OCT 5 - Salmon River, NY

[Bruno]

Fished the Salmon Rive yesterday. We fished the with our guide Greg Lui. Temp was a balmy 68 degrees, air temp mi 80’s, water was low, low, low something like 350 cfs.. All I have to say is WOW !!!!!!! Greg is an awesome guide and salmon fishing is my new addiction

This whole trip started with me looking in a magazine in August and seeing and article about the salmon river. Well, I called Greg on the advice of the board members and was set. I kinda B.S.’d my buddy Andy into going with me. Andy is a die hard spin/bait fisherman. I lied and told him that the guide would take him spin fishing and he agreed. Well, we showed to meet the guide and Andy realized that I lied to him. He was a good sport and grabbed a fly rod for the first time in his life.

We arrived at the river at 7am and proceeded to get started. No Joke, on my second cast I hooked into a 35in King salmon. The guide promptly ditched me and started into teaching my buddy how to flyfish for salmon. Within 1 ½ hours my buddy was into his first fish. I do not believe that I have ever seen him smile that wide. He brought 6 to hand during the day. Pretty awesome for his first time fly fishing. All of our fish were 33 in or better. I used exactly two flies in the 8 ½ hours I fished, both being pink comets.

I have to say yesterday was the single best fishing experience I have ever had. I got to see my life long friend catch his first fish on a fly rod and it was HUGE !!!!!!!!! I also got to learn at the hand of a master. I quit counting at one and landed, hooked and lost many more.


I just started saving for the next trip up there .........

PS. I know some guys here are headed that way soon. Spend the 30 bucks to fish the Douglaston Salmon Run. The rest of the river is a zoo. I have never in my life seen that many people fishing. Did not look like fun.

 

[Bruno]

We got a going away present from the guide .......... smoked eel

Watch and see the fun.

That's my boy

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W3scakCHD4M

 

[Acristickid]

B- Excellent! I too was with a buddy a week or so ago (who has flyfished for several years) but recently had a baby so he rarely gets out. I enjoyed watching him catch fish as much as catching myself. Your boy is brave, I would not have touched that eel thing. Paul

 

[afishinado]

Bruno,

I IS awesome up there! I can’t bring myself to fight the crowds when the salmon run. I usually wait for the steelhead run a little later on.

When I first read your report, I had my doubts. I read 35lb salmon and nothing smaller than 33lbs. Then if reread and saw you wrote inches! 15 or 20 years ago there were quite a few salmon caught in the 30lb+ category, but most of them run smaller, if you consider a 20lb+ fish small! A 30lb+ King is a rarity now from Lake Ontario.

If your gonna be a salmon fisherman, ya gotta talk POUNDS not inches dude!!

Good luck on your next trip. BTW, the fall – winter – early spring steelhead run up there isn’t too shabby either – if you can deal with the cold and snow.


P.S. Nice video - Looks like you will have a great fishing buddy for a long time to come.

 

[tomgamber]

MMMMM sounds good...smart kid! Will you be posting pics of the river as I have never been there and would be interested in seeing it.

 

[ryanh]

did you get the recepie? I got a 6 foot black snake behind the cabin :-D

Sounds like a greaqt trip. And it was not all that far away! Btw, did your guide mention anything about trout gorging on the eggs and fles after they spawn?

 

[jayL]

Ryan,

There are GIGANTIC browns gorging on eggs up there as we speak. I'll post a picture of a specimen in a week or so. :-D

Good report Bruno. I'm hoping to have some success when I go too.

 

[Bruno]

Sorry Tom No Pics. After ruining two phones and a digital camera in the last year I have more or less given up on pictures on the stream.

 

[tomgamber]

No prob...i'm the same way...too much fun to fish rather than waste time taking pics. Sounds like fun though. When I was a kid they used to catch eels by thte basket on the Schuylkill river near the ski club. I think it was in October.

 

[JackM]

Bruno, sounds like a great trip. Erie is gonna be a let down now. I enjoyed the video, too. At your son's age, I wouldn't even eat meat from a fish unless it was a fishstick.

 

[Bruno]

Speaking of Steelies. i feel a case of the steel head flu coming on. Anyone elese want to get sick when the conditions are right? I hear that standing in a river waiving a stick is the only cure.

 

[jayL]

Yes. I've never fished the PA great lakes tribs, and I'd definitely like to this fall/winter.

 

[Acristickid]

Bruno-Jayl. I would be intrested in going. I am would not be able to go until Oct. 22nd at the earliest. I would suggest a weekday after it rains. Lemma know. Paul

 

[MattBoyer]

Depending on the weather I may get a little ill around mid-november. I was up a few weeks ago and you're right, the lower river was crazy, but a little walking fixed that right up. On a side note it's actually been running closer to 100 than 350. 350 is sweet, 100 sucks, but you can learn a lot about the river in 100.

Boyer

 

[Bruno]

here is a pic of the fish we kept.