The Skykomish River between the cities of Goldbar and Sultan is known as the braided reach. As gradient decreases, sediment that is transported from the steeper, confined channels of the upper basin deposits and forms a multi-threaded channel. This dynamic environment has created broad gravel bars and complex off-channel areas that are heavily utilized by Chinook salmon and other salmonids for spawning and rearing. Recognizing the importance of this reach for salmon conservation, the Snohomish Basin Salmon Recovery Forum identified it as a "Focus Area" in the Near Term Action Agenda (NTAA). The NTAA outlines an interim strategy for salmon conservation, while the long-term conservation plan is under development. While high quality habitat is still intact along portions of the braided reach, other areas have been highly modified. Habitat conditions that have been substantially degraded include access to habitat, hydrology, water quality, riparian conditions and floodplain connectivity (SBSRTC, in prep.). To address these problems effectively, while acknowledging and addressing human concerns, we have conducted a comprehensive reach-scale analysis. It included data collection and analysis of channel morphology, floodplain topography, hydrology, hydraulics, riparian conditions and habitat for salmonids. The goals was to fill data gaps and to flesh out the ideas proposed in the near-term strategy into effective projects that work with habitat forming processes. Habitat, fish use, and geomorphic assessments were completed and used to identify projects that work with natural processes to augment or create salmonid habitat.