGS, if you are planning a trip in the future you should consider the following dam release sechedule.
| Month | Combined release (cfs) |
|---|---|
| January | 806 |
| February | 427 |
| March | 3082 |
| April | 257 |
| May | 168 |
| June | 375 |
| July | 579 |
| August | 660 |
| September | 610 |
| October | 292 |
| November | 70 |
| December | 70 |
From the Monterey County Water Resources Agency 2023 release schedule. CFS is defined as "Mean daily flow for the month."
The water flows down the Nacimiento and San Antonio Rivers, both of which join up with the Salinas just south of the town of Bradley. When the river guage at Bradley is over 400 cfs (it is currently 1990), the water can sometimes reach beyond King City.
Where the Nacimiento joins up with the Salinas.