The Tongass National Forest in Southeast Alaska spans nearly 17 million acres with some 4,000 salmon-bearing streams scattered throughout its thick old-growth hemlock, spruce, and cedar forests. The Tongass is not only America’s last intact coastal rainforest, but is also one of our nation’s last remaining salmon forests.
Thanks to the wildness of the rainforest and its waterways, the Tongass is a stronghold for wild salmon, with all five wild Pacific salmon species—chinook, coho, sockeye, pink, and chum—present in the Tongass’ crystal-clear streams. Southeast Alaska’s wild salmon support a sustainable, commercial fishing industry, which catches over 60 million salmon annually, bringing in $125 million to the local communities and their economies.
Unfortunately, many of the wild areas critical to wild salmon, and subsequently the region’s economy, are still open to logging, road building and industrial development. Trout Unlimited is working to change that though and ensure that the Tongass National Forest and its wild salmon get the strongest protections possible before it's too late.
Press release: Trout Unlimited and Alaska Wilderness League's first-ever Taste of the Tongass celebrity chef events
For more information on critical salmon watersheds and wilderness areas in the Tongass National Forest, check out Trout Unlimited's Southeast Alaska Roadless Report.
Click here for a sample of wild salmon recipes prepared at the events.
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