Ready to make a splash!? Bring the whole family to the Wenatchee River Salmon Festival for a free day of fish, wildlife, culture and hands-on fun.
Community Day is Saturday, Sept. 19, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Rocky Reach Park and Discovery Center. Admission is free.
This year’s theme, “We Are River People,” celebrates the many ways the Columbia River connects people, wildlife and communities.
Gather inside the big blue salmon tent for Native American stories. Take home a tempura fish print, which families paint on site using a Japanese technique called gyotaku. The portable aquarium will also return this year – can you spot and name all the local fish?
Families can also visit a Native American village and learn about the traditions, stories and cultures of Indigenous people from across the region. The experience will feature 45 Native American educators and exhibitors representing 11 tribes and bands.
The fun starts before Community Day, too. About 2,000 local third- and fourth-graders will visit Rocky Reach on Sept. 17 and 18 for two days of outdoor learning, science and discovery.
For festival updates, visit salmonfest.org or follow the Wenatchee River Salmon Festival on Facebook.
The festival is hosted with support from Chelan PUD, Friends of Northwest Hatcheries, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Forest Service, Microsoft, Confluence Health, Yakama Cares - Yakama Nation Legends Casino Hotel, Cascade Autocenter, Chelan Douglas Retirees Association, Crunch Pak, Bio Oregon, Munchen Haus and Leavenworth Outdoors Center.
An Eastmont student admires a wooden oar at the Native American village, which
will feature 45 Native American educators and exhibitors representing 11 tribes
and bands.
A girl paints a silicone fish with tempura paint at the gyotaku fish print station at
Wenatchee River Salmon Festival in 2025.
Native American dancers -- representing Choctaw, Tlingit, Nez Perce, Wanapum,
Yakama Nation and Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation -- pose for a
portrait during the Wenatchee River Salmon Festival 2025.
A volunteer with Wolf Haven International shows a
series of animal skulls to students at Wenatchee River
Salmon Festival in 2025.