Developing Future Riverkeepers

By Spokane Riverkeeper Jerry White

After-school fly fishing & river education camps have finished up at the West Valley Outdoor Learning Center.  These camps happened because of a successful partnership between Hutton Settlement, Inland Northwest Nature Connection, Spokane Riverkeeper , Spokane Valleyfest and Spokane Valley Parks and Recreation.  Additionally, the Spokane River Forum helped us organize the service portion of the project.  Over the course of a week, the students from Hutton settlement learned a bit about river ecology, macro-invertebrates, native trout and invasive species.  They learned how to tie flies, they participated in the Upriver Scrub picking up garbage along the river, and finally caught some fine hatchery trout from the Mirabeau Parkway pond.  These rainbow trout were left in the pond after the kids fishing day during Valleyfest.  The camp kids helped ensure that these trout would not die during the winter, but be caught, cleaned and eaten for dinner by the kids of Hutton.  Thanks to all for a great experience!

Help us continue our work in the community! Please consider purchasing a Spokane Riverkeeper T-shirt for $25. High quality, Alternative Apparel brand, available in 3 colors- Adult sizes only. For each purchase made, Ammonite Ink will donate $11.20 to Spokane Riverkeeper! 

River Of Kings In Years Past, The Spokane River Was Home To Millions Of Salmon, Which Brought Bounty To The Region’s Tribes

THE SPOKESMAN-REVIEW

Everybody knows that salmon once surged through the Spokane River. But not everyone knows that it was, literally, one of the king rivers of the Northwest: 

The Spokane River spawned the biggest of the big salmon, summer chinooks (kings) that were commonly 50 to 80 pounds.

The Spokane River was one of the most productive salmon streams in the entire Columbia system.

The summer fishing camps at Spokane Falls were famous among many tribes, even tribes from far away.

The total number of salmon running up the Spokane probably approached a million annually, of which about 300,000 were harvested by the Spokane tribe and other tribes.

Spokane’s early hotels did a thriving business among Eastern fishermen. The salmon were Spokane’s first major tourist attraction.

And then they were gone.