Salmon River Report 12/8-12/10

This report comes a week late but is honestly the first chance I have gotten to sit down and type a blog entry.

Headed up to Pulaski to fish the Salmon river two Fridays ago along with my father Jim and long time fishing buddy Mike Larkin. Flow held steady at 750cfs for the weekend and reports had been fairly consistent.

After a breakfast stop at the Home Town Diner for some jalapeno bacon, we began our day mid-river. Within the first ten minutes of fishing, my father landed a decent little 2lb skipper and Mike rolled what looked to all of us to be an average 7-8 pound fish.

For a December morning, great start! We gave that area another hour or so and then headed up river and jumped into Fraziers run. We collectively covererd that water thourouly with several different patterns and didn't touch a fish. Before dark we slid up to the lower wire hole and saw one angler hook up, but for winter, the prime lies were occupied with other fisherman.

Woke up on Sunday to air temps in the high teens/low twenties and knew it was going to be a day off Stanleys Ice off paste and cold fingertips. Started at the Pineville pool and watched a gentleman snag three or four steelhead. He got lucky and landed the smallest one. Again, we didn't have any hook-ups although we had some confidence there was at least a few fish in front of us. Headed up to the Muskrat hole and on his first drift Mike landed a perfect little Atlantic Salmon smolt. Later on we fished from the Altmar bridge down to the Schoolhouse pool itself but continued to come up empty for the rest of the day.

The best thing about a day like this is just being out there, battling through the elements, knowing some Knob Creek and a good meal awaits at days end. Here's a taste of the conditions. Love it!


As we head out on Monday morning I have yet to touch a fish and am hoping for a little 11th hour magic as we are set to get on the road by mid day. Headed back up river to an area that is often a early winter "ace". Good water that may contain both wintering over fish as well as fish just hanging around on their way further up river. After about an hour I'm IN! Nice fish that takes a glo-bug, comes up to the surface after staying down at first, gives three violent headshakes and my glo-bug comes flying back in my face. F!!!! Continue to work upstream and not more than twenty minutes later, fish-on again. Now based on rough weekend I felt certain that I would land this fish, but low and behold after a minute or so of a fairly non-spectacular fight, fish off. Like the ball through Buckner's legs, I knew at that moment that a steelhead to hand was not meant to be on this trip.

After my trip up this past April, I should have seen a fish less trip coming. After landing 20-30 fish in three days the law of averages exercised it's sobering power.

Couple stream shots.