The charred trunk, weighing as much as 25,000 pounds, was one of 300 fire-damaged trees that the Yurok Tribe and its partners strategically placed in the South Fork of the Trinity River in an attempt to alter the current, scour out accumulated sediment and restore long-lost salmon habitat in the river. The wood placement project is being paid for using about $800,000 in grants, with help from the Watershed and Research Training Center in Hay-fork (Trinity County), the U.S. Forest Service and local landowners. © Scott Strazzante / The Chronicle