RIVER OF THE MONTH
Stillaguamish River Washington’s Stillaguamish River and its North and South forks make up a premier salmon, steelhead and whitewater river system just an hour northeast of Seattle. The largely natural and free-flowing North and South forks tumble from the North Cascades through old-growth forests and sheer canyons before joining near the town of Arlington to form the mainstem Stillaguamish. The “Stilly” then empties into Puget Sound just south of the Skagit River.
Why It Matters
Fish
STEPHEN MATERA
The Stilly and its forks are home to summer and winter steelhead, coho, Chinook (pictured), chum and pink salmon, bull trout and sea-run cutthroat trout. Habitat degradation due to sedimentation from landslides makes efforts to maintain healthy forests and riparian areas crucial. The Stillaguamish Tribe has recovered habitat in the river, especially for Chinook.
DENNIS CHURCH
THOMAS DUNKLIN
With no major dams, the Stilly is one of a handful of rivers flowing into Puget Sound that still has good wild salmon and steelhead runs. The South and North forks both feature wild stream reaches with great habitat for native fish and are shaded by ancient forest stands that are crucial to imperiled birds and mammals. A much loved trail along the South Fork traces a gold rush-era railroad through six tunnels in Robe Canyon, which WRC protected in 1997.
Wildlife
Abundant wildlife including elk, deer and beaver are found throughout the Stillaguamish basin, as well as gray wolf, wolverine, pileated woodpecker (pictured) and Townsend’s bigeared bat. On the upper South Fork, old-growth forests are key to recovering imperiled northern spotted owl and marbled murrelet.