Not for you, but for other people, the adventure might always stay about the fish.
Salmon River, Oswego County, NY, 8/21/26
- Thread starter hooker-of-men
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SBecker
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- Jun 26, 2010
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Great Janis Joplin Quote
Tigereye
Well-known member
Ok, alot of posts here on DSR and Salmon River itself. I am currently sitting in the car outside of Byrne Dairy in Pulaski.
Salmon fishing wasnt in the cards this year as my September and October were booked with 3 out of state weddings, my 40th anniversary, a hunting trip to Nebraska and earlier in the year spending a small fortune for new electrical service in my house.
Anyway a friend of mine had to back out of his trip and gave me 2 DSR passes for 2 days. So my son and I took him up on the offer.
We spent the past 2 days at the upper DSR ( little black hole) to ourselves with only 3 or 4 other fisherman in sight up or down stream. Check DSR fishing reports to see angle density. If you are not afraid to put some miles on your korkers to get away from the crowds you will be fine.
We checked the DSR report and talked to some of the river walkers all saying the estuary and lower river had alot of fish and even more guys, few to noone in upper section. Great. Im going up stream.
Fishing was sporadic but good in spurts. We each hooked and released about a dozen kings each over 2 days. Missed or lost at least that many. We even had a few cohos mixed in. Sending 6 of those buggers to freezer camp.
The Salmon River is what you make of it. Stay away from weekends and the well known holes. DSR cost also keeps people away and the river walkers keep most of the (!) 's in line. Its a big river and there are lots of little pockets that only hold a fish or two in unlikely areas. Find them and you will have good fishing with little pressure.
Salmon fishing wasnt in the cards this year as my September and October were booked with 3 out of state weddings, my 40th anniversary, a hunting trip to Nebraska and earlier in the year spending a small fortune for new electrical service in my house.
Anyway a friend of mine had to back out of his trip and gave me 2 DSR passes for 2 days. So my son and I took him up on the offer.
We spent the past 2 days at the upper DSR ( little black hole) to ourselves with only 3 or 4 other fisherman in sight up or down stream. Check DSR fishing reports to see angle density. If you are not afraid to put some miles on your korkers to get away from the crowds you will be fine.
We checked the DSR report and talked to some of the river walkers all saying the estuary and lower river had alot of fish and even more guys, few to noone in upper section. Great. Im going up stream.
Fishing was sporadic but good in spurts. We each hooked and released about a dozen kings each over 2 days. Missed or lost at least that many. We even had a few cohos mixed in. Sending 6 of those buggers to freezer camp.
The Salmon River is what you make of it. Stay away from weekends and the well known holes. DSR cost also keeps people away and the river walkers keep most of the (!) 's in line. Its a big river and there are lots of little pockets that only hold a fish or two in unlikely areas. Find them and you will have good fishing with little pressure.
wildtrout2
Well-known member
Happy 40th anniversary! Much to be said for that.
If you take the Salmon River for what it is and show up with the right attitude and expectations, it can be a fun time and a good way to deal with cabin fever during the late fall/winter months. Travel with a couple friends, eat some very average pub food, challenge yourself or your friend to finish the Chicken Parm at the Altmar Hotel, enjoy a few upstate NY craft beers (or Labatt's Blue), sleep in some raunchy rooms, freeze your azz off, squeeze every bit of your money's worth out of all your fancy base layers and expensive Gore-Tex jackets, and check out Malinda's Fly Shop when the fish aren't biting.
And, if you're fortunate, hook into a hot, 10+ pound steelhead that will take you into your backing in seconds and bust your frozen knuckles on your reel handle. Yell "FISH ON!", and watch your old, out-of-shape friends running for the first time all year, struggling to catch up with the fish to get it into the oversized boat net you've been carrying up and down the river bank all day.
It's not everybody's cup of tea, but for those of us who lead mostly boring lives otherwise, a trip to the SR can really spice things up for a few days in the middle of winter.
If you look closely at the pic below, you can see the homemade tippet gripper I mentioned in the unusual fishing gadget thread clipped to my jacket pocket.
I fought a much bigger fish well into my backing before landing the one in the first photo. After catching the fish above on a size 12 Whitlock's Red Fox Squirrel Nymph using a 10' 7wt fly rod, I gave a copy of the fly to my friend, and he caught this fish using the nymph under a float with his center pin:
P.S. Do yourself a favor, and stop at Dinosaur Bar-B-Que restaurant in Syracuse on your way home. It's a relatively easy on/off from I81, and it's been a local favorite for decades. The Saranac Draft Root Beer goes great with the food for those who may be driving home. Oh, and the rest area at the PA Welcome Center is conveniently located less than two hours down the road from the restaurant.😏
And, if you're fortunate, hook into a hot, 10+ pound steelhead that will take you into your backing in seconds and bust your frozen knuckles on your reel handle. Yell "FISH ON!", and watch your old, out-of-shape friends running for the first time all year, struggling to catch up with the fish to get it into the oversized boat net you've been carrying up and down the river bank all day.
It's not everybody's cup of tea, but for those of us who lead mostly boring lives otherwise, a trip to the SR can really spice things up for a few days in the middle of winter.
If you look closely at the pic below, you can see the homemade tippet gripper I mentioned in the unusual fishing gadget thread clipped to my jacket pocket.
I fought a much bigger fish well into my backing before landing the one in the first photo. After catching the fish above on a size 12 Whitlock's Red Fox Squirrel Nymph using a 10' 7wt fly rod, I gave a copy of the fly to my friend, and he caught this fish using the nymph under a float with his center pin:
P.S. Do yourself a favor, and stop at Dinosaur Bar-B-Que restaurant in Syracuse on your way home. It's a relatively easy on/off from I81, and it's been a local favorite for decades. The Saranac Draft Root Beer goes great with the food for those who may be driving home. Oh, and the rest area at the PA Welcome Center is conveniently located less than two hours down the road from the restaurant.😏
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SBecker
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Dino is complete trash compared to Limp Lizard up there. I used to fish comps up in Syracuse quite a few times a year, and the locals made it known, Limp is where it’s at. I agree and won’t step foot in Dino. Now, if you want some of the best Italian food and pizza you will ever have, go across the street and grab Apizza. My steelhead trips go something like this… steelhead fishing in the morning, drive down to Syracuse for Limp Lizard at lunch, shoot over to 9 mile creek for some trout fishing, then hit Apizza for dinner. Take 2 pies back to the hotel to heat back up in the pizza oven on the boat the next day.
Maybe I'll give Limp Lizard a try next time I'm in the area. For the record, Dinosaur is rated 4.5 stars on Tripadvisor with over 2,800 reviews. Limp Lizard rates 4.1 stars with only 96 reviews. Granted, these reviews are likely from non-locals posting on Tripadvisor.
I'm not saying Internet reviews are the be-all, end-all when it comes to restaurant quality, but perhaps "complete trash" is an overstatement, lol.
Now, you really got my attention with this quote:
Take 2 pies back to the hotel to heat back up in the pizza oven on the boat the next day.
I'll take "things you'll never hear said by blue line brook trout fishermen" for a thousand $, Alex, lol.
I'm not saying Internet reviews are the be-all, end-all when it comes to restaurant quality, but perhaps "complete trash" is an overstatement, lol.
Now, you really got my attention with this quote:
Take 2 pies back to the hotel to heat back up in the pizza oven on the boat the next day.
I'll take "things you'll never hear said by blue line brook trout fishermen" for a thousand $, Alex, lol.
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