Upper Salmon River Steelhead Fishing Report (04-08-2025)

Hi everyone, this is the Upper Salmon River steelhead fishing report for April 8, 2025. The data discussed in this report was collected between Monday, March 31 and Sunday, April 6.

The majority of steelhead angler effort on the Upper Salmon River last week was observed upstream of the East Fork Salmon River in location code 19. Angler effort between the Lemhi River and the East Fork, in location codes 17 and 18 was moderate, while few anglers were observed downstream of Salmon, ID in location codes 15 and 16. 

Cooler temperatures last week led to better fishing conditions, and catch rates improved in all areas upstream of Salmon, ID. The best catch rates were once again found upstream of the East Fork in location code 19, where interviewed anglers averaged 3 hours per steelhead caught. Anglers interviewed downstream of the East Fork in location code 18 averaged 11 hours per steelhead caught, and anglers interviewed downstream of the Pahsimeroi River in location code 17 averaged 13 hours per steelhead. No anglers interviewed downstream of the Lemhi River in location code 16 reported catching a steelhead, and anglers interviewed downstream of North Fork in location code 15 averaged 14 hours per steelhead caught.

River conditions were good in all areas last week, as lower temperatures allowed flows to decrease and the visibility to improve. Water temperatures throughout most of the week were in the low to mid-40s before they started to increase again on Sunday. The forecast for this upcoming weekend is calling for warmer temperatures with a chance of precipitation, which will likely lead to less favorable river conditions downstream of the East Fork.

The number of detections at the PIT tag array upstream of Salmon, ID near Elevenmile continued to decline last week. The figure below is updated through April 7, 2025. Directions for querying this data were included in the March 11 steelhead fishing report which can be found by clicking here.

As of Thursday, April 3, the Pahsimeroi Hatchery has trapped 2,273 adipose-clipped steelhead, and the Sawtooth Fish Hatchery has trapped 2,259 adipose-clipped steelhead. For up-to-date return numbers to either of these hatcheries, anglers are encouraged to check the IDFG Steelhead Hatchery Returns webpage. Additionally, Pahsimeroi Hatchery personnel released ~200 adult steelhead into both Kid’s Creek and Johnson ponds late last week. More information about both ponds can be found in this press release.