Husum, Washington — Whitewater Became an Economy

Husum sits along the White Salmon River near falls and rapids that have repeatedly changed how people use the valley.

Indigenous settlement and fishing long preceded the modern roadside community. Timber, farms and transportation later used the corridor differently. Today, rafting and kayaking businesses bring visitors through Husum specifically because the river is steep, fast and difficult.

Downstream, removal of Condit Dam in 2011 restored a free-flowing lower river and reopened fish habitat blocked for nearly a century.

The White Salmon never stopped organizing life around Husum. People simply kept finding new ways to depend on the water.