RIVER OF THE MONTH
Chehalis River
A major Pacific Northwest salmon stream, the Chehalis is the second largest river basin in Washington, bested only by the mighty Columbia in size. Rising in the state’s southwest corner, the Chehalis collects tributaries from the Cascade foothills, Coast Range and Olympic Mountains, flowing with a gentle course and emptying into the estuarine bay of Grays Harbor. Here, the river forms the largest, healthiest estuary of its kind on the West Coast.
Why It Matters
USFWS
LEESONPHOTO
The Chehalis River is home to a rare tidal surge plain, formed where the river meets the salty ocean water surging in with the tides. The mingling of flows—fresh and salt, river and tidal—creates a lush, species-rich wetland known as the Chehalis River Surge Plain, which WRC helped protect in 2018. The river is critical for its runs of salmon and steelhead, and the estuary sustains diverse wildlife. The Chehalis is also one of the last major undammed rivers on the West Coast, which could change with a proposed dam on the upper river, at Pe Ell.
Fish
NICK HALL
While not the salmon powerhouse it once was, the Chehalis still has strong populations of Chinook, coho and chum salmon, winter steelhead, cutthroat trout and rainbow trout. Tributaries like the Wynoochee, Hoquiam and Satsop remain some of the best salmon and steelhead streams in the state. Chehalis River Chinook are critical to the survival of struggling orca pods in the Pacific.
Wildlife
Otter, beaver, elk and bald eagle abound, from the river estuary to the higher elevations, where you’ll also find black bear, cougar and mink (above). The Black River, an important tributary, forms pristine wet prairies and bogs that are home to 150 species of migratory birds and large populations of rare wildlife species like Oregon spotted frog.