The Salmon River Fishery (11 miles of fishable water) was re-instituted in the late 70's when the New York State Dept. of Environmental Conservation built the Salmon River Fish hatchery specializing in Pacific Salmon, (Chinook's and Coho's) along with Steelhead Trout and Brown Trout.  Presently we have a Hatchery return of over 250,000 Salmon and our Steelhead returns are running about 20,000- 25,000 and increasing!

Chinook Salmon are presently averaging 22 lbs. with good numbers of fish in the mid - 30s! Coho Salmon are increasing in return numbers dramatically with 2006's return the best ever-both in quantity and size! Steelhead averaging 8-12lbs. with many fish in the upper teens are making this fishery explode with excitement 10 months a year! Imagine tangling with a 25-30lb. King Salmon! Hold on because this ride will be like holding onto a Freight train!  Have a Coho smash your fly and watch as it cart-wheels and runs in a frenzy that HAS to be seen to be believed!  Hook into a Silver bullet fresh from the Lake and you're in for one of the greatest battles ever!

The Salmon return starts in late August each year and builds to a peak by mid-October. Early returning fish are bright silver and extremely acrobatic! As Salmon returns increase, so do the numbers of Trout increase-brought into the river by the hormones released by the spawning salmon! Picture yourself fishing a crystal clear medium sized river either fly fishing or spin fishing using VERY LITE tackle!  8-9 weight fly rods for salmon and 5-7 weight fly rods or lite 10' noodle rods for Steelhead/Brown Trout!  Watch these fish leap and run and explode as your fly is impaled as they aggressively strike your presentation !