The Salmon River

This river causes a conflict of emotions from within because the surroundings are as varied as the way it is fished. While the covered fields of green that are inhabited by wild deer bring beautiful landscapes to the river's surroundings, other sections run through rural areas.

What I wrestle with even more are the crowds and the techniques used. Not so long ago, snagging was a legal style of creeling. Although this practice has since been banned, the old habits remain. This does not mean that all fisherman are necessarily snaggers, but it appears as though there are a significant amount of them that do in fact still support a less than acceptable style of catching fish. Please do not misunderstand me, for I am neither a fly rod purist, nor a guide that believes his style is the only way to fish. Bait fisherman, for example, experience great success in their artistic use of noodle rods, 4-6 lb test, small BB shots, and eggsacs; rather, it is the fly fisherman using slinky bags and weighted wrecking balls to fowl hook fish at all costs.

To add insult to injury, it is the worst offense to the sport of fly fishing when listening to a licensed guide coaching his client to "lift!, lift!" as his wrecking ball and fly pass the fish. Instead, I wish to bring them serenity, awareness, and a humility towards nature and all of its offerings. Catching a fish is the bonus.

When you do fairly hook a live fish, your adrenaline surges through your blood stream and a sense of exhilaration sets in. This marks the beginning of the long awaited battle. More than often, it is over before it has begun but in the few instances where success is achieved, everyone and everything that was less than favorable, no longer matters. For this brief moment in time, I ultimately believe that Salmon River is one of the most phenomenal rivers around.

The fishing is influenced by the amount of water released. The river's riffles, runs, bends, deep pools, and flats all require different tactics at various flows.
It fishes one way at half a gate, and it fishes another way at two gates. In its unpredictability, the river as well as the various schools of fish, presents a new
challenge every time I suit up.

The Salmon River contains two breeds of steelhead, cohos, chinook, and browns, all being present at different times throughout the seasons. The cohos and chinook first appear in late August through mid September, but coho usually remain 2-3 weeks longer. Skamania steelhead can be found in late summer to early spring. The Chambers Creek strain steelhead show up around October and November. While some species die, others linger and later return to the Great Lakes. In the end, the strategies used to catch the fish mimic the changes brought by nature in both the seasons and the fish.