Deschutes River Conservancy

More than 200 billion of gallons of flows restored instream across the Deschutes Basin over the past 30 years. It starts with understanding what a single cubic foot per second looks like.

Whychus Creek has an inspiring story.

For much of the 20th century, this creek ran dry two out of every three summers as water was diverted to irrigate nearby fields. Today, thanks to years of collaborative work by Three Sisters Irrigation District, the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs, the Upper Deschutes Watershed Council, the Deschutes Land Trust, the US Forest Service and other conservation partners, Whychus Creek is flowing year round again and welcoming back fish that haven't been seen here in generations.

We recently took a group out to experience that transformation firsthand. From the snowpack-fed headwaters high in the Cascades to the restored reaches winding through Sisters, participants saw Whychus as more than a creek, but as a living ecosystem being restored piece by piece.

Whychus Creek is central to the largest anadromous fish reintroduction program on the West Coast, a partnership of more than 20 organizations working to bring steelhead and salmon back to the Deschutes Basin. That work depends on restored streamflow and floodplains, improved fish passage, riparian habitat, and the irrigation community's ongoing commitment to conservation.

This is what water collaboration looks like on the ground.

🎥 Watch the highlights in the video above.