Klickitat River

The dip-net fishery of the Klickitat Gorge is regionally and quite possibly nationally significant. Native Americans have utilized dip-nets as a principal means of catching salmon and steelhead in the Columbia Basin since before recorded history. The method was particularly well suited to areas with falls and rapids where fish struggling to climb upriver would be forced to follow a defined route and expose themselves to the waiting fisherman. This fishing method was used historically at numerous falls along the Columbia and principal tributaries.

Only on the Deschutes, at Sherar’s Falls, and on the Klickitat, at the gorge near the river’s mouth, has the traditional dip-net system of fishing continued in a manner similar to that before the coming of the dams. The readily viewable fishing platforms scattered along the gorge section are each registered with a family or group by a tribal administrative office; in some instances, these claims go back generations.

The Klickitat River supports the most significant anadromous fishery on the Washington side of the Columbia in the stretch from the Bonneville Dam to the Snake River. The Klickitat was judged to be the second most important anadromous fish habitat of all rivers in both Washington and Oregon draining to this reach of the Columbia. Features which distinguish the anadromous fishery on the Klickitat include the presence of a traditional Native American dip-net fishery, the quality of the river’s habitat, the number of anadromous species present, the number and size of runs, and recreational as well as historical significance.

Klickitat spring chinook salmon play a critical role in meeting the subsistence fishing needs of the Yakama Nation and fulfilling the treaty share of tributary harvest for the entire Columbia Basin. The significance of the fishery is borne out by large tribal catches and sustained sport catches in recent years. The river provides one of the few opportunities for spring chinook harvest in the area because basin stocks are generally at low levels.

The section from the head of the gorge upstream to Pitt was also rated as outstanding for resident fish. Many of the same characteristics providing anadromous fish habitat also support abundant, good-sized rainbow trout and whitefish.

The lower Klickitat River Gorge is only a mile long and only 20 to 40 feet deep but narrows to less than eight feet at one location. No other river in the region discharges this amount of water through such a narrow gorge, making it a regionally significant resource. In addition, the lower Klickitat Gorge is easily viewed from many locations and has been utilized extensively as a native subsistence fishing site for generations.

The Klickitat River is the second longest free-flowing river in the state of Washington. The majority of rivers of this size in the Northwest have at least one dam along their course. At 96 miles long, the Klickitat is second only to the John Day River as the longest free-flowing river in the Lower Columbia River subregion.

The Klickitat’s free-flowing character provides scientific, educational, recreational, and fish and wildlife benefits. Rivers whose flow is not impounded at any point provide opportunities to observe the natural cycle of flood and scouring along with unaltered streamside vegetation. Such free-flowing waterways offer opportunities to study and compare riverine and riparian ecosystems.

The two soda springs that flow into the river add to hydrologic value. Carbon dioxide charged springs are very rare in Washington State, occurring only in a few locations. The first, referred to as the “Soda Springs” is located on the Klickitat River near river mile 24.5, several miles above the mouth of the Little Klickitat River. The dissolved solids content of these springs are much higher than any others found in the Columbia Plateau. The second spring is the Klickitat Mineral Springs and historic commercial icehouse on the river near Wahkiacus.