Salmon River report Columbus Day 2015 - "How's the salmon fishing?"

Friday morning in the upper Sportsman area, busy

The salmon fishing is good.  With the rain Friday and cooler temperatures the salmon are moving and quite a few are setting up to spawn.  The water release is at 350cfs and at the time of this post the gauge at Pineville is 433cfs.  The forecast for the remainder of the week is rain and cooler temperatures as the week progresses.

The numbers of salmon may not be what we would anticipate for this time of the year but there are enough fish to have a good day with plenty of action.  You will  see more anglers right now with the holiday upon us but from this point on more elbows will be disappearing from the river and more salmon will continue to enter to spawn.  With the drift boat as a way to cover water it is possible to find water all to yourself and with fish that are calm and not being harassed.

My client Friday with the fast water between the upper Sportsman
and the Sportsman all to himself, hard to believe.

Since Friday I have seen fewer fish in the deeper runs and most out moving or spawning.  Swinging flies is working well and if you are spin fishing I would use flies as well.  As the run progresses using flies such as flesh flies and big egg patterns will pick up steelhead that are setting up below spawning areas.  By October 20th I will be making the change over to steelhead fishing as this is typically when we begin to catch more steelhead with this set up than salmon.

I have some prime mid-week dates open in November and December for steelhead.  If you would like to book any of these dates contact me at uplndgd@gmail.com or (315) 271-1212.  would enjoy spending the day with you.

Tight lines

Salmon River hatchery open house

September 26,2015 will mark the 20th open house for the Salmon River Hatchery located at 2133 County Route 22, Altmar, NY.  Rain or shine the doors will be open from 9 am to  4 pm.  The days events will include both hunting and fishing demonstrations, environmental programs and display, as well as fly tying and fishing demos.  For kids there is a stream ecology program planned as well as a fish petting zoo.  Tours of the hatchery will begin at 10:30 am and will continue through the day.   Admission is free.

Your can call the hatchery at (315) 298-7605

Salmon River preview for Fall 2015

Low water in the ramp area at Redfield

Today is Labor Day, the unofficial start of the salmon run here on the Salmon River.  As I type this the water release is being drawn down after a white water release for the holiday weekend.  Current release is 335 cfs with the Pineville gauge reading 428 cfs, typical for this time of year and we should see flows stay here into October.  There is not a lot of rain in the forecast so increased flows is not expected.  I fished the reservoir in Redfield last evening for bass, the bite didn't materialize till just before dark.  The bass moved into shore chasing bait and throwing a spinnerbait onto shore and working it back to the boat usually produced strikes within 2-3 feet of shore.  In about 1/2 hour I brought 8 bass to the boat, 7 smallies and 1 largemouth.  I fished the reservoir about a month ago and the water level had dropped substantially, I'd guess 6 feet in the last month.  Right now the reservoir is probably 10-12 feet below full pool.  As you can see from the pictures the level is down.  The pontoons had a rough go of it pulling out at the ramp.

A month ago we were fishing the tree line.

The water in the river is warm and any salmon entering the river will have a hard time surviving till the water cools a bit.  As the air temps begin to cool, especially at night this will help bring the water temps lower, rain would help too.  As salmon come into the river over the next week or two they will be holding in the deeper pools till the river cools.

Local trout streams are low too, but the fly fishing is excellent in the last hour or so of the day, 7 - 8 pm is the 'golden hour'.  I have been having good success with three hatches in this time frame starting with a gray caddis in #16-18.  If you don't carry any this small I have used a parachute Adams in these sizes with good success.  This hatch moves into a Hex spinner fall that has a window of about 15 mins before the trout move onto the White Fly hatch/spinner fall that takes you into dark.  The trout feed aggressively on all three flies and if you are in the right stretch of river you can go fish-for-cast.

A week or two ago the temperatures were topping out in the mid-60's and down into the mid-40's at night.  It felt like salmon season.  The last week have seen mid-summer temperatures in the mid 80's to low 90's. The weather has been clear and beautiful and we take as much of that as we can here in the Salmon River area, fall becomes winter too soon here.  As the leaves are beginning to change here and temps will begin falling off, most of us who fish salmon and steelhead, or hunt look eagerly for the change.  The salmon run will be different from last year for sure but right now things are progressing normally towards the fall runs.

Have a good season and I hope to see you on the river.

Tight lines.

Where is the summer going???

I can hardly believe that it is nearing the end of the first week of August.  Time is in fast-forward it seems and I suddenly realized that we will probably have salmon starting up the river with in a few weeks.  I began to think of that when I looked at the full moon last week and figured out that the 2nd full moon from now and the river will be full of salmon.  I have a few things to do on the drift boat and my salmon fly boxes are near empty, but other than that, should be ready come mid-September.

This summer has been busy around the house, probably one reason time has been passing me by.  I have had various fishing opportunities, both local and afar.  I had the chance to fish with a fellow guide and good friend, Jeff Church, about 2 weeks ago on the East Branch of the Delaware River.  We floated a beautiful section in the upper end and had a great day together.  The fishing was a bit slow, but we gave it our best.  We fished streamers for about 4 hours till the bugs started to bring fish up.  There were a few Iso' and BWO but the majority of flies were Sulfurs in sizes 14-20, figuring out what the trout wanted was the challenge.

Largemouth on a black w/blue flake senko.

Last week end another friend came in from out of town so we took the drift boat up to the Salmon River reservoir and did some bass fishing, it was awesome.  We didn't catch any over a pound and a half but both the largemouth and smallies were cooperative.   We had best results fishing a 4" senko, black with blue flakes, rigged on a flick-shake jig head and cast into openings in the weed beds and working it from shore to deep water on rocky points.  I did pull a few in on a 3/8 ounce spinner bait, white and chartreuse spinning silver willow leaf blades.  In a couple hours fishing we managed about 2 dozen green and brown bass.

Smallie on the same rig.

Smallie on a spinner bait.

Local stream fishing has been fair.  Not a lot of bug action this year but if you hang out till dusk/dark there is a fairly decent spinner fall right now that gets the trout on the fly.  Nothing fancy about the spinner, cream colored poly-wing in a size 14 is working well, again it's a dusk/dark deal.  Prior to the spinner fall I have been using a soft-hackle wet fly with a PT nymph size 14 on the dropper with pretty good success.  The PT gets most of the action but the ones that take the soft hackle are crushing them.  That too is a lot of fun.

Standard issue trout with a PT nymph in the lip.

The nights are cooler now with temps in the mid-50.  Today was mid-70 and low humidity, the sun shone with high altitude clouds, it just feels like salmon fishing weather.  Last year was a not so good salmon year but that was last year, for sure this year will be different.  I am looking forward to it as are others.

One last photo before I sign off.  This was on a tailgate I saw in the Pineville parking lot this past April.  I downloaded some pictures from the boat camera and had completely forgotten about it, but it's pretty cool.

This fellow has been fishing out west, I'd bet Money on it.

 See you on the river.

Tight lines

2015 Steelhead fishing summary and trout fishing the local waters.

To start with, the steelhead fishing on the Salmon River came to a quiet end a couple weeks into May this year.  These were for the most part drop-backs out of the hatchery.  These fish had very little pressure as most folks had move onto other outdoor activities.  Over all the steelhead fishing from January to mid-May left a lot to be desired.  With the vitamin B deficiency plaguing the fishery and the brutal weather and temperatures, a lot of anglers became discouraged with the fishing and abandoned the river in search of other fishing opportunities like cable TV.  There were good days on the river, but this winter/spring saw more slow days.  Fishermen handle less than perfect fishing conditions in 3 ways.  The pessimist has a negative view and sees the situation as hopeless.  The optimist hopes things change for the better.  The realist takes what they're dealt, adjust accordingly and keeps on going, as a guide, that's what you've gotta do.  Of course I do look ahead and hope thing change for the better.

We have a few months now to let the salt wash out of the wounds left by last falls salmon run (or lack there of) and the frustration and panic of seeing our steelhead fishery literally dying before our eyes and feeling helpless to do anything about it.  One event that may help the healing process is the annual Spey Nation spey clave on the Salmon River to be held at the Pineville boat ramp/ parking lot.  This year it is June 27, 2015 and has continued to grow in sponsors and attendees every year.

Isonichya comparadun in #10 and 12 right now.

Trout fishing is another remedy to salve the wounds.  Locally the creeks are in excellent shape due to plentiful rainfall and the bugs are popping too.  Right now area streams like the Mad River have good Caddis fly hatches daily.  BWO and Sulphers are beginning to show up now, for about the last 2 weeks.  Some of the larger streams are blessed right now with great Iso hatches.  Iso patterns I prefer are Comparaduns tied in sizes #10 and #12.  If you don't have any Isos in your box a parachute Adams in the same sizes will work in a pinch.

I did manage to get down to the Willowemoc Creek in Roscoe, NY 2 weeks ago on a Saturday afternoon and evening.  The Caddis fly hatches were phenomenal.  One particular  hatch that developed during the evening was a small, bright yellow stone fly, about #16, that had me wishing for my Yellow Sallys.  They were, however, about 3 hours away in my western fly boxes.  I met a good friend of mine down there and we had a great time.  Traveling to a different fishery is always a good way to 'break' the routines that seem to control our fishing habits.  I seem to frequent the same trout runs on the same creeks, not a bad thing, but sometimes I need to break free and see new water.

Have a great summer and don't give up on the Salmon River.  See you there in a few months.

Tight lines.

2015 spring fishing report, Salmon River, NY

Spring 2015 steelhead fishing here on the Salmon River has been quietly moving along.  The fishing has been 'typical' for the spawning season.  Steelhead are actively spawning, with those that are ignoring our offerings.  Most of our fish have been either pre-spawn fish or, as of late, drop backs.  Most our our fishing is being done with flies and I'll give more details in a minute.  The river is unlocking, we had to deal with some serious shelf ice this year and some days fishing below Pineville was impossible.  The release is 350cfs and the gauge at Pineville is reading 542cfs as I type this.  This has been he status-quo for the last several weeks which has helped keep the fishing stable but at the same time has slowed the de-iceing process this year.  Temperatures through the days now are pushing upper 30's most days, however, night time temps are consistently in the upper teens/ low 20's.  This has prevented any run-off from melting snow from having any real impact on the river to this point.  Looking forward, we will probably see this begin to change towards the end of next week as the forecast is  showing above freezing air temperature both day and night by mid week.  Also, days with sun shine will help the snow melting process along.  If recorded history hold true we will see heavy run-off with the river reaching the 7000/9000cfs range between  the weeks of the 13th and 24th of April.

For the next couple week, however, the fishing should be consistent with more dropbacks showing up in the net.  As for fly fishing we are indi-fishing for the most part.  As is typical in the spring the flies that work the best are alvin patterns and egg patterns, such as nuclear roe, crystal meth and sucker spawn.  Post run-off you will find these same egg patterns working well as will large stone fly patterns such as Montana stone fly, yuck bug and the traditional stone fly nymph patterns working well.  These stone fly patterns should be in the size #8 or #10 and heavily weighted.  A traditional wooly bugger works too.

Drifting an alvin pattern under an indi is producing well now.

Swinging this alvin is working also.

Nuclear roe is an excellent choice for pocket water right now,

as is sucker spawn

Bitch Creek nymph

Montana Stone Fly

Yuck Bug, steelhead love the rubber legs.
 

 If you are gear fishing, either spinning or pinning, a small jig fished under a float will produce well right now.  Local tribs are opening up but some are still locked up with ice or are low water. 

As a general word of caution, be careful around any shelf ice that is left, it is rotten and unstable.  In the next few weeks water levels with be on the rise so use good sense in wading or crossing the river.  Fish with a buddy and wear a PFD, there is nothing wrong with using good sense.

You can check the release on my web site and if you would like to book a trip I have a few days left this spring and the schedule for the fall of 2015 for salmon and steelhead have good dates available.

Tight lines.

Salmon River NY, Steelhead die off

 

Nutritional Deficiency Strongly Implicated in Increased Steelhead Mortality in Lake Ontario Tributaries

Adult steelhead eturning from Lake Ontario to the Salmon River in Oswego County are exhibiting signs of stress and elevated mortality rates due to an apparent thiamine (vitamin B) deficiency, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Commissioner Joe Martens announced today.

DEC scientists enlisted the help of fish health experts in other agencies and academia to determine the cause of this disorder. DEC staff submitted moribund Salmon River steelhead to the Cornell University Aquatic Animal Health Program for testing. Results indicate that fish pathogens are not responsible for the abnormal behavior and mortality. DEC also sent steelhead samples to the U.S. Geological Survey’s Northern Appalachian Research Laboratory for further lab testing. Results strongly indicate a severe thiamine (vitamin B) deficiency, which means it is likely contributing to the steelhead mortality.

“Lake Ontario steelhead are an important component of Lake Ontario’s sport fishery and DEC is deeply concerned about reports of steelhead stress and mortality in the Salmon River and other Lake Ontario tributaries,” Commissioner Martens said. “Steelhead provide high-quality sport fisheries in the open lake and are especially sought after by anglers who fish in tributaries from fall through spring. DEC staff will continue to work closely with federal agencies, Cornell University and other stakeholders to identify the cause of the current situation and strategies to ensure a robust steelhead population.”

In mid-November, DEC fisheries staff began to receive reports of steelhead swimming erratically in the Salmon River and higher mortality of the species. More recent reports indicate similar behavior in steelhead in other Lake Ontario tributaries.
Steelhead are an important component of Lake Ontario’s sport fishery, which a Cornell University study valued at over $112 million in angler expenditures in New York annually.

Great Lakes fish predators (including salmon and steelhead) that feed primarily on alewife are prone to thiamine deficiency. Alewife, an invasive bait fish in the Great Lakes, are known to contain thiaminase, an enzyme that degrades thiamine. A thiamine deficiency can impact egg quality and the survival of eggs and newly hatched fish, and, in severe cases, can cause the death of adult fish.
DEC is taking steps to meet its spring 2015 steelhead egg-take targets at Salmon River Hatchery, and will work with Great Lakes agency partners to provide assistance in meeting egg take quotas, if needed. Staff from DEC’s Rome Fish Disease Control Unit and Salmon River Hatchery are preemptively injecting adult steelhead returning to the hatchery with thiamine. Thiamine-injected fish will be held in outdoor raceways at the hatchery and fed a diet fortified with vitamin B to improve the likelihood of successful steelhead egg collections in 2015.
However, little can be done to alleviate the mortality of adult steelhead that are unable to ascend the river and reach the hatchery’s holding facilities. Although moderate thiamine deficiencies are not uncommon in top predator fish such as salmon, lake trout and steelhead in Lake Ontario and other waters, this year’s acute deficiency is atypical in its severity. DEC staff will continue to collaborate with experts to further understand the circumstances leading to this year’s mortality.

For more information, contact DEC’s Bureau of Fisheries (Cape Vincent Fisheries Station) at (315) 654-2147.