Salmon travel from mountains to sea and back again…. connecting our ecosystems and our communities.
How can a single name describe a land of such breadth and diversity? From lush rainforests to arid desert lands, from towering glacial peaks to the rushing rivers and placid estuaries below, the Pacific Northwest is more than a region—it is a world unto itself, rich with treasures that would take many lifetimes to discover.
And yet, for all of its variety, this world is shaped and defined by one common feature. Wherever we travel in the Northwest, we find salmon. These mighty fish, so unlike all other species, have thrived here for millennia. They are central to our history, our culture—our very identity. Indeed, there is no Pacific Northwest without salmon.
But as we often hear in a different context, past performance does not guarantee future results. Today, our intense love of this place–the historic home of the king of fish–threatens them like never before. Their recovery and sustained health will require intensive coordination and partnership among stakeholders throughout the Northwest: from the upper Columbia to the coast, from the crest of the Cascades to the Salish Sea and beyond, and from our busiest cities and waterways to our smallest and most remote mountain streams.
