Sediment behind dam is moving
The breaching of Marmot's coffer dam on Oct. 19, 2007, made the Sandy a wild and free river for the first time since 1912. Still uncertain was how the sand and gravel behind the dam would disperse, and how that might affect fish.

Since then, sediment movement and distribution has gone well, settling into evenly sloping river beds and gravel bars ideal for fish passage and spawning.

Experts believed it would take weeks before fish could swim upstream, but coho salmon were migrating past the site in just three days.

Most of the sediment remains within three miles below the site, and much will continue to disperse. An interagency team is watching for spawning bed problems and blocked tributaries.