Sandy River Delta Educational Resources

This resource list is designed to go along with Confluence’s Field Guide for the Sandy River Delta. This resource list is made out of interviews with Indigenous leaders from the Columbia River, educational shorts made by the Sandy River Watershed Council, articles on wildlife, and more.

Field Guide: Confluence Bird Blind at the SRD

This guide is designed to guide you though the Sandy River Delta, focusing on what you see, hear, and feel while at the SRD, and to prompt thinking about changes in the landscape.

Video and Audio

Greg Archuleta: Wapato Returns to the Sandy River Delta

Greg Archuleta (Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde) talks about the return of wapato to the Sandy River Delta following the dam removal, and the challenges the plant faces to thrive.

Sandy River Delta Restoration

After a turbulent industrial past, the Sandy River Delta required significant restoration in the late 2000s to make it a safe recreational area and a thriving natural habitat, full of native plants, birds, and animals.

Greg Archuleta: Return of Nature After Dam Removal

Greg Archuleta talks about the removal of the Sandy River Dam and the return of wapato and salmon.

Learn more about why restoration is such an important part of this scenic area with Bill Weiler, Stewardship Education Coordinator with the Sandy River Watershed Council.

The Sandy River Watershed Council is rebuilding Salmon homes and so much more: Explore one of our environmental restoration projects with us along the Sandy River.

Audio Tour of Sandy River Delta

This audio tour is a guide to the Confluence Trail at the Sandy River Delta near Troutdale, Oregon.

Articles

The Sandy River bird blind, inspired by William Clark’s quote that he could not sleep because of bird noises, was built to give guests a chance to visit a restored native habitat and learn about native birds and animals.

John Townsend’s Observations of Native Birds, 1834-37

Etched into the wooden slats of the Confluence blind are the names of the birds noted by Lewis and Clark during their journey. These species captivated people such as John Kirk Townsend, thirty years after Lewis and Clark canoed down the Columbia River.

About Confluence: Confluence connects you to the history, living cultures, and ecology of the Columbia River system through Indigenous voices. We are a community-supported nonprofit that works through six art landscapes, educational programs, and public gatherings in collaboration with northwest tribes, communities, and the celebrated artist Maya Lin.

About the Sandy River Delta Watershed Council: The Sandy River Watershed Council is composed of people who live, work or recreate in the Sandy River Basin as well as organizations that have an interest in the area. The SWRC’s mission is to restore and protect the natural, cultural, and historical resources of the Sandy River watershed and promote the enjoyment of the watershed for the diversity of stakeholders.