Steelhead angler effort on the Upper Salmon River remained high last week and peaked on Saturday as many anglers took advantage of the nice weather that day. The majority of angler effort was found downstream of Salmon, ID, but we also continued to observe increased effort in the upstream areas of the river as well.

Average catch rates varied more between areas than we had seen so far this fall. Anglers that were interviewed downstream of the Middle Fork Salmon River in location code 14 averaged 8 hours per steelhead caught, and anglers interviewed downstream of North Fork in location code 15 averaged 16 hours per steelhead caught. Anglers interviewed downstream of the Lemhi River in location code 16 averaged 26 hours per steelhead caught, and anglers interviewed downstream of the Pahsimeroi River in location code 17 averaged 13 hours per steelhead caught.

River conditions were generally good throughout the week, although water temperatures were inconsistent day-to-day (see figure below). On Sunday, the river had clear visibility in all areas with water temperatures in the upper 30s. Currently, the Salmon River is flowing at 1,090 cfs through the town of Salmon, ID which is 83 percent of average for today’s date.