From the desk of Don J. Miller

Tucannon River Spring Chinook smolt ©Don J. Miller

Lyons Ferry in southeastern Washington State is not an area well known to many. The nearest town, Starbuck, has a population of 147 and its solitary 100 ft. tall high-rise is a grain elevator. Though sparse in population, Lyons Ferry is a place of many intersections—two railroad lines, a state highway, high voltage power lines, and three rivers: the Snake, Palouse, and Tucannon. Prior to placement of a bridge in 1968, the Lyons family operated a four car ferry on the Snake River at the site of a traditional Native American river crossing. I came here this spring to learn more about the highly endangered Tucannon River Spring Chinook salmon.

Walleye catch ©Don J. Miller

On April 17, I arrived at the Lyons Ferry Marina operated by the Port of Columbia where I spoke with two fishermen. Both were having good success, one for walleye and the other for catfish. As they cleaned their catch, they extolled the virtues of their fish; they are plentiful and, unlike salmon, have either unrestricted or generous limits. These friendly fishermen offered me fishing tips and advice on avoiding sediments in the reservoir if going out by boat, but, I have not come to fish.

In three days, I planned to witness the release of 18,000 Tucannon Spring Chinook smolt from Lyons Ferry Fish Hatchery just across the river from the marina. In the meantime, I wanted to explore and learn more about the river that historically has spawned this once robust population of Spring Chinook.

The Tucannon River region appears as an inverted landscape. The high plateau above the river is covered with wheat fields and many Puget Sound Energy (PSE) windmills. From the plateau, steep canyon walls descend 2,000 feet. The Tucannon originates at elevations over 5,300 feet in the Wenaha-Tucannon Wilderness and flows 62 miles north to its juncture with the Snake River. The lower portion of the river canyon is open and used for hay and pasture. The habitat here today is marginal or unusable for spawning. The mid to upper portions of the river, however, are increasingly forested and considered fair to excellent salmon habitat with the best portions lying within wilderness and state/federal habitat management areas.

Tucannon River Canyon ©Don J. Miller

Though this was my first visit to the Tucannon, it had a familiar feel. The area I lived in as a child and adolescent is 90 miles south near Pendleton, OR. As in the Tucannon watershed, wheat and cattle are important contributors to the region’s economy. Living near the Umatilla Indian Reservation, my experiences with Native classmates seemed like normal “growing up” at the time, but as the decades have passed, I’ve come to increasingly recognize and value their influences.

When I was a boy, each spring Tribal neighbors would gift my family fresh salmon; now Tribal members are challenged to have fish for their traditional First Salmon Ceremony. As valuable as those early experiences have been to me, I know they are no comparison to the Tribal generations which reach deeply in time and spirit through these landscapes. Near the Tucannon, for example, is the Marmes Rockshelter. Inhabited at least 11,230 years ago until historical times, it is the oldest known Native American site in what’s now known as Washington State. Since 1969, the site has been underwater, flooded by the completion of Lower Monumental Dam on the lower Snake River. Today, the Umatilla, Nez Perce, and Yakama Tribes lead many native fish restoration projects in this region of the Columbia Basin.

Upper Tucannon River ©Don J. Miller

Release Day. I was viewing the two ponds holding Tucannon smolts when Becky Johnson, Director of Production at Nez Perce Tribal Fish Hatchery, and Michael Herr, Fisheries Biologist for the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW), arrived. The conversation turned quickly to the survival challenges these fish face.

Sedimentation at the mouth of the Tucannon River

"Do you know about the sediment problem?” Becky asks. It turns out sediment is not just a problem for boaters leaving the Lyons Ferry Marina. Construction of the four lower Snake River dams has trapped ocean bound sediments within the reservoirs. Large accumulations of sediment at the mouth of the Tucannon River has made it very difficult for returning adult salmon to locate the Tucannon’s current. Some overshoot and travel farther up the Snake River. They may turn back, but passing downstream for an adult salmon can be treacherous. Fish passage at the dams was not designed for adult fish traveling downriver.

Standing in release pond: Derek Gloyn - Manager at Lyons Ferry Fish HatcheryStanding above left to right:
Mike Tuell - Deputy Director of Production at Nez Perce Tribal Fish Hatchery
Becky Johnson - Director of Production at Nez Perce Tribal Fish Hatchery
Michael Herr - Fish Biologist at WDFW
©Don J. Miller

Evaluating fish populations involves many numbers and the conversation quickly included some. One critical number is how many natural adults are able to return to spawn. If that number falls too low, the ability to preserve a viable gene pool is at risk – and what previously would have been considered normal fluctuations for a larger population can fluctuate small populations out of existence. With extremely low populations, it can become very challenging for adults to find one another in their habitat to successfully breed. The number of naturally spawning Spring Chinook in the Tucannon for 2024 was just 67, and the preliminary results for 2025 is even lower - just 50 fish. 2023 was particularly low with only 30 fish returning. For comparison, historic annual returns of Spring Chinook to the Tucannon River numbered in the tens of thousands.

Due to these critically low returns, a bold plan was begun in 2025 involving the use of Kalama Falls Fish Hatchery (KFFH) in southwest Washington. KFFH is 70 miles downriver of Bonneville Dam, the lowest dam on the Columbia River mainstem. Fish returning to the Kalama River have the survival advantage of not needing to pass over any dams. 48,000 juvenile Tucannon Spring Chinook from Lyons Ferry Hatchery were released at KFFH in 2025, another 50,000 this year. When these fish begin to return as adults to KFFH in 2027, they will be trucked upriver to Lyons Ferry for either brood stock for the hatchery to repeat the process or be released into the upper Tucannon River to spawn.

This emergency conservation measure is not without precedent. A similar plan with releases at KFFH was used from 1976 to 1982 to help bring Snake River Fall Chinook back from the brink of extirpation.

There are differences, of course, between fall and spring Chinook salmon. Trucking adults will occur at a warmer time of year. As a trial run, jack salmon (early returning “sub-adults”) returning this year to KFFH will be trucked 300 miles to Lyons Ferry to assure a safe transport system is in place when the first adults begin arriving in 2027. The program will be carefully monitored and adjusted and, if showing benefit, will continue for the next 12 years.

Waterway smolt travel to the reservoir ©Don J. MillerBack at the ponds, the gate was raised to release the smolt into the Snake River. On a map, though, this portion of the Snake is listed as Lake West, one of four placid reservoirs created by dam construction between 1956 and 1975. As water poured from the ponds, the smolt oriented themselves against the current. If the Snake actually flowed like a natural river, this is the way the smolt would reach the ocean, looking upstream to the place they would return as adults while being flushed downstream to the Pacific. What we observe, though, are smolt breaking a calm surface soon after leaving the holding ponds. These are escape maneuvers from predators. Walleye, bass, northern pikeminnow, predators of juvenile salmon, all flourish today in the sluggish, warm reservoir habitat.

With current lacking, it is sobering to witness the smolts endangered so soon. The deep dedication and serious nature of the work were apparent among staff as they expressed commitment to not allow extinction on their watch.

What is often labeled as “human progress” has a long history of seizing a river’s flow for insular intentions. However, we also take pride in our creativity and ingenuity that yield us options and choices. The upper waters of the Tucannon River are a place of intimacy and nurture for these salmon and they are struggling to remain connected. But their story is not just of one struggling species. We, too, are losing currents that have always carried us. I believe these salmon are prophets. What they reveal as missing speaks for what we must choose.

Smolt beginning 360 mile journey to Pacific ©Don J. Miller

More information on the Tucannon River's habitat restoration at snakeriverboard.org

Don J. Miller is a retired RN and photographic artist. Prior to retirement, Don worked in oncology and diabetes education and participated in art fairs with his photography. As an RN, he also joined volunteer medical trips to Haiti, China, El Salvador, and Bangladesh. Those cultural experiences as well as his love of the planet have inspired his images.

Since retirement, Don volunteers in conservation work on behalf of Columbia Basin salmon with Save Our Wild Salmon, Yellowstone buffalo with Buffalo Field Campaign, and African elephants with Elephant Human Relations Aid, and provides presentations about those experiences. You can see more of Don’s work at delicatelightphotography.com