This last weekend ushered in the 'unofficial' start to the salmon season here in Pulaski. We have had some measurable rain in the past week and a half, so the river is in good condition as far as water flow. Currently the release is 370cfs with the gauge at Pineville reading 459cfs. These are respectable flows given that in the past few years they have been considerably lower. The reservoir is in excellent shape as far as available water so this fall should see good flows on the Salmon River.
As to be expected, and as confirmed by various reports locally, the salmon run is trickling in as usual for this time of year. One source reported a movement of Cohos but most fish moving into the river are Chinooks. One interesting bit of information on these early fish is that, over the past few years, these have been wild fish, fish spawned in the Salmon River itself. These fish have been our early runners over the past 6-7 years and have been on the larger size, 25-30lbs.
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| Early run King salmon. |
If you are looking for salmon for the table this is the time to fish for them. These early September to late September fish are fresh and good table fair. Once they set up on the spawning reds they have started to degenerate and will soon die, not anything I would want to eat. I do most of my fishing for table fair right now, I am ever building a smoker for this year's fish and venison. See how that turns out.
Well, the moon is a full moon tomorrow and by the next full moon we will be at the peak of the salmon run. From now until then this is the absolute best time to fish the salmon run. Don't miss out on this annual event, it only happens once a year. See you on the river.
Tight lines
