Dikes

Boat ramp and trails close as restoration continues on Wiley Slough in Skagit delta

WDFW released the following press release about the Wiley Slough restoration project, in partnership with the Skagit River System Cooperative, the natural resources management arm of the Swinomish and Sauk-Suiattle tribes:

OLYMPIA – Beginning July 15, the 175-acre Headquarters Unit of the Skagit Wildlife Area will be closed to public access as crews resume work on a major estuary-restoration project at the mouth of the Skagit River.

The closed area includes the public boat ramp and the dike-top trails along the Skagit River and Wiley Slough.

Crews will be removing approximately 6,500 feet of dikes and levees, allowing tides and the river to reclaim the area south of a newly constructed setback dike that was completed earlier this year. The restoration project began in 2008, when crews installed a new, larger tidegate farther upstream on Wiley Slough. (more…)

Continue ReadingBoat ramp and trails close as restoration continues on Wiley Slough in Skagit delta

Hoh Solution Good For Tribe, River, Fish

The Hoh Tribe and the Hoh River are connected by a bond that can never be broken. Forever, as the river moved, so did the tribe.

But that came to a stop after treaty times, when the tribe was confined to a 640-acre reservation at the river’s mouth. Over the years the Hoh River has whittled the reservation to about 450 acres and much of the land floods every year.

A study of the river’s migrating main channel shows the Hoh is likely to again come barreling through the tribal center and many homes within the next 25 years. Flooding has already become an annual event in these low-lying areas.

The Hoh Tribe had a choice. Build expensive dikes or other structures – which can protect the riverbank but hurt fish habitat – or move out of harm’s way.
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Being Frank: A Tribute To Kenny Braget

Kenny Braget's voice will always be with us. A cattle rancher and a neighbor of mine in the Nisqually Watershed, Kenny lived the life of a steward. He proved the belief that actions speak louder than words. No one's actions spoke louder than Kenny's. My lifelong friend passed away this summer, but his legacy will live on.

Continue ReadingBeing Frank: A Tribute To Kenny Braget