California Trout

06/08/2026

We're so grateful to the Wildlife Conservation Board for their recent funding, which will allow us to restore the Cannibal Island Unit in the lower Eel River estuary! The project is moving into contracting for the first phase of construction, with work set to begin in June 2027.

“CalTrout and our partners are working to restore important estuary habitat on the 950-acre Cannibal Island Unit of the lower Eel River estuary. The project aims to reconnect the landscape with natural tidal flows, creating healthier conditions for coho salmon and many other fish and wildlife species that depend on estuarine habitats.” - Christine Davis, CalTrout's North Coast Regional Manager

Read more in the Times-Standard!

A project to restore habitat on the Cannibal Island in the lower Eel River estuary has received a $4 million financial boost from the Wildlife Conservation Board.
Read more below

06/08/2026

Two down, four to go for the Fish Water People Film Festival! 🌊 The energy was INCREDIBLE at our San Francisco Opening Night and our Arcata screening. Watching you all connect with these films and with each other is the whole point!

THIS WEEK is packed — we're bringing Fish Water People Film Festival to three cities in three days:
📍 Larkspur | June 9th
📍 Orinda | June 10th
📍 Pasadena | June 11th

This is the summer of being in person. Of meeting fellow nature lovers IRL. Of discovering there's a huge community of people who want to celebrate California's waterways.

Whether you catch these screenings for the films, the filmmaker Q&As, the raffle prizes, or to be in a room full of people who get it, we want to see you there.

🎟️ Grab your tickets NOW before they sell out! Click the link to secure your spot: https://caltrout.org/film-festival/

06/06/2026

🌲 Arcata, you showed up! 🌲Such a fun night at The Minor Theatre celebrating California's waterways, the Humboldt community that loves them, and the filmmakers bringing these stories to life.

Shout-out to CalTrout's Ashley Shannon for being the best MC who kept the energy high all night 🙌 And shout out to all of you for showing up and making this night the incredible time that it was!

We're just getting started. Next week, the Film Fest travels down the coast, and things get BUSY:
📍 Larkspur | June 9th
📍 Orinda | June 10th
📍 Pasadena | June 11th
📍 San Diego | June 17th

Join the Film Festival experience. Grab your friends, grab your tickets, and let's keep the conversation going about water, community, and of course, fish. The summer of being IRL continues. 🌊✨

🎟️ Secure your spot here: https://caltrout.org/film-festival/

06/06/2026

New science from CalTrout Research Scientist Emily Chen and UC Berkeley colleagues has been published in the Transactions of the American Fisheries Society. The study found that pink salmon are being observed more frequently in California rivers, offering new insights into how salmon populations may be responding to changing environmental conditions.

This new publication adds to our understanding of the factors shaping salmon recovery and reflects CalTrout's commitment to pairing restoration action with rigorous science.

View the publication:

AbstractObjectives. Our objectives were to compile observations of Pink Salmon Oncorhynchus gorbuscha in California rivers over the past three decades, to

06/05/2026

Jason Fitzgibbon is a terrestrial ecologist based in Southern California who spends a lot of his time thinking about how we can conserve native species. Growing up fishing and mountain biking on public lands across the West planted an early interest in ecology. The diverse tapestry of landscapes he experienced spurred his interest in biology and inspired a desire to conserve those places and the wildlife they support.

Now, he frequently spends time on or near public lands — whether for recreation or work. In Southern California, a place that many describe as sprawling development, the public lands that do exist are crucial. For people, they offer a reprise from bustling city life, a therapeutic, mental escape, and chance to reconnect with ourselves and others. For wildlife, they offer habitat and corridors of connectivity to complete their lifecycles, a life raft for many species who have nowhere else to go.

“There’s this constant pressure lately of folks threatening to find ways to pull out chunks of public land for private use, taking away places that all of us can go enjoy. That really puts a lot of people at risk of losing some of their favorite places. It’s also going to do irreparable harm to the environment.”

When public lands are threatened upstream, even all the way up in the mountains, that trickles down to how the ecosystem functions at the beach. Jason sees so much value in the pieces of public land near him, not only so he and his friends can continue to enjoy recreationally, but for the species who rely on them for survival. A loss of public lands could have drastic long-term effects, drastically changing the California we experience and love today.

Today, nearly half of California’s land and freshwater is protected as public land. At CalTrout, we’re working to ensure that number only grows — because these landscapes are essential to the health of our rivers, our fish, and our communities.

Protecting public lands takes all of us. Learn more about how you can get involved at the link in 's bio or go to caltrout.org/publiclands

06/04/2026

Southern California is home to wild steelhead, and many people have no idea. 🐟 This spring, the South Coast team showed up at 20+ events across SoCal — breweries, riverbanks, classrooms, museums, and Earth Day celebrations, and beyond — bringing one message: wild spaces need us.

From pulling invasive plants at the Santa Clara River to watching kids discover their fishy neighbors at the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History, SoCal folks wanted to know more! The curiosity and love for natural spaces were already there; it just needed somewhere to land.

Change happens when we start to love the wildlife around us, because then we want to protect it. This isn't just a job for scientists. It's a job for all of us. 🌊

Check out the full story to hear about our Spring whereabouts: https://caltrout.org/news/caltrouts-south-coast-team-takes-conservation-from-the-creeks-to-the-streets/

06/03/2026

After a broad coalition of water users and conservation advocates reached a workable path forward through the new Eel-Russian Project Authority, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins is now pushing to find a new operator for PG&E’s Potter Valley Hydroelectric Project — despite PG&E itself acknowledging that the cost of needed upgrades and continued operation far outweighs the benefits.

CalTrout’s Charlie Schneider explains, “This deal does good things for both [basins]. Our group is staying the course until there is something real to react to.”

Restoring the Eel River is critical to the health of California’s local economy, communities, and fisheries. Dam removal would make it the longest free-flowing river in the state, and give struggling salmon a real chance at recovery. Read the full article in the San Francisco Chronicle below!

A letter from Agriculture Secretary, Brooke Rollins, lays out the Trump administration's case for keeping the aging dams, which PG&E says are financially unviable and wants to remove.

06/03/2026

Seth Blackamore lives in Bishop, CA, in the Eastern Sierra, and most of his life is spent on public lands. He fly fishes, hunts, camps, and backpacks all on the public lands in his backyard. He even works on public lands.

While not everyone enjoys the same level of immediate access as Seth, he sees the Eastern Sierra as a place where so many people from different walks of life and backgrounds can come together and enjoy these remarkable spaces. It’s “the medicine of the outdoors,” whether for anglers, hunters, climbers, marathon runners, hikers, or anyone looking for a breath of fresh air.

He understands how crucial it is that we have these spaces that anyone can access and enjoy — regardless of who you are or how much money you make. Losing that would be a setback for all Americans.

“Recently, we’ve seen attacks on public lands and efforts to sell them off. I don’t think any side voted for that. This is not necessarily a right versus left issue — this is an American issue. This is something that both sides can come together and unite on.”

Today, nearly half of California’s land and freshwater is protected as public land. At CalTrout, we’re working to ensure that number only grows — because these landscapes are essential to the health of our rivers, our fish, and our communities.

Protecting public lands takes all of us. Learn more about how you can get involved at the link in 's bio or go to caltrout.org/publiclands

06/02/2026

Fish Water People Film Festival, Film Spotlight: The Last Barrier by Matthew Benton. A special preview of this upcoming film just premiered at our kick-off screening in San Francisco! Now you can catch it at a theater near you this June. Check out the teaser and get your tickets 👇 https://caltrout.org/film-festival/

After three decades of fighting for the restoration of Alameda Creek in the highly urbanized Bay Area, activist Jeff Miller revisits his journey as the removal of the final barrier approaches.

Filmmaker Matt Benton discovered documentary filmmaking in university as a way to tell deeply human stories about life's interconnectedness: "Water and more specifically watersheds are everything. Everything exists within a watershed and is interconnected. If we live with a greater understanding of how elements intersect with one another, we will be more present with how we coexist with nature and other communities."

What does he want you to take away from the film? "I wish for people to see themselves in Jeff. There are so many local issues that people can get involved in and make a meaningful impact. It really takes people to dive in locally to create meaningful impacts in our communities."

🎬 Experience this special preview of The Last Barrier at a screening near you!
🎟️ Get your tickets now: caltrout.org/film-festival/

06/01/2026

Opening night in the books! 🌊 The Fish Water People Film Festival kicked off in San Francisco on Saturday, and we had a blast. Watching these seven films on the big screen with people who love California's rivers was so special.

Thanks to Sports Basement for hosting us and providing such an awesome venue to support the community. If you're planning an event, definitely keep them in mind!

We also had CalWild in the house, which produced the film 6000 miles, for a Q&A about policy and conservation work on California public lands. Great to see the conservation community showing up and sharing their knowledge and passion!

Now we're taking the festival across the state. Here's where you can catch us next:
📍 Arcata | June 3
📍 Larkspur | June 9
📍 Orinda | June 10
📍 Pasadena | June 11
📍 San Diego | June 17

Link for tickets: https://caltrout.org/film-festival/