Note: The Kokanee Quest will end Jan. 31, 2019. All passports must be submitted before Feb. 10 to receive the pathtag prize.
The geocache is not at the posted coordinates. Read the page to figure out the correct coordinates to find the cache.
Historically, the kokanee salmon was an important food source for the Snoqualmie tribal people, and they held potlatches near the mouth of Ebright Creek to celebrate the fish returning. The Snoqualmie word for kokanee is "sʔilas," which means "little red fish."
Today, Ebright Creek is one of three primary spawning streams for Lake Sammamish kokanee. While smaller than Laughing Jacobs and Lewis creeks, in recent years it's often had more returning adults than the other streams. Ebright Creek also has produced the most kokanee fry of all Lake Sammamish tributaries for three out of the past five brood years (2009-10 to 2013-14).
For the past four years, returning kokanee have been able to migrate to spawning beds well upstream of East Lake Sammamish Pkwy thanks to the "hero of Ebright Creek" – local resident Wally Pereyra, a former fisheries biologist who lives next to Ebright Creek. When he learned that an undersized, perched culvert was blocking fish passage, he began advocating for its replacement. While government agencies helped with project permits, they couldn't provide funding – so Pereyra paid $175,000 for the new culvert himself.
The City of Sammamish, King County, and other groups are working on additional salmon-friendly projects downstream of the new culvert, including replacing invasive non-native vegetation with native trees and shrubs, and potentially adding large woody debris to the stream to create more resting pools.
Also check out the underwater Kokanee Cam, which shows kokanee returning to spawn in Ebright Creek.
To determine the correct cache coordinates, answer the questions below. Match the correct North coordinates with the correct West ones to get the complete final coordinates.
- When they are ready to feed, kokanee salmon fry (juveniles) wait for a stream temperature of about 52 degrees and _______________. Reference link
A. Migrate out to the lake overnight = N 47° 36.503
B. Remain in their river/creek for a week = N 47° 36.395
C. Remain in their creek for a month = N 47° 36.677
D. Remain in their creek for a year = N 47° 36.468
- Sammamish resident Wally Pereyra is now collaborating with the Kokanee Work Group and other partners to remove fish barriers on what nearby stream? Reference link
A. Pine Lake Creek = W 122° 04.223
B. Zaccuse Creek = W 122° 04.368
C. George Davis Creek = W 122° 04.147
D. Schneider Creek = W 122° 04.115
This cache was placed with the permission and support of King County and the City of Sammamish.
The Kokanee Quest series provides information on kokanee salmon, our local environment, and stewardship of the Lake Sammamish watershed.
- There are nine geocaches in the series, and all the names start with "KQ:" Bookmark list of caches.
- Download the passport and map.
- To get the final coordinates for each cache, you must correctly answer the questions on the cache page. (All nine geocaches are multi or puzzle caches.)
- To qualify for a prize, you must stamp the passport with the ink stamp inside each cache. The passport includes instructions for claiming your prize (250 available).
- A Discover Pass is required to park at the two Lake Sammamish State Park locations.
- Share your adventures with #KokaneeQuest.
Unlike other salmon, the Lake Sammamish kokanee salmon lives its entire life in fresh water. Kokanee spawn in tributary creeks, and their offspring migrate to the lake as they mature, then return to their home creeks as adults to spawn the next generation.
Historically, the kokanee filled a critical ecological role within the Lake Sammamish watershed and was an important food and cultural resource for local tribes. But this "little red fish" has experienced a dramatic decline, leading to near-extinction in recent years.
To address the kokanee's plight, citizens, landowners, nonprofit agencies, and local, state, tribal, and federal governments have united to restore native kokanee salmon populations and the ecological integrity of the greater Lake Sammamish basin. In 2013, this group received an Urban Wildlife Refuge Partnership (UWRP) designation from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, one of the first in the country.
The Kokanee Quest is sponsored by the Kokanee Work Group section of the Lake Sammamish UWRP, a consortium led by the King County Department of Natural Resources and Parks (KC DNRP) and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS).
