History of Columbia River and salmon culture Columbia River has been an influential geographical phenomenon, especially to the communities living nearby. The Native Americans settled along the Columbia River in massive numbers, to benefit from the fishing opportunity provided by easily obtained salmon. Regions such as The Dalles, the Cascades, Celilo Falls, Kettle Falls and Priest Rapids were great fishing grounds for the people. The geographical region was significant, because the exploitation of the fish satisfied the locals’ food necessities. Moreover, the physical feature ultimately became synonymous with the spiritual topography of the Columbia Basin. The communities that inhabited the region were not ethnic entities as the whites, or the Native Americans. Instead, the fundamental social segments of the area comprised of a hamlet structured around populations of men sharing the same lineage. The society would ebb and stream in and out of the region, albeit periodically. Current Aboriginal involvement within the river The traditions of the Native American community are largely influenced by the fishing activity in the Columbia River (Halsing, & Moore, 2008). Additionally, the locals owe their spiritual allegiance to the “mighty” power in the Columbia River. The salmon fishing activity offered the settlers an opportunity to redeem their physical health, as this was imperative to preserving the community from extinction. Through these economic activities, the Native Americans eventually employed their reliable physical health to exploit the salmon resources, which seasonally subsisted in the river. The social demographics and movements in the area could not take place without strong relations, and the most effective connections came as a result of intermarriage. A respected spiritual leader too played a pivotal role. A salmon chief entrusted with the duty of overseeing the conformity to cultural values, was engaged from time to time. The Chinooks, Clatsops, Kathlamets, Wahkiakums stayed at the mouth of the water source. Additionally, the Katskanies and Cowlitzes occupied the upper part of the river. A few miles on the upper region of the river were the Skillutes, Clannarminnamons, Multnomahs, Tillamooks, Quthlapottles, Shotos, Clanninnatas, Cathlahnaquiahs, Cathlacommahtups and Kalamas. And further upstream in the Dalles region, were Wishrams, Cathlakaheckits, Wascos, and Cathlathalas (Keefer, Peery, Jepson, & Stuehrenberg, 2004). The Dalles geographical region marked the last part occupied by the Chinook speakers. Notably, the Sahaptin language was the language of the settlers at Celilo Falls. Whereas, the Nez Perces exploited the fishery resources in the Snake River, and the Kutenais earned their livelihood from the Kootney River of the Columbia River basin (Levin, 2003). Cultural importance of the river The Columbia River is traditionally a cultural place, which the locals highly esteem. For instance, Keefer et al (2004) indicated that renowned spiritual leaders such as Coyote advocated for the effective exploitation and preparation of the salmon for a meal, by the Indian community. Honea et al (2009) suggested the spiritual leader had th