OSWEGO COUNTY – The annual Salmon Run draws large crowds of anglers to the Salmon River Corridor, which runs between Lake Ontario and the New York State Hatchery in Altmar, New York, but the fishing scene upstream from the County Route 52 bridge has a different flavor, with fishermen and women of all ages using hand tied files to briefly capture a variety of salmonids.
Using well practiced casting techniques while wading into the swift running, clear water, these anglers enjoy the thrill of a large fish biting on to their line, a spirited fight, and then the satisfaction of releasing the fish back into the river to live on.
“You are letting the resource get back into the river,” said fly fisherman Jim Doyle, as he returned a beautiful Coho Salmon to the water.
Doyle, a Bristol, Connecticut, resident who has been coming to the Salmon River for 38 years, said that the fly fishermen are a different breed from the “spin” fishermen, and that catching fish using flies that he ties himself is very rewarding.
“It’s a good feeling to catch a fish on a fly that you tied, to take a picture of it, and it’s good to let the fish go,” Doyle said.
Fly fishermen often spend the winter months tying a multitude of flies while sitting by the fireplace, dreaming of the return of spring and brook trout season. The hardiest of these fly tying aficionados often visit the Salmon River during the winter months in search of the renowned steelhead, a winter run species of rainbow trout.
Teamwork is a part of the catch and release style of fishing, as friends help friends retrieve a fish by dropping their poles and grabbing a net to help land the fish in a gentle manner. A cloth is used to handle the fish as the hook is carefully removed, so as to reduce the chance of dropping the fish on the rocks that line the steadily running river.
After helping Lincoln Archibald land a fish, Robert Knowlton described the Salmon as a “spectacular and well stocked fishery that is fully worth a drive of many hours to enjoy,” and was making the most of his third visit to the area.
“It’s great just to see other people having fun,” Knowlton said.
Patience is a virtue, and fly fishermen know that catching fish with flies requires much of it. Convincing a wary trout that a fly on the end of a line is a real meal requires practice and commitment.
“You definitely lose more than you catch, so it’s nice to hold one up for the camera…coming up here is an experience that you don’t forget,” Archibald said.
Next year will bring another Salmon Run, and with it will come another opportunity for these purists to practice their casting art, and another chance to visit the world famous river that flows down from Oswego County’s highest elevations to meet the smallest Great Lake, providing a watery pathway for the fish to return to their inland birthplace.
Photos below all by Michael Johnson.
