Simms Dealer Camp

A brutal but awesome trip to the Salmon River. Went up to Pulaski to see the new line and was able to get out and fish a bit. Day one started off pleasant, but the front rolled in and it got cold. The next day we had to work for the fish, but we prevailed. Snow was coming down sideways and the wind was blowing 20mph plus. By day three we had 18 inches of snow and it didn't stop, we got out of there with the help of a bobcat and some man power just before the heavy stuff came down. Hot flies were all sucker spawn or some kind of egg pattern. Low and slow was the ticket to success.

Last Fishing Trip of 2014

Over the Holiday I was able to get out for two half day trips while I was in NY. The first day was a high water float down a river I fished way back when, that is full of smallmouth, Pike, Pickerel, and Walleye. The river was flowing at just under 5000 cfs, normal is about 900, but instead of sitting inside and eating cookies as the girls baked them, we decided to get out anyway. No fish were landed or even seen for that matter. But it was a good time with my dad and brother in law.

The boat launch sign 4 feet under water

The next morning I was able to get away for another half day, to run down and fish the Salmon River with Joey. We fished the DSR, with all the dying fish up river, we decided that our best chance to get into fish, would be down river. We were right, after crossing the river at nearly 2000 cfs, we fished for a while and didn't get anything, so we crossed back over and headed down river. We found some nice healthy fish, One got away before the picture, but we managed to land 4 that morning. Joey fished with some of his old crew from Whitaker's the rest of the day, getting into fish most of the afternoon. He stayed up for two more days, and the fishing continued to be productive. He was fishing by himself the last day, and only had his gopro on, so forgive a couple of the pics for being blurry.

Photo by Joey McGinley - Salmon River Chrome

One another note, word has been coming to be regarding my last salmon river post, but the NY DEC think they have the cause of death figured out. Words from a friend and Client:

"I just received the December 26, 2014 issue of "New York Outdoor News" and right on the front page is an article entitled, " Steelhead Die-offs may be Linked to Alewives".  Seems NY DEC has sent some of the dead Steelhead to Cornell University's Aquatic Animal Health Laboratory for testing, which have so far been inconclusive.  NY DEC Biologists at this point are leaning towards a Vitamin B deficiency in the Steelhead as the source of the die-offs.  Seems the Biologists have seen this deficiency in Alewives which is a main food source for Lake Ontario's Salmon and Steelhead.  Also, the article said the DEC Fish Hatchery is having "water-related" issues.  It'll be interesting to see if the two issues are so way inter-connected.  When it rains, it pours!"

Salmon River - Might be in Trouble

Well the past few trips on the Salmon River have been very tough. Most fisherman and guides that I have talked to said the same thing, one or no fish. A few guides that fished egg sacks and soft plastics reported that they are getting into a couple fish, but all in all its been very slow. So there will not be any fish pictures in this post, only fishing and hot lunch photos.

The main reason that I am writing this post however, is to spread the word about the dying steelhead in the river. Yes dying fish have been floating upside down, and gasping for air. When anglers first started seeing these fish, it was just thought that some jerk upstream had released the fish without reviving it, many people have tried to revive them and some actually swim away. However, later down the river they flip back over and continue to suffer as they die, and end up in the back eddies with the salmon skeletons. This past weekend two DEC boats with biologist in them were floating the river collecting fish for testing. No one know exactly what is going on, but please keep your eyes open for these dying fish, as much as you might want to revive them, I would just let them go by. Hopefully I will have more information for you soon. In the mean time keep fishing, and enjoy the winter weather!!! 

 

TCO Team Meeting - Salmon River

It was that time of year again, the whole TCO team got together last weekend for our annual company meeting, this year it was on the Salmon River again. Last year we battled high water the entire time, with higher discharges each night we were there. This year we had a new set of challenges, that revolved around high wind and the threat of multiple feet of snow. The first morning was almost an exact repeat of last year, we had about 4 hours to fish before the meetings began, so we all meet super early. Shane and George Costa had never landed a steelhead, Shane never fishing for them, and George just bad luck. So after a break off and a long battle, George put one in the net! Shane had a similar experience, after a long fight, and a broken hook, he put a little chromer in the net. Its super awesome to get people into this sport, but its even more exciting when you get someone that is into the sport, even more excited about it. So the work, and meetings took place all day Sunday and Monday, but due to the forecast, Tuesdays meetings were canceled. So a select few of us stayed and fished, even though the "RealFeel" was 2, and winds up to 35mph. Shane and Casey each put one in the net that morning, so it was all worth it. Its always a blast fishing with all the guys, and also fishing with the reps, its a time when we can all relax, and just BS on the side of the river. All in all, an awesome few days on the river with the TCO Family!