WESTERN WASHINGTON — The Muckleshoot tribe, descended from the Duwamish and Upper Puyallup peoples who have lived in the Seattle area for thousands of years, continues intergenerational salmon fishing traditions while leading habitat restoration efforts in Western Washington. Tribal members practice traditional net fishing and honor their relationship with salmon through annual ceremonies celebrating the first salmon of the season.

Michael Jerry Sr., who has fished using traditional methods since he was young, taught his son the practice of throwing small nets to catch spring salmon along riverbanks. "The things I've seen, the things I've heard, the people I've seen here, all those things that I remember, you pass it down to the next generation," he said. "That's the whole importance about this for me, and it's important for all of our people."

Muckleshoot oral historian Warren King George described salmon as relatives central to tribal identity and tradition. "In my traditional teachers' words, (the salmon) are our relatives," he said. "These are our relatives that come and visit us at least once a year. And then it's important that we maintain that, that relationship." He added that the tribe gathers annually to thank the first salmon for returning: "We gather the people here, and we have a feast. We thank that relative for coming home, returning home to feed the people."

King George said tribal members were historically restricted from fishing off-reservation: "We were denied the opportunity to fish, denied the opportunity to hunt, gather. We could only do that on the reservation. You can't do it anywhere else. And so that's where the conflict began." Legal struggles culminated in the 1974 Boldt Decision, which affirmed tribal rights to half the harvestable salmon.

Phil Hamilton, a member of the Muckleshoot Fish Commission, emphasized the tribe’s commitment to environmental stewardship. "For generations, the salmon has sustained our way of life, and now in turn, we must sustain the life of the salmon," he said. He noted that habitat loss continues at a rate of 5% per year: "We're still losing 5% of the habitat a year. And so we have to do what we can to protect what habitat remains for the salmon." He also stressed the importance of securing water for salmon: "It's all about the water. Without water, we don't have fish. We as a tribe took it upon ourselves to negotiate significant settlements to where we have water insured for salmon populations."

The tribe’s decades-long investment in habitat protection has helped reverse salmon population declines seen in the 1990s. At the turn of the century, only a few dozen Muckleshoot fishing boats operated; today, more than 200 boats support 500 fishers.