Introducing Recorrido por el Río: A Bright Future

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By Intern Sage Mailhiot

The morning was decidedly autumnal. It was cold and damp–one of the first days of September on which you can see your breath as you exhale. Buses full of students emerge from the fog, and their voices fill the parking lot at Howard Miller Steelhead Park. We met each other in a nervous and excited combination of “Buenos días”s and “Hello!”s and the doling out of raincoats. Not 10 minutes earlier, we were shivering and stiff, but once the day had been set in motion, it was impossible to not feel warm.

We gathered in this riverside park up Highway 20 for the inaugural excursion of a new NOAA-funded salmon education program–Recorrido por el Río, or River Journey. In partnership with Vamos Outdoors, North Cascades Institute, and The Salish Sea School, the program aims to enhance understanding of the watershed that students live in, and as a result, foster a sense of belonging and stewardship with regards to their environment.

 

This excursion to the Skagit River is just the beginning of an exciting next few months. Students, for most of whom English is their second or third language, will journey up and down the Skagit River Watershed, learning about the salmon life cycle, and what salmon stewardship looks like. Trips to come will span all the way from Ross Lake to the Salish Sea.

 

We boarded three bright red rafts and set out onto the turquoise Skagit River. The humps of pink salmon crested the surface of the water–“¡como la ala de los tiburones!”–sometimes jumping in a dramatic splash. We arrived at the convergence zone of the Sauk and the Skagit Rivers, where the silty glacial water of the Sauk is diluted, where we pondered why the two rivers were such different colors. Some rafts were quieter, pensive. Others were raucous, splashing each other and laughing. Two kids at the bow of the raft were taking turns dunking their head in the water while the other secured his friend. “¿Está bien beberlo?” they asked, and we laughed and shook our heads as a seagull dropped a very timely turd into the water. We passed a bald eagle perched in a yellowing maple tree. I learned the word for eagle in Spanish – “águila”.

 

By the time that we got off the water, the fog of the morning was long forgotten and the future was bright.

Paid Education Internship for River Journey (Recorrido por el Rio) Program

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Click here for a full position description!

Are you a bilingual student that enjoys working with kids and being outside? Join our team and be part of a new education program at Skagit Fisheries, the River Journey (Recorrido Por el Rio). This program will take a group of multilingual students on a journey through the Skagit watershed, from the high mountains to the sea. Through this internship you will help teach these students, in Spanish and English, about the native fish and plants & ecology. You will participate in a series of field trips, including rafting the Skagit River, an overnight adventure with the North Cascades Institute, and stream exploration close to home at Little Mountain Park. 

Qualifications:

Must be a current college student with a background and interest in education, environmental science/studies, and/or biology. Applicant must be fluent in Spanish and English, and comfortable teaching students in Spanish and English. This position requires work outside in all types of weather and uneven terrain. 

Time Commitment

This is a paid internship that requires a time commitment of 1-2 days a week between 7-8 hours a day, Monday-Friday. There are two overnight field trips, and each intern will be required to attend at least one of these. There may occasional events on weekends (optional). Interns will participate in field trips Sept-June and also spend time at the Skagit Fisheries office in Mount Vernon preparing for field trips. The intern will also participate in other education program events. The ideal candidante can commit to Sept 15, 2025-June 15, 2026, 300 hours.  Accomodations can be made for a shorter term if necessary. 

To Apply:

Email resume and cover letter to sfeg@skagitfisheries.org as one PDF with the subject line “River Journey Internship”. 1 Position open until filled.

The Backbone of Our Region, AKA Internship Introspective by Education Intern Kaia Olson

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Kaia planting a tree at Upper Day Slough with kids from Cap Sante High School

Salmon and kids and schools, oh my! My time as an educational intern with Skagit Fisheries has been a blast. From classroom art projects to fry release field trips, I think I’ve learned as much as (if not more than) the kids I’ve been working with these past six months.

 

There’s something about Pacific salmon that makes them captivating. Maybe it’s their elusive anadromous life cycle or their identity as the foundation of ecology and society in our region. Whatever it is, they’ve got me hooked. After the Oyster Creek Salmon Sightings event in early November, I couldn’t stay away–I returned to the creek several times to watch and photograph the chum salmon. But as much as my own awe took me by surprise, seeing the joy on the faces of the community was even more unexpected. Older individuals bombarded me with questions I didn’t know half the answers to. And kids who’d never seen salmon before exclaimed excitedly as they peered through polarized glasses. In this moment, I realized that this shared desire to protect salmon unifies generations. 

 

When I was growing up, both of my grandfathers were involved in conservation, and I think that influenced me on my path to activism. Studying environmental science in college has been an integral step, of course. But I feel that my internship at Skagit Fisheries has been invaluable as well. Through the Salmon in the Schools field trips, I’ve discovered the importance of place-based learning for kids. Through Salmon Sightings events and tree planting work parties I’ve discovered the importance of community involvement. And through small experiences along the way that pushed the boundaries of my comfort zone, I’ve discovered the importance of applied leadership for myself. 

 

Sadly, my time with Skagit Fisheries has come to a close. But reflecting over the last half year, this opportunity has made my path forward in the field clearer. Salmon are the backbone of our region, and also the backbone of my relationship with environmentalism—a passion that was fueled during my internship, but doesn’t end here. I think one of our Salish Sea Deaf School students summed up my experience perfectly as he signed “I love you” to his salmon fry.

 

Releasing salmon fry into Hansen Creek with students from the Salish Sea Deaf School