Sonoma Water's October 5 update said it in one line: "The mouth of the Russian River is currently open." The summer lagoon has given way, at least as of that report, and the season on the water is just starting. The open mouth is how this fall's salmon get into the river, and from late October into the new year the estuary has more going on than at any point while the summer lagoon was in place.
The Sandbar Sets the Calendar
From spring through fall, a sandbar usually closes the river mouth. Summer flows run low, and long-period waves push sand back onto the beach that winter took away. Behind the bar the river backs up into a lagoon, and the water level in the estuary rises.
The mouth opens in one of two ways. Either the water behind the bar rises high enough to spill over and cut a channel, or ocean waves wear the beach barrier down. Public agencies have also been involved in breaching the sandbar since at least the 1960s. Sonoma Water took over that responsibility in 1994, and its staff now breach the bar mechanically. When crews plan to work on the beach, Sonoma Water contacts State Parks lifeguards within 24 hours beforehand. Signs also go up 24 hours before and after, warning beachgoers about the work area and asking them to watch for seals hauled out on the sand.
The mouth can open or close at any time of year, so the October 5 report only tells you how things stood that day. You can get the current status from Sonoma Water's estuary email alerts, which go out when the mouth opens or closes. It's worth signing up if you walk Goat Rock or put a kayak in at the launch.
What the Camera Upstream Is Counting
The open mouth matters because of what swims through it. Upriver near Forestville, Sonoma Water runs an underwater video camera in the fish ladder at the Mirabel dam. It counts adult salmon and steelhead heading upstream to spawn. Every fish on that footage swam in from the ocean at Jenner first.
This season's camera went in on September 1, 2026. The first Chinook of the 2026–27 season swam through the ladder on September 4. The agency called that early, since staff usually see few fish before October or November. Sonoma Water's October newsletter, The Current, said "many Chinook" had come through since then. It also said it was "too early to tell how strong the 2026-27 run will be."
Last year gives a sense of what a good year looks like:
| Mirabel fish ladder camera | Figure |
|---|---|
| Long-term average of adult Chinook on camera | 2,633 |
| Preliminary 2025 Chinook count | 4,175 |
| Where 2025 ranks in the 23-year record | Fifth highest |
| Date the 2025 camera came out | November 13, 2025 |
| Median date the dam is deflated | December 7 |
The last two rows explain why 2025 counted as strong. The camera only runs while the Mirabel dam is inflated. In 2025 it came out November 13, the second-earliest removal in 23 years, and the count still ended up well above the average. Sonoma Water read that as a sign of a very strong run. The dam comes down once mainstem flow is forecast to top 1,600 cubic feet per second, usually between mid-November and mid-December. In other words, the same early rain that brings fish upriver can end the count early.
Spawning usually starts in November and lasts through January. These Chinook come entirely from wild parents, because the Russian River has no hatchery production of Chinook. According to The Current, Russian River Chinook belong to a threatened population, and fishing for them is not allowed. The river has also been under a California Department of Fish and Wildlife low-flow fishing closure since September 1.
The Smaller Return on the Headlands
The big river is not the only salmon story near Jenner. Across Highway 1 at Jenner Headlands Preserve, a much smaller creek has one of its own.
Russian Gulch used to support coho salmon. After World War II, industrial logging dumped sediment over the gravel beds the fish spawn in, and log jams blocked the way upstream. The last official survey that found coho in the Russian Gulch watershed was in 1965. Sonoma Land Trust began a four-year effort in 2009 to acquire the land with Sonoma County Ag + Open Space. The Wildlands Conservancy took title in 2013, and by 2019 volunteers and staff had cleared log jams and improved water quality.
In summer 2025, Wildlands staff spotted juvenile fish during a routine water quality check. A California Fish & Wildlife biologist then requested a snorkel survey, which counted 239 young-of-the-year coho, meaning fish hatched that same year. In its post on the coho return, Wildlands said it would keep monitoring and restoring the watershed.
You can walk to that creek. The Russian Gulch trail is open again. Some landslide debris is still there, but Wildlands says you can get past it on a footpath. The Jenner Headlands Preserve is free and open 8 a.m. to sunset. Wildlands warns that trails can turn muddy, or close for a while, once the rains start. To help with the restoration yourself, Wildlands has a Volunteer Stewardship Day on Tuesday, November 3, 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., with habitat restoration and trail work.
Watching From the Deck, and From the Beach
The seals at the river mouth are much easier to see than the salmon. Goat Rock State Beach is a haul-out for California sea lions, northern elephant seals and northern fur seals, all migratory species. Harbor seals live there year-round and have been recorded at the estuary since 1974. Every week this year, Sonoma Water biologists and Stewards of the Coast and Redwoods volunteers surveyed the Jenner haulout to set a baseline. Those surveys ran until October 15. The volunteer Seal Watch tables at Goat Rock and the boat launch packed up after Labor Day.
The Jenner Visitor Center stays open, though. Stewards volunteers staff it all year, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekends and 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on weekdays. It sits beside the State Parks boat launch, and its deck looks out on the estuary, where you can see harbor seals and river otters. Stewards also runs a few events nearby in November:
- Coastal Nature Journaling at Bodega Head, Saturday, November 7, 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Reservations are required. It costs $20 for members and $25 for nonmembers.
- Redwoods Reset, a guided contemplative walk at Armstrong Redwoods, Sunday, November 8, 9 to 11:30 a.m. It costs $20, plus the park's own entry fee.
- Whale watch volunteer training for the 2027 Pacific gray whale season, Saturday, November 21, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. It's free and starts with an orientation at Bodega Bay Grange, followed by a visit to Bodega Head.
- Thanksgiving docent-led walk at Armstrong Redwoods, November 26. Stewards' event page lists it as sold out.
If you're driving south to Bodega Head on a weekday, Caltrans has one-way traffic control on Highway 1 in Bodega Bay between Bay Flat Road and Kent Avenue, 7 a.m. to 3 p.m., scheduled through December.
Where the Afternoon Ends
Highway 1 gives you a new place to stop after the estuary this year. Siren's Cellar, a wine bar and bottle shop next to Café Aquatica, opened Friday, July 3. The Press Democrat reported that sommelier Patrick Cappiello and Rachel Kulinski run it at 10439 Highway 1. According to the same report, Kulinski owns Café Aquatica's building and has added more food and drinks at the café. The Jenner Outpost site gives Siren's hours as Monday and Friday 2 to 8:30 p.m. or sunset, weekends noon to 8:30 p.m., and closed Tuesday through Thursday. Those hours line up with the visitor center's longer weekend shifts. If you read this on a Thursday, the next chance for a glass is Friday afternoon.
Up the road, Jilly's Real Food Roadhouse took over the old Russian House #1 site after that restaurant closed in late 2021, Sonoma Magazine reported. Jilly's says its patio looks out over the estuary. Its menu page lists Saturday noon to 6 p.m., Sunday noon to 5:30 p.m. and Monday noon to 5 p.m. Last winter Jilly's closed for a while, then reopened on Valentine's Day with new winter hours. No winter closure has been posted this year, but call ahead as the days get shorter.
If family is coming for the holidays and you don't have room, there's a new option near the river mouth. Madeira House has 11 rooms in three restored houses, according to Sonoma County Tourism's winter 2026 roundup. Guests could be up in time for a morning walk on the Headlands and back by the estuary in the afternoon. Between now and January the Chinook will be in the river, and at the start of the season the camera at Mirabel was the only thing counting them.
The estuary, the seals and the Headlands trails are a big part of what Jenner homes are worth to the people who live in them. At Poppy Real Estate, we pay attention to these seasonal details when we put together a home's story. If you're thinking about what your river-mouth or headlands home is worth this fall, ask us for a complimentary home valuation and marketing plan.
