This year’s salmon run is a celebration along the Klamath River

In 2002, a massive fish kill left over 70,000 salmon floating belly up in the river, dead from diseases that flourish in waters drained low by drought and agricultural diversions.

Dr. Kayla Begay, then a freshman at Hoopa Valley High, remembers the incident well.

“Nobody in our lifetime had seen something like that happen, where so many fish died before they ever got to spawn,” said Dr. Begay, now Assistant Professor of Native American Studies at Cal Poly Humboldt.

Begay decided to do something about it.

Begay joined forces with fellow Hoopa Valley tribal citizen Tasha James and their classmates Erika Chase, a Hoopa Valley tribal citizen and of Shinnecock descent, and Chelsea Reed, a citizen of the Yurok Tribe.

The four high school freshmen founded a ceremonial run to call attention to the need to remove the dams. In the early years, the run was a short community event. Now, it has grown to encompass the entire river, from its mouth in the Pacific Ocean to its headwaters near Upper Klamath Lake. The run spans about 350 miles, including a leg along a tributary.