Angler effort continued to shift more upriver last week. Angler effort was very low in the areas downstream of Salmon, ID, while it remained high in the areas upstream of Challis, ID, especially upstream of the East Fork in location code 19. Angler effort near the mouth of the Pahsimeroi River remained steady but was lower than what was observed two weeks ago.

Average catch rates were excellent upstream of the East Fork, while they continued to decline in the downstream areas. Anglers interviewed downstream of Salmon, ID in location codes 14, 15, and 16 did not report catching any steelhead, and anglers interviewed downstream of the Pahsimeroi River in location code 17 averaged 45 hours per steelhead caught. Anglers interviewed downstream of the East Fork in location code 18 averaged 15 hours per steelhead caught, and anglers interviewed upstream of the East Fork in location code 19 averaged 3 hours per steelhead caught, which was the best average catch rate observed so far this spring.

River conditions continued to vary depending on location. Over the weekend, the river had slightly cloudy visibility in areas downstream of the Pahsimeroi River and clear visibility in areas upstream of it. On Sunday, water temperatures ranged from the low to mid-40s upstream of Challis to the upper 40s downstream of Salmon (see figure below). As of Monday, April 1, the Salmon River was flowing at 1,170 cfs through the town of Salmon, ID which was 94 percent of average for that date.

As of Monday, April 01, the Pahsimeroi Hatchery has trapped 1,370 adipose-clipped steelhead, and the Sawtooth Hatchery has trapped 1,256 adipose-clipped steelhead. Anglers can check for updated trap numbers by following this link to the IDFG steelhead returns webpage.

In the March 5th report, we provided instructions for how to use PTAGIS to look up PIT tag detections of adult steelhead at the mainstem Salmon River array located 11 miles upstream of Salmon, ID. Since then, each week’s report has included a graph showing the number of PIT-tagged adult steelhead detected at this site. Below is the latest update to the graph, showing that 19 additional PIT tags were detected during the past week from March 26 to April 1, 2024.