Fishing in Upstate NY...

[od354]

Now I know this site is for flyfishing in PA, but I would appreciate any info that anyone has on flyfishing in Upstate NY. I was thinking of planning a trip to the Salmon River and was wondering if anyone has been up there? I know it can get crowded on the Salmon during the runs but, I really would rather not fish next to a couple of hundred other guys, so if anyone has any info on smaller tribs around the Salmon that would be less crowded I would greatly appreciate it. Any good websites that have info on the area that you know of would be great too! Thanks!

 

[trico]

just pull up a map, there are lots of fun tribs, but only foul weather and weekdays will get you away from the crowds.
actually once you've been up during the salmon runs it will redefine what you consider a crowd.

here's some links to get you started:

http://www.douglastonsalmonrun.com/conditions.asp

http://www.whitakers.com/cgi-bin/start.cgi/whitakers/second_page2_newer.html?ex_file=daily_report2.lib

http://www.fishthesalmonriver.com/

 

[Biggie]

od, go over to the salmon crazy site....tons of info and great info.........fair warning........upstate ny=crowds most of the time. it's great fishing though!

 

[Padraic]

I've only been up once, but I have spoken with some people who go up regularly. Evidently the fishery on the Salmon is hatchery oriented. Most of the fish coming up the Salmon are patterned on the waters coming out of the hatchery. So the tribs to the Salmon don't see many fish. There are some smaller streams that go directly into the lake that have runs. Of course being smaller, the runs are less predictable and shorter in duration.

 

[jayL]

On my trip last oct/nov. I caught most of my kings in tribs. I was sworn to secrecy by the guys at salmoncrazy, but they can help ;-)

like padraic said, the runs in the tribs aren't amazing, but i've had days with 6 or 7 hookups in the small streams.

 

[MattBoyer]

If you go to the Salmon River when it's blown out (over 2000 CFS) you can catch salmon in the dam storm drains. They will run into any flowing current when they get up into the plateu. I think it all smells about the same to them once they are in the river. The big catch is that it is absolutely not a secret. Last October one trib had more people in it's parking lot than any 3 of the other parking lots. It was crazy so we didn't go for the first 4 days and did horrible on a raging brown main river. Finally on the last day we bit the bullet and jumped on into the fray. In 3 hrs my brother had 18 hookups and I had i believe around 15. We got there late. It was a creek smaller than Clark's. Like by half. The cool thing was they were actually biting, which I'd always believed they did but could never prove. You'd cast into a little pool and it felt like a small trout nibbling. You'd set the hook and all hell would break lose. What makes it super fun is knowing you're one of the few people not ripping, yet when you'd walk through a crowd all the snaggers would yell "It's fouled! Break it off!" Definitely take your sense of humor and your patience. That place will tax both some days. A great way to get to know the river is to go up on the summer. There will be summer run(Skamania) steelhead in the river, as well as some big arse browns and some atlantics. There won't be a super amount of any of these, but nothing makes catching chubs more fun than knowing that any time your fly gets taken you might be into something big. Add to that a ton of smallies and the ability to explore this river with low water levels and a heaping helping of solitude and you have one helluva fishin trip. Oh, and the lodges and motels are jus dying to make a deal that time of year. Hope this helps!

Boyer

 

[FYfly]

While the fishing in the Salmon River area can be exceptional you shouldn't forget about the tributaries in the Rochester area. Some of these include Oak Orchard, Eighteenmile, and Johnson Creeks. These streams all have a salmon and steelhead runs but I have done most my fishing for the large browns. Generally ounce the salmon run has subsided the crowds drop a little, but this is relative as the streams can still be very crowded. Especially on the weekends.
This is a very helpful fly shop in a relativly close proximity to the streams and if you contact them they should put on the streams that are currently producing well.
www.colemansflyshop.com

 

[Chaz]

It's been a while since I've been there, but I can tell you from experience that fishing in weather such as we are having this weekend is brutal. I've been there in Feb. and there are fish to be caught and believe it or not there are usually other anglers there fishing. Layer your clothing and make sure you have something warm to drink. Last time I was there in Feb. my buddy caught a big steelhead on a # 20 brassy, so it isn't always big flies that do the catching though that is the preferred method.

 

[afishinado]

I used to fish the Salmon at Pulaski quite a bit, but like Chaz, I haven’t been there for a few seasons. Check conditions, both weather and flow conditions on the web sites listed.

As far as fishing the Salmon River, you won’t be alone. Everywhere up there is too crowded for me during the salmon run. You can stand shoulder to shoulder in some of the holes with other fisherman, and catch fish.

In the steelhead season (late fall through spring) the Salmon River ususally isn't as crowded. Especially in the winter. One thing I found is that there usually are small pockets of open water neglected by many fisherman that hold fish. Don’t be afraid to walk and explore.

Also, as Chaz said, smaller conventional trout flies also work. Just be sure that they are tied on heavy hooks. Many trout flies are tied on light wire hooks that will not hold a steelhead. Dress warm and give it a try.

 

[od354]

Thanks everyone...I appreciate all the info!