Little Sur River
| Little Sur River | |
|---|---|
View of Little Sur River outlet from Highway 1 | |
| Location | |
| Country | United States |
| State | California |
| Region | California Central Coast |
| County | Monterey County |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Source | Ventana Double Cone |
| • coordinates | 36°17′49″N 121°42′49″W / 36.29694°N 121.71361°W |
| • elevation | 4,853 ft (1,479 m) |
| Mouth | Pacific Ocean |
• coordinates | 36°20′05″N 121°53′22″W / 36.33472°N 121.88944°W |
• elevation | 0 ft (0 m) |
| Length | 14.3 mi (23.0 km) |
| Discharge | |
| • location | Pacific Ocean |
| Basin features | |
| Tributaries | |
| • left | Skinners Creek (North Fork), Comings Creek (North Fork), Puerto Suelo Creek (North Fork), Launtz Creek (South Fork) |
| • right | Ventana Creek (North Fork) |
The Little Sur River is a 14.3-mile (23.0 km): 165 long river on the Central Coast of California. The river and its main tributary, the a 11.1-mile (17.9 km): 166 long South Fork, drain a watershed of about 40 square miles (100 km2) of the Big Sur area, a thinly settled region of the Central California coast where the Santa Lucia Mountains rise abruptly from the Pacific Ocean. The South Fork and the North Fork both have their headwaters in the Ventana Wilderness, straddling Mount Pico Blanco. Portions west of the national forest and Old Coast Road lie within the El Sur Ranch. Some portions of the North Fork are on land owned by Granite Rock Company of Watsonville, California, which has owned the mineral rights to 2,800 acres (1,100 ha) on Mount Pico Blanco since 1963. The North and South forks converge about 2 miles (3.2 km) from the coast where the river enters the Pacific Ocean.
The river's steep canyons and high chaparral-covered ridges are host to a number of rare species including the Santa Lucia Fir, Dudley's lousewort, and virgin stands of old-growth redwood.