If Elwha River recovery has an icon, it is these legendary Elwha Tyee, chinook bigger than 100 pounds. Bringing them back was the rallying cry for generations of advocates of Elwha dam removal, from the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe to the halls of the U.S. Congress, which ultimately approved and funded a $325 million removal project. Completed in 2014, itβs still the biggest dam takedown anywhere in the world.