A major tributary of the Klamath, the Trinity River possesses outstandingly remarkable fishery values. The river is legendary for its salmon and steelhead populations. The river’s Chinook salmon and steelhead are prized by fishing guides, drift boaters, and bank anglers, and provides culturally important subsistence fishing for the Hoopa Indian Tribe. The river also offers a wide variety of other recreation opportunities, including camping and whitewater boating.
The operation of the Trinity Dam upstream of the designated segment, which diverts water from the river to irrigate Central Valley farms, significantly reduced the Trinity’s salmon and steelhead populations. Passage of the Trinity River Restoration Program legislation helped restore flows in the river and established an ongoing program to restore fish habitat in the river.