Sediment did not appear bad but on closer inspection the creek bed was very, very hard. Sediments had cemented the gravel together. The second year after the wash out there were even less fish. A thousand returning late summer chum were counted in 1982. After three years of monitoring the weir, the late summer chum run was determined to be extinct.
Sediment is by far the most likely primary reason for the demise of the chum.
Late Summer Chum Wild Olympic Salmon has started a project on nearby Salmon Creek to build runs on late summer chum native to that creek with the intention of reestablishing chum in Chimacum creek. Returning fish are taken, hand spawned, reared, and released to the Salmon creek system. In preparation for this, many projects have been undertaken to prepare Chimacum creek. Gravel cleaning has been undertaken in the main spawning areas for several years. Wild Olympic Salmon has cleaned the spawning area 3 times with a power gravel cleaner since 1993 to help prepare the creek.