As we look ahead to a new year, our Backyard Salmonscapes community continues to grow, inspire, and find creative ways to connect Alaskans to the watershed that sustains us. This latest season of Backyard Salmonscapes, we are excited to expand both our educational offerings and our hands-on opportunities, welcoming all who care deeply about our salmon, our lands, and our shared way of life.
Backyard Salmonscapes 2026 will host a series of community meetings, workshops, and immersive field events designed to strengthen our collective relationship with the Cook Inlet | Tikahtnu watershed. Our new initiatives include:
- Salmon Storytelling, where community members will share their personal connections to salmon.
- Fish Need Land Too field trips on the central peninsula, highlighting the connection between healthy land and fish populations.
- Backyard Salmonscape Flotilla, the first-ever group boating trip bringing community members onto the Kenai River to experience its habitats firsthand.
- Salmon Habitat Mapping training for volunteers.
- We will also expand the Baby Salmon Live Here signage.
Backyard Salmonscapes aspires to deepen our roots in the watershed and to stand up for the rivers and salmon that shape our lives. These initiatives offer tangible ways for each of us to carry forward that responsibility, through local advocacy and collective action across the Kenai Peninsula. However, the real power of this movement remains with you. Every person who recognizes how important our Backyard Salmonscapes are will act to protect and strengthen their resilience.
Thank you to all those who are part of this movement or who may want to be. Together, we’re building a future where wild salmon thrive, and so do we!