Summer Chinook seasons on the Lochsa, South Fork Salmon, and Upper Salmon rivers have just been set by the commission. All three fisheries are set to open this Saturday, June 18. To view full details, click HERE.

Since I manage the South Fork Salmon River fishery, I’ll cover that one in more detail here. For more detailed information on the Lochsa and Upper Salmon fisheries, stay tuned in to the IDFG website for blogs posted by Joe Dupont (Lochsa River) and Greg Schoby (Upper Salmon River).

South Fork Salmon River

The South Fork Salmon River will open to fishing for Chinook Salmon this Saturday, June 18, from 100 yards below the hatchery weir, to the posted boundary at the Jakie Creek bridge (more info on this boundary change, below). The daily limit will be 4 Chinook Salmon, only 2 of which may be adults. The season is open 7 days per week until a Closure Order is issued by the Director of IDFG or August 7th, whichever comes first. Here’s what the run is looking like.

Abundance:

The South Fork run is coming in slightly lower than the preseason forecast, but should still provide a great fishery this year. The current estimate over Bonneville Dam is around 3,200 adults so far, and they’re still coming. Since they’re still coming over Bonneville it’s tough to nail down an exact harvest share estimate, but we’re projecting harvest share will be somewhere between 700-1,000 hatchery adults for the sport fishery.

Timing:

Looking at the figure below (timing of fish trapped at the South Fork weir), you can see what early (2015 and 2021), average (2014, 2016, 2018, and 2019), and later (2017 and 2020) arrival timing to the South Fork Salmon River looks like. On average, the first big pulse of fish usually shows up around the last two weeks of June. River flows are way up this year though, and it is definitely slowing fish down a little on their way through the hydrosystem and into Idaho, and also upon entering the lower Salmon River. The bottom line: I anticipate fish will arrive to the South Fork Salmon slightly later than average this year (similar to the last big water year in 2017).

So far, out of the estimated 3,200 South Fork adults that have crossed Bonneville Dam, only about 700 have crossed over Lower Granite Dam into Idaho. It usually takes about 2 to 3 weeks for fish to travel from Lower Granite Dam to the Krassel PIT tag array on the South Fork Salmon, which is located about 7 miles below the lower boundary for the 2022 fishery. So far, no returning adults have been detected at the Krassel array this year. I don’t anticipate fishing getting really good on the South Fork this year until the first week of July or so. The South Fork is running very high right now, but should be in good shape by early July.

I’ll start posting weekly blogs to keep you all informed on timing as more fish come over Lower Granite Dam, as fish start entering the South Fork, and as we start seeing harvest in the fishery. Stay tuned.

New Fishery Boundary:

There has been a change to the downstream fishery boundary this year. The downstream boundary of the fishery has been moved upstream approximately 9 miles from the previous boundary at Lick Creek Road, to a new posted location at Jakie Creek Bridge. As a result, the area open to sport fishing this year has been reduced from 32 miles to 23 miles (see map).

This boundary change is a result of efforts to provide more equity in opportunity for anglers on the South Fork Salmon. With the sport fishery open 7 days per week and a significant harvest share to look forward to, we want to ensure tribal anglers have space to engage in ceremonial and subsistence fishing opportunities while the sport fishery is running. I understand that this is not going to be a highly popular change with some sport anglers, but the bottom line is fishing for Chinook Salmon on the South Fork Salmon River is an incredible opportunity for all of us, and anything we can do to ensure all user groups get adequate opportunity to enjoy this resource is a positive thing. Tribal anglers are not restricted to fishing in these lower 9 miles that are closed to sport fishing, but by closing these lower 9 miles to sport fishing, we are providing space for tribal anglers to fish without competing for space with sport anglers. These lower 9 miles are culturally significant to tribal anglers and the area lends itself well to tribal anglers camping and fishing in family groups with young children, which is the reason this area was selected. This will not affect the sport fishery’s ability to catch our harvest share.

This boundary change is not necessarily the new normal. We will evaluate the impacts of this change during the 2022 fishery, and continue to brainstorm on ways we can balance opportunity and increase satisfaction for all anglers who love fishing the South Fork Salmon for Chinook.

Stay tuned for weekly updates regarding the South Fork fishery, and please feel free to reach out if you have any questions jordan.messner@idfg.idaho.gov

Thanks! See you all on the river!