Upper Salmon River Steelhead Fishing Report (March 3, 2026): Best Catch Rates Above the Pahsimeroi

Steelhead anglers saw another productive stretch on the Upper Salmon River as February turned into March. Data collected between February 25 and March 1 shows solid catch rates across much of the river, especially in upstream sections where visibility and conditions were more favorable. While midweek weather briefly muddied some tributaries and reduced clarity downstream, improving conditions by the weekend helped keep fishing consistent. Here’s a closer look at how different sections of the river fared in this March 3, 2026 report by Brent Beller with Idaho Fish and Game:

Hi everyone, this is the Upper Salmon River steelhead fishing report for March 3, 2026. The data discussed in this report were primarily collected between Wednesday, February 25 and Sunday, March 1. 

Last week was another good week of steelhead fishing across the entire Upper Salmon River. Angler effort was highest downstream of North Fork in location code 15 and from Ellis upstream to the Yankee Fork in location codes 17, 18, and 19.

The best average catch rates were found upstream of the Pahsimeroi River in location codes 18 and 19, where interviewed anglers averaged 4 and 5 hours per steelhead caught. Catch rates were still good below the Pahsimeroi, but the river had reduced visibility and warmer water temperatures in the downstream areas. Bank anglers interviewed downstream of the Middle Fork Salmon River in location code 14 averaged 15 hours per steelhead caught, and anglers interviewed downstream of North Fork in location code 15 averaged 12 hours per steelhead caught. Anglers interviewed downstream of the Lemhi River in location code 16 averaged 19 hours per steelhead caught, and anglers interviewed downstream of the Pahsimeroi River in location code 17 averaged 17 hours per steelhead caught.

River conditions varied depending on location. Precipitation and warm overnight lows during the middle of the week caused the East Fork and nearby tributaries to become muddy, which impacted the river’s visibility for multiple days downstream. River conditions improved by the weekend, and on Sunday, the river had slightly cloudy visibility in all areas below the East Fork and clear visibility above. Water temperatures were in the mid- to upper 30s upstream of Challis and in the low 40s downstream of Challis. 

Over the last week, an additional 26 PIT tags were detected at the PIT tag array upstream of Salmon, ID near Elevenmile (USE). This brings the total detections for the run year (detections since last fall) up to 136. Below is an updated figure showing the daily detections at the USE array. We also included directions for querying this data in last week’s steelhead fishing report. 

Feature photo: Idaho Fish and Game