RIVER OF THE MONTH
30 YEARS
Chetco River
Oregon’s Chetco River rises in the Kalmiopsis Wilderness, tumbles for 56 miles through ancient forests and intimate, boulder-strewn canyons, and joins the Pacific near the California border. With 45 Wild and Scenic miles and no dams, the Chetco surpasses nearly every other river in the Northwest for its beauty, biodiversity and crystal-clear, otherworldly, emerald-green water.
Why It Matters
Oregon’s most pristine river, the Chetco commands awe from all who visit. Wild, remote and with the clearest water you’ll ever see, the Chetco is a priceless stronghold for fish, wildlife and the diverse plant life of the Siskiyou Mountains and Kalmiopsis Wilderness. In 2002, the colossal Biscuit Fire scorched the entire wilderness area, and a healthy Chetco River is crucial to the area’s natural recovery.
ZACH COLLIER/NW RAFTING CO.
Fish
Biodiversity
The Chetco is a premier salmon and trout stream with healthy native populations of coho salmon, fall Chinook and winter steelhead, as well as sea-run cutthroat and wild rainbow trout. It’s one of the few West Coast salmon streams with extensive stretches flowing through wilderness. As a result, its exceptional water quality and free-flowing length support some of the highest salmon returns of any Oregon stream.
The Chetco basin hosts the greatest wildlife diversity in Oregon, with 200 species, including imperiled birds, large mammals and rare species like the Siskiyou chipmunk. Complex geologic soils harbor a botanist’s paradise with many endemic plants, including the purple-blooming Kalmiopsis leachiana, which grows only in its namesake wilderness. The Chetco is also home to the northernmost redwood grove on Earth.