Horsefly River Restoration

Restoration projects are improving salmon habitat on the Horsefly River and tributaries

The Fraser Basin Council’s Cariboo-Chilcotin staff team have helped oversee salmon habitat restoration projects in the Horsefly River watershed. The projects (2019-2024) were designed to improve the condition of spawning and rearing habitat for threatened local salmon population in riparian areas on the River and four of its tributaries:

The Horsefly River flows nearly 100 km from its source near Wells Gray Provincial Park to Quesnel Lake. It drains 2750 square km of the Interior Plateau. This river and its tributaries are critical for the spawning, rearing and migration of sockeye, chinook and coho salmon.

Interpretive signage about the sites can be viewed on Horsefly Lake Road next to a walking trail that follows the Horsefly Spawning Channel.

The projects were supported with funding from the Canada Nature Fund for Aquatic Species at Risk, the Pacific Salmon Foundation and the Healthy Watersheds Initiative. Undertaken by contract project manager Steve Hocquard, the works were overseen by FBC in collaboration with the Horsefly River Roundtable, and Fisheries and Oceans Canada.