Salmon River Steelhead, April 20th, 2024

Steelhead angler effort during the past week was primarily observed below the Sawtooth Fish Hatchery in location code 19. Angler effort in other areas of the Upper Salmon River was very low.

Average catch rates were once again good upstream of the East Fork, and anglers interviewed within this area averaged 10 hours per steelhead caught. Anglers interviewed downstream of the East Fork in location code 18 averaged 32 hours per steelhead caught, and anglers interviewed downstream of the Pahsimeroi River in location code 17 averaged 12 hours per steelhead caught. Few anglers were interviewed below the Lemhi River in location codes 15 and 16, and no anglers reported catching a steelhead from either of those areas.

Warmer weather throughout the week resulted in a large jump in river flows by the weekend (see figure below). Currently, the Salmon River is flowing at 2,690 cfs through the town of Salmon, ID which is 163 percent of average for today’s date. Along with increased flows, the river’s visibility was poor in all areas downstream of the East Fork over the weekend. Water temperatures also climbed throughout the week and ranged from the mid-40s near Stanley to the low 50s below North Fork by Sunday afternoon.