Wednesday April 30, 2025
Lake County Record-Bee —
CalTrout announced this week that it acquired four parcels totaling 175 acres of former ranch land along the Elk River. The nonprofit conservation organization said that the acquisition represents a “significant step in the ongoing efforts to protect and restore the Elk River estuary,” as well as a “a moment of restorative justice” for the Wiyot Tribe — which has been returned one of the parcels, a site of “immense historical and cultural significance” called “Chwanuchguk” in the Wiyot Tribe’s native language, Soulatluk.
“Chwanuchguk, ‘a ridge comes down there,’ is a traditional fishing village where Wiyot people lived, harvested food and smoked fish since time immemorial,” Brian Mead, Tribal Chair of the Wiyot Tribe, said in a news release shared by CalTrout. “Access to the Hikshari’ (Elk) River and fish restoration on the Hikshari’ (Elk) River is of vital importance to the continuation of the tribe’s cultural practices.”
The remaining three parcels, CalTrout noted in the release, will eventually be transferred to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife’s existing Elk River Wildlife Area for “continued stewardship and ecological restoration.”