Klamath/Trinity Rivers
Runners Celebrate Salmon Return After Largest Dam Removal Project In History
Weitchpec CA — From May 22-25, 2025, the 22nd annual Salmon Run took place with historical significance under the 2025 theme, “Undammed.” This year’s run honored the first return of salmon following the largest dam removal project in U.S. history, which restored hundreds of miles of habitat along the Klamath River. Four dams were removed on the Klamath River in 2024.
“This is the first year, after over two decades of work, that we are running past an Undammed Klamath River,” added Karuk Tribal Member Crispen McAllister. “I remember several years ago when just a small handful of runners made the journey to the upper basin for the first time. Every year since then, the run has grown, and we have had the opportunity to experience the change we were hoping for, to see a dam-free Klamath River that the Salmon could come home to.”
McAllister continued, “The intertribal relationships that have been brought together through this event are inspiring for future work of what we can accomplish together for the Klamath River People.”
The Salmon Run has been deeply rooted in youth leadership and community participation since four Hoopa High School girls started the run after the 2002 fish kill on the Klamath River. The run follows the migration route of the salmon along the Klamath and Trinity Rivers, beginning from where the Pacific Ocean meets the Klamath River and concluding at the River’s headwaters. Over four days, participants ran in relay, combining ceremony, activism, and endurance to honor and celebrate the resilience of salmon and the communities that fought for their return. This year Quartz Valley Tribal runners joined from the Scott River, a tributary of the Klamath River, for the first time.
Throughout the route, runners, organizers and community members echoed one theme: “We brought the salmon home!” and “We undammed the Klamath!”
The energy and pace of the run was faster than ever before, reflecting the powerful return of the salmon to their ancestral waters and the unyielding strength of those carrying them forward.
Wally Marshall, an 8th-grade Karuk student, shared: “The Salmon Run is important to me because it shows the importance of salmon and this year, they can finally reach all the way up to the headwaters because all of the dams are out of the Klamath River.” This year at least 400 youth joined the run.
For decades, Tribal nations, youth, and river protectors led the movement to remove the Klamath River dams, which blocked salmon from returning to their ancestral spawning grounds and caused devastating harm to the River’s health. While the River now flows freely through most of its course, barriers like Keno Dam and Link River Dam are still a challenge for salmon trying to reach their headwaters above Upper Klamath Lake. Water diversions and pollution related to agricultural operations also pose a threat to salmon. The movement for full restoration continues.
“It was special for me to run with my daughter in this year’s Salmon Run. I want to teach her about perseverance and how to stand up for the rights of Native American People. Our children need to continue the fight to protect our salmon long into the future, so teaching them when they are young will make them strong leaders when they grow up.” said Deja Hensher, Hupa/Karuk.
The 2025 Salmon Run brought together runners, Tribal leaders, families, educators, and community members to witness and celebrate this historic moment for the Klamath River and its salmon.
- Save California Salmon
