Salmon River Falls
Place to Fish

Salmon River

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The Salmon River, located in Oswego County, stretches 17 miles from the Lighthouse Hill Reservoir in Altmar to where it empties into Lake Ontario at Port Ontario. The Salmon River offers some of the finest sportfishing in the country and is where two major fish records have been set—the Great Lakes record Chinook salmon (47 lbs. 13 oz.) and the world record Coho salmon (33 lbs. 4 oz.). Along the river, there are 12 miles of Public Fishing Rights for access to numerous fishing sites.

Access:

Map showing Popular Salmon River Fishing Locations
View larger map of Popular Salmon River Fishing Locations (PDF)

Pine Grove - Pine Grove Rd., off Route 3 half a mile south of route 13 at Port Ontario. Dual gravel ramps. Access to Lake Ontario. Motor Boat Launch.
Port Ontario - Rte 3, Wheelchair access. Parking. 
Blackhole - North Jefferson and Bridge Streets in Pulaski. Parking. 
Long Bridge Pool (Staircase) - South Jefferson Street in Pulaski. 
Short Bridge Pool - Rte 11 Downtown Pulaski. 
Ballpark - Rte 11 Pulaski. Parking 
Haldane Community Center - North Jefferson St. and Maple Ave. Parking. 
Compactor Pool - County Rte 2A. Parking. Drift Boat Launch. 
Sportsman Pool (North) - Centerville Rd. Parking. 
Sportsman Pool (South) - Rte 13. Parking. 
Fishing Museum - Rte 13. Parking 
Pineville - Rte 48. Parking. Drift Boat Launch. 
Trestle Pool (North) - Sheepskin Road. Parking. 
Trestle Pool (South) - Rte 13. Parking. 
Ellis Cove - Rte 42. Parking. 
Altmar North - Rte 52. Parking. 
Lower Fly - Rte. 52 Altmar. Parking. Drift Boat Launch. 
Paradise Pool - Rte 22. Parking. 
Upper Fly - Rte 22. Parking. 
Orwell Brook - Tubbs Rd. Parking. 
Trout Brook - Rte. 48. Parking.

For more details on boat launch sites, shoreline fishing access areas, and parking locations along the Salmon River, view the following sources:

Accessible Features

From the Route 3 Parking Area in Port Ontario, wheelchair accessible features include the:

  • Fishing/viewing platform; and
  • Walking path

Visit the DEC Accessible Recreation Destinations page for additional accessible recreation opportunities.

Fish Species:

Chinook salmon, coho salmon, Atlantic salmon (or landlocked salmon), steelhead (rainbow trout), brown trout, smallmouth bass, rock bass, fall fish, shorthead redhorse and white sucker.

Salmon and Trout Identification in the Lake Ontario Tributary

Check out other fishing related clips on the DEC YouTube Channel.

Fishing

Maturing Chinook and Coho salmon returning to the Salmon River usually begin to stage off the Salmon River mouth in late August. Chinook (or King) salmon are the main attraction this time of year. The fish range in size from 15-30 lbs., averaging around 18 lbs. The Great Lakes record Chinook salmon, caught in the Salmon River, weighed 47 lbs. 13 oz. Coho salmon are generally smaller and range in size from 3 to 10 lbs., averaging around 8 lbs. The world record Coho salmon, caught in the Salmon River, weighed 33 lbs. 4 oz. Trolling in the estuary with spoons, dodgers/flies, cut-bait and plugs works well for these staging fish. Salmon usually begin entering the Salmon River around Labor Day.

Once salmon enter the river they are no longer actively feeding. Despite this, they do exhibit behaviors that make them vulnerable to traditional sportfishing techniques. One of these behaviors is aggression, or territoriality, and the other is their attraction to fish eggs or egg shaped lures. The peak of the spawning run usually doesn't occur until the latter half of September and the first half of October. Fish are generally spread throughout the river depending on their spawning stage. Some fish will be making their way upriver (often referred to as running), holding in deeper pools and actively spawning. Fish engaged in the first two activities can be caught on egg sacs, egg imitating flies or plastics and streamers. Fish that are spawning, especially the males, can become very aggressive and will strike gaudy streamers swung past their spawning redds.

Steelhead begin entering the Salmon River in late October and continue through Spring. They feed aggressively on the abundant salmon eggs in the Fall, thus making it a very good time to go steelhead fishing. Using egg sacs or egg imitating flies and plastics are your best options. Fish that entered the river in the fall can hold over in the deeper pools of the river throughout the winter. Fishing the deeper pools with egg sacs, egg imitating flies or nymphs works well this time of year. Warming periods during the winter may bring new fish into the river. Spawning usually takes place from mid-March through early April.

After spawning the fish begin to drop back to Lake Ontario. These fish can be very aggressive and feed heavily because they are hungry post-spawn. They can be caught on plugs, spinners, flies, egg sacs and night crawlers.

Atlantic salmon are native to Lake Ontario. They are fall spawners and start their spawning run as early as July. Atlantic salmon can range from 5 to 20 lbs. Fishing techniques are similar to those for steelhead.

Brown trout enter the river from mid-September to mid-November during their spawning run and will feed heavily on salmon eggs. It can be difficult to target brown trout, but one option is fishing downstream from actively spawning salmon with egg sacs and egg imitating flies and plastics. Brown trout range from 2 to 20 lbs.

For current fishing information, view the Central New York Fishing Hotline or call (607) 753-1551.
For current water level on the Salmon River call 1-800-452-1742 code 365123.

Fisheries Management:

Stocked fish

The Salmon River is stocked yearly with around 300,000 Chinook salmon, 80,000 Coho salmon, 150,000 steelhead, and 30,000 Atlantic salmon.

Wild fish

Natural reproduction occurs in the Salmon River. To determine the proportions of wild and hatchery Chinook salmon in Lake Ontario, all Chinook salmon stocked by New York and Ontario from 2008-2011 were marked with an adipose fin clip using an automated fish marking trailer. Percentages of wild Chinook salmon in Lake Ontario varied by year class and age, and among regions from 2009-2015. Overall, wild Chinook were an important component of the Lake Ontario fishery averaging 47% of the age 2 & 3 Chinooks harvested in the lake. The estimated percent of wild salmon in the Salmon River also varied by year, but overall approximately 70% of angler-caught Chinook salmon (excluding age-1) are believed to be wild. 

The current method to estimate the percentage of wild fish in the Salmon River and Lake Ontario uses genetic profiling. A tissue sample is taken from every female fish used during the egg takes in New York and Ontario. A library of the maternal DNA is created and compared to samples collected from Lake Ontario and its tributaries in subsequent years. If the genetics from an angler caught fish matches one of the females that were used during hatchery spawning then that fish is classified as a hatchery fish. Approximately half of the coho salmon being marked from 2016-2018 were of wild origin. Steelhead will be marked in future studies. For more information on Lake Ontario research, view Lake Ontario Fisheries Unit Reports.

Egg collections

The Salmon River is an important part of the Lake Ontario salmon and trout fishery. Some of the returning salmon and steelhead to the Salmon River make their way to the Salmon River Fish Hatchery. These fish are then used for egg collection and the resulting fish are stocked into many Lake Ontario tributaries, along with the Salmon River. Presently approximately 900,000 Chinook salmon are stocked annually by DEC into Lake Ontario.

Management Plans

The 2018 Salmon River Fisheries Management Plan (PDF) was developed with stakeholders input. It provides succinct descriptions of the river's trout and salmon fisheries, and it lays out the framework of major objectives and strategies to manage the river and its tributaries as a premier, high quality, year-round sport fishery, with the opportunity to catch a diversity of trophy sized lake run trout and salmon species. The Plan calls for development of a yearly workplan to guide actions and to share with stakeholders at annual public meetings.

A complementary plan titled the Lower Salmon River Restoration and Recreation Enhancement Plan (PDF) provides a more detailed description of the history of the river and its fishery. The management objectives of this plan primarily covers the 1,700 acres of state property that borders much of the river between the Lighthouse Hill Reservoir and the Village of Pulaski. These lands were acquired to improve and ensure protection of the natural resources, to construct several restoration structures to stabilize river banks and improve aquatic habitat, and to improve public access to the rivers world class fisheries.

Fishing Regulations:

Lake Ontario and Tributaries Fishing Regulations Apply.

There are two catch and release fly fishing only areas. Conventional fly fishing equipment is required. The area above the County Rte. 52 bridge in Altmar is open September 15 to May 15. The upper section is located adjacent to County Rte. 22 above the Salmon River Hatchery and is open April 1 to November 30.

Important Links

Salmon River Corridor
Pacific Salmon Fishing
Steelhead Fishing
Google Maps and Earth
Salmon River Gage at Pineville
Oswego County Tourism
Contact for this Page

Region 7 Fisheries
1285 Fisher Ave
Cortland, NY 13045

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