need advice on legal catching

I have been up in the past few years. The guy I went up with is a lifter (snagger). I would like to know how to actuially fish for and catch a salmon the leagal way! I have a 9' medum action spinning rod will this work? I am a avid fly fisher for trout in my area. I think that would be a blast to catch a salmon with a fly rod. What lures are best?

I love fly fish but am admittedly a little rough around the edges- read every post on this site -even the ones that dont look like they  have a header dealing with your question- things get off track real quick here and there is actually a lot of info from some dedicated fly guys dealing with equipment and flys as well as how to present them on posts with unrelated headers..Dimebrite put one up just a short while ago describing a bobber and egg sac method that should work well with your spinning gear for trout.

if you have a 7 weight or heavier go with the fly rod since you have the experience with the fly rod. otherwise try the spinning rod with bobbers if you know how to rig. it sounds like you have experience so i imagine you will catch on either way even if you don't use bobbers. go with your gut instinct is what i recomend. i recomend going down low from town or lower if going up tonight, otherwise, in the next few days, they will most likely be thick through most of the river...good luck

I would strongly suggest a lot of backing on that fly reel. These guys can really run hard, fast and long when hooked.

 
cal,

There are many legal ways to catch Salmon and Steelhead that are abused as you probably have seen. One could go on for hours on different methods and techniques, but I'll just touch on a few.

Bring your fly rod trout stream methods with you to the SR and you'll do just fine, provided you have the right equipment. You can fish for these migratory fish in all the same ways, as well as traditional Atlantic Salmon techniques. My methods may not be the norm on the SR, but they work. You can pick up an fair priced 8/9 weight reel with a decent drag to go with your 8 weight rod. Your rod should be at least 9'. Start with a floating line, tie on a 9' ft leader( I tie my own), then add to that a 3-4 foot tippet section, use Maxima Ultragreen, start with 8lb, carry 6lb with you, and leave the tag end to add your weight to. Start with little weight, 1-2 #7's, it will work. Get used to casting and roll casting with weight. Use your trout stream flies, all your nymphs and woolybuggers will work, you can always by flies at any shop in the Pulaski area.

Work the faster water and seams, avoid the dead water and deep holes for now. With the small weight, cast upstream and use a slack line technique, keep the rod up and then follow your line with the tip of the rod, if you feel a bump or tug just hold the rod tight, don't jerk it back. Fly cast into the whitewater at the head of runs, and the whitewater at the tailoutss of runs and pools. This method works great, just be ready at every moment for a strong strike, and when you get it, just raise your rod tip, do not set the hook yet, wait till you feel the head shake 1-2 times then set the hook. Never try to turn the fish downstream, if they go up, let them go and follow. Always walk the fish to the bank to land it, use your rod, make it work and bend, it's your best friend.

That's all I can muster for now,

Tight Lines,

OldSalt


Fresh Steel

WAYYYYYY too much weight for flyline---better to spool w/ mono.

i fish eggs sacks on my spin set up
just enough weight to have it touch bottom once in a drift
every fish i have caught this way in the last 3 years has been deep in the mouth

with the fly i am not as sure i am getting them to bite
i fish egg patterns and the occasional wooly bugger or flashy streamer
once in about every 5 hook ups is not legit and as soon as i see that i break them off
btw i use a sinking line rather than shot

oh yea
switch to circle hooks
forgot to put that in there

at the tressel hole, any catch is a legal catch....

Just what I was getting at---when I'm FLY fishing--I use floating line and VERY little weight(or none at all)---I don't see how you could false cast w/ the amt of weight I see and hear prescribed.

Cal:  Old Salt gave some good advice.  Some things I learned about fly fishing the Salmon River.  If you want to fly fish and do it in the DSR (of which I am not a fan) they will take a fly fairly readily.  However, once they get to the Black hole and above, they have seen so much hardware thrown at them that catching them on the fly is a whole different ball game--much much harder.  Many of the guides (IMHO) take their clients to the DSR not just to avoid crowds and awful behavior of fishermen, but because the fish will take a fly or other offering much more readily.  I would recommend avoiding the big holes like the Trestle, Sportsman's etc and focus on the broken water that has pockets, white water and the like.  Even if it is not very deep, it will hold salmon.  Be careful in your approach as they will spook just like a trout.  While they are more difficult upstream, they can be had as the fly zones attest. 

Get the fly in their bubble. Use enough weight to get it @ their eye level- no more & no less. Done.

Why get the mono off the fly reel ?? Anyone using this set up is not really concerned about their equipment & just looking to catch fish anyway.. No different , just another method ? Never tried it so I'll leave it at that.

roll cast # 7's & 5's and still think the line is propelling the fly ? Well , Ok...

Back cast is the way to go when fly fishing salmon in most situations.. I make many a bad cast which requires me to quickly pick line up and back cast or false cast again for a better presentation..
Why would techniques differ here then on other bodies of waters..
I hear it all the time to just fish like you would your favorite trout stream.. I don’t often fish heavy pocket water in my trout streams. Read the water and find where the fish will hold in the feeding lanes but yes Salmon don't feed.. They still follow the lanes..
When nymphing like your trout stream be it pocket water or what ever ,remember trout look down in the gravel for food , salmon do not so yes there is a difference to me ..

I still cant buy the whole package of salmon looking to heavy water for Oxygen.. Maybe in 68>70 degree water but not in 50's to 60's.. They are trying to hide just as they do in deep sucker holes..

Yes you can fish & catch fish in that hard water but why put your self through the painstaking "high stickin" when the easy way to catch fish is the tails, runs & chutes ?? I said "catch" not hook.

So now what to do when the water is high & sight fishing is not an option ? Bet folks been waiting for this..
Forget the heads or chutes.. the fish will easily blow right through them without stopping giving you no chance ..
Look to the TAILS of pools with some rapids (need not be hard water) or chutes just below the tails of the pools. Read the tails and find the migration path (even in high water they follow the contour) and where they might rest.
This is where the will hold briefly after easily running through the chutes.. It's your best shot of getting a fish to take before they disappear into the depth of a pool..
Try swinging a fly through the Runs, they will also hold because of the depth of the flows and the runs will be much more manageable then deep pools..
Again a bobber works well here for spin guys..

good luck , stay safe and be smart out there..

Bunnies Beware tomorrow :)

no arguments here, that I see.. Just advice and a weight debate..

One last advice I will give..
If you find the fishing difficult or get discouraged.. Try hiring a guide..
This is not a personal endorsement (I don't guide Salmon any longer)
I will say the very best person (IMO) who is working the river is Loren.. Flyguy.. Obviously this year is out but consider next season If things don't work out..

Good luck and maybe If the brookies fall through next week I'll gladly share a beer .

I bought a 9/10 weight fly rod at the Pineville Sport Shop by the way those guys are great! I also got some streamers. THE SALMON DO BITE!!!!! i had multiple hookups with a bright pink streamer. The fight was great with a fly rod! I can tell you that 3 hookups within 30 minutes with good fights really makes my arm tired!!! I WILL NEVER FISH WITH ANYTHING ELSE EVER AGAIN.