Originating on the western slopes of the Cascades near the Mountain Loop Highway and flowing into Port Susan and Puget Sound near the City of Stanwood, the Stillaguamish River is small compared to many other Washington rivers. Yet due to seriously endangered runs of wild Chinook, impacts on Stillaguamish salmon play a major role in fisheries management throughout much of Western Washington and beyond.

Restoring habitat to recover salmon and steelhead in “the Stilly” is a top priority for Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW), the Stillaguamish Tribe of Indians, Snohomish County, and other partners. This includes collaboration to restore the intertidal estuary at sites such as WDFW’s Leque Island Wildlife Area Unit and the Tribe’s zis z ba property. And projects to reconnect historic river channels such as Trafton Floodplain Restoration on tribal and county lands near Arlington.

In addition to restoring and reconnecting habitat, WDFW and the Stillaguamish Tribe are partnering on hatchery programs using innovative science and what’s known as “integrated broodstock” to produce Chinook salmon specially adapted for this watershed like their endangered wild cousins.

The importance of this river and its health go beyond us as individuals. Restoration is about the health of community, the ecosystem, and future generations. A better future for the Stillaguamish is possible, but it will take all of us. We must come together across differences for the future of this river.

Learn more in our new 10minute video, Paddling Together, and on our webpage: https://wdfw.wa.gov/stillaguamish