RIVER OF THE MONTH
Alsea River
The Alsea River is a critical salmon stronghold that begins in Oregon’s Coast Range near the town of Corvallis and flows for 50 miles to meet the Pacific Ocean at the town of Waldport. Its finest tributary, Drift Creek, carves through a colossal rainforest—the largest roadless wilderness on the Oregon coast—and then meanders down to tranquil Alsea Bay, a fertile estuary and haven for native fish, birds and other wildlife.
Why It Matters
USFWS
USFWS
Once the most productive coho stream in Oregon, the Alsea is vital to the recovery of this now-threatened species. The crown jewel of the basin is the Drift Creek Wilderness, an unmatched expanse of old-growth rainforest where 120 inches of annual rainfall nourishes gigantic trees, native fish and rare wildlife. Equally important is the Alsea Bay estuary, a superb coho nursery with salt marshes and mud flats that also host a broad array of protected bird species.
Fish
In addition to having some of the best coho salmon habitat on the Oregon coast, the Alsea River and Drift Creek provide prime spawning and rearing waters for fall and spring Chinook, winter steelhead chum salmon and searun cutthroat trout. The river and estuary are also home to resident cutthroat, Pacific lamprey, red sturgeon and green sturgeon. RUSS SCHNITZER
Wildlife
Drift Creek Wilderness is a stronghold for threatened northern spotted owl (pictured), and home to elk, deer, black bear and uniquely diverse birdlife. In fact, the Alsea Bay Estuary is designated by the Audubon Society as an Important Bird Area, and is home to imperiled brown pelican, Caspian tern and many other shorebirds and waterfowl.