During the last open period of the Upper Salmon River Chinook fishery (August 1 – August 4), angler effort decreased slightly, but the average catch and harvest rates continued to improve. Angler effort was estimated at 429 hours which was about 100 hours lower than the previous week. We estimated that anglers harvested 38 adipose-clipped adult salmon and 69 adipose-clipped jack salmon. Average catch and harvest rates were at 3 and 4 hours per salmon, respectively, which were the best rates observed so far during the 2024 fishery.
Based on our federal permitting, the fishery will close this Saturday night, August 10th, at the end of legal fishing hours (10:00pm MST). That means this is the last opportunity to get out and chase Chinook in the upper Salmon River this season, so get out there a give it a shot before it closes – river conditions are good and there are still fish in the system.
Below is a summary of the weekly and season totals for angler effort and catch:
If you have questions, comments, or would like to be added to my email update list, please reach out to me at: greg.schoby@idfg.idaho.gov or at the Salmon Regional Office at (208) 756-2271.
