Locations
The Matapedia River
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 Peter Schilling releasing a 20lb Atlantic Salmon
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The Matapedia River is the first tributary of the famous Restigouche River system. The Restigouche River has a reputation for extremely large Atlantic Salmon; some caught have been estimated to be in the 60 pound range. The Matapedia River is also a river of large salmon – each year Atlantic Salmon 40+ pounds are caught. During the month of June the average tippet would be in the 15-20 pound range. The Matapedia legend, Richard Adams, always advocated the use of a 20 pound tippet in June. In early May the big multiple spawners begin to show up. The season opens up on June 1st so this is the best time to fish for a large salmon. At this time the water is big and the fishing pressure is low.
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 Peters Pool on the Matapedia River
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The average size fish in the Matapedia will approach 20 pounds with the occasional 30 and 40 pounder as well. During June the salmon to grilse ratio is 30:1. The most popular month to Atlantic Salmon fish on the Matapedia is July. Fish are entering the river every day with grilse making up the majority of the runs. The water levels are receding making it easy to wade. As the water levels come down dry fly fishing increases. On the Matapedia the bomber flies rule as the salmon respond well to the pattern. During the month of July the salmon to grilse ratio will be about 3 out of every 10. August is the height of the dry fly season. The catch rates go up as the fishing pressure is reduced. During this month the fish move early in the morning and late afternoon after the sun leaves the water. Most people take the middle of the day off to sightsee, golf, or just relax. As of August 15th each year there is a reduction in the daily fee to fish the Matapedia. The salmon to grilse ratio will still be 3 out of 10.
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 A Routhierville pool Atlantic Salmon grilse can be a nice suprise when fishing for trout on a 3 weight
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As September comes and the foliage changes, so does the fishing. The fish have, for the most part, taken over the major holding pools such as Salmon Hole, Adams, Heppel, and the Forks. For example, the Salmon Hole may hold 200 fish, Adams 300-500 and Heppel 300-400. After September 15th the fishing is strictly catch and release. Great time of year – low fishing pressure and few black flies and no see ‘ems! You will spend 70% of your time in the major holding pools during this part of the season. This is an exciting time to fish because it is sight fishing at its best. Also during September there are many sea run trout. You may want to target a few of these trout during your spare time. You will see 5 pound sea trout with many up to 2 pounds. During September the salmon to grilse ratio will 4 to 10.
The Salmon River, Pulaski, New York
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Marna Rusher on the banks of the Salmon River
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The Salmon River enters Lake Ontario just 30 miles north of Syracuse, New York. It is a very short river of about 12 miles from the hydro-dam in Altmar to the estuary in Port Ontario. The Salmon, Chinook and Coho, plus the Brown trout enter the river to spawn in September and October, the chinook average 20lbs, the coho average 11lbs and the brown trout average 6 lbs. Durning the height of the spawn, mid-October, the Steelhead and Rainbow trout are drawn into the river to feed on the spawned eggs. The Steelhead continue to enter the river throughout the winter and will spawn in late March to early April. Some of the Steelhead will remain in the river until early May and as the water temperature approches 50 degrees they will have returned to the lake for the summer.
The fall Steelhead fishing, from about the 20th of October thru the 20th of November, is truely the best fishing of the year. The fish are bright silver, very strong and will challenge the best of fisherman. It is not unusal to have 10 to 15 hookups a day under good conditions. The majority of hookups are from egg imitations, but you certainly can produce many fish by swing flies. As the water temperatures continue to drop throughout the fall and winter, most fly fishers tend to use nymphing methods to slow down the drift. The fish hold their position, conserving energy, and let the fly come to them. As the water temperatures in the spring rise the fish are more likely to chase the swinging fly.