North Fork Nooksack early Chinook are considered essential for ESU recovery, but natural origin productivity and abundances are low. This project constructed 35 engineered log jams in the North Fork Nooksack River, Wildcat Reach (RM 54.0-54.6), to address limiting factors of channel instability and low habitat diversity in the reach. The project was designed to: (1) increase the low-flow connectivity and habitat diversity of the Wildcat Side Channel (an existing 2000-foot side channel); and (2) to increase channel stability and protect and encourage growth of maturing forested islands in the main channel. The project reach ranked highest among North Fork reaches in terms of potential restoration benefit. Restoring side channel habitat will improve survival and productivity of chinook and other salmonids by providing stable spawning habitat; redd failure in side channels is significantly lower than in mainstem and braid habitats in the North Fork. Protecting and encouraging growth of forested channel islands will ultimately increase spawning to incubation success by restoring the more stable island-braided planform historically evident in the North Fork.