So You Want To Catch...
Salmon Up River
Catching salmon
is all about timing
The Chinook salmon
is highly prized as both a sport and table fish and it attracts a good number
of people to have a go at catching them. This South Island salmon fishery
continues to bring angler from all over the country and the world to try their
luck. Knowing how to catch them relies on fishing the right water at the right
time with the best methods for the conditions and this may be a challenge even
for the experienced angler out there. There
are a few things that increase the chances of success and we would like to
share these with you so you have a better chance of success.
Salmon run our
rivers from late October through to the end of March, with the peak season
between mid-December and the end of February in most rivers. The Waimakariri
and Waitaki rivers have the peak of their run in March and April and are
considered late run rivers. Salmon will hang around a river mouth in low, clear
conditions, and run up the river during a rise in water levels due to rain, or
run at the end of a major flood as the river drops. As long as a river remains
high and discoloured, salmon will continuously move up it. As the water becomes
low, clear and warmer again, salmon will settle down and hold up in large pools
or beneath undercut banks, awaiting the next fresh.
The very best
conditions for Salmon are when the water is 'milky blue' in colour, with about
1-2 feet of visibility. In this kind of water, salmon are moving through the
river system and tend to be in an aggressive mood. The lure suddenly appears
out of the murky water beside them and instinct triggers a positive response. Salmon
can be caught all day in these conditions but by far the best time for catching
them is early morning from very early light and dusk. The clearer the water the
shorter time that you have before they become unresponsive with increasing
daylight. Bright days and clear conditions generally means hard fishing, but
this can be improved by moving around and using lighter gear – trout gear can
work well at times.
The next most
important thing with salmon fishing is finding the right piece of water. This
takes some experience but here's what you are looking for:
Ideally you want to
be somewhere where all the river is reasonably well concentrated. Rivers like
the Rakaia Rangitata and Waimakariri, braid and split into several sections.
Salmon will normally pick the biggest section of river, but not always, and you
may be fishing a particular braid only to find the fish are moving through a
completely different arm of the river. If most of the river is concentrated in
one spot, you at least know the Salmon have to come past you!
You want to look
for a side pool close to the main flow. This will be something that isn’t dead
still, or too big, but just a nice side pocket that fish will rest in briefly
before attempting the next run. Ideally this still has a steady slowed down
flow through it and is around a meter to 2 meters deep. Picking this water well
does take experience, but is a key factor in successful Salmon fishing.
Once a good piece
of water has been scouted out, you can fish it and then return in the morning.
Fish rest up during the night and will run again and be aggressive at first
light. Being the first person to swing a spinner through a good piece of water,
just after sun up, puts the odds highly in your favour! After the first few
casts, you are now waiting for fish to move in to the pool as they run up from
below you. We would normally fish from sun up until about 7-8am and then return
in the evening to fish a good possie.
You want the lure
to be just tapping the bottom. The method is to cast across and slightly
upstream, let the lure sink for a few seconds then wind the line tight and
swing the lure around in the current. You should just be able to feel the odd
stone and 'tink tink' with the bottom. Different runs and pools will dictate
variations on this method, but the idea is to get that lure bumping onto the
salmon's nose. If a salmon rises in a stretch of water, take note of its
position as this could give away where they are sitting.
The Gear - What To Look For?
Standard fishing
equipment for Salmon River fishing is a seven to eight foot rod in the 4-8kg
range and a high quality reel capable of holding around 200m of 6-10kg line,
with a smooth and powerful drag.
Rods:
When it comes to
salmon rods for the river, high modulus graphite is where it's at. You want the
rod to weigh as little as possible as you will be holding on to it possibly all
day! These rods not only weigh very little, they are also effortless to cast,
and transmit every little bump and tap on the end of the line. Overhead style
or spinning style is up to you. The key here is light weight and ease of use.
Length: 7-8 foot is the most popular length as it's a nice mix of light
weight, cast ability and shock absorption.
Some anglers use
8-9 foot rods up river. Longer rods give you the ability to fish water on the
other side of the river by holding your line high above the water and
preventing drag (more on this later). They also play and tire big fish really
well acting like a big bungee that absorbs all the head shakes and sudden
lunges. If a fish is lightly hooked it can make the difference to landing it or
getting a lure thrown back in your face!
Shorter rods in the
6 foot range and even 5'6" are used by some anglers. These little rods can
be a lot of fun to fish with and are often light weight. Fighting big fish on
short rods can become drawn out, as the rod doesn't tire the fish like a longer
rod does. The reel also ends up doing a lot more work as there is less rod to
take up the slack and absorb a thrashing fish! You also lose some of the
ability to pick up line quickly and strike a fish.
Action: Simple. 'Fast' action is our preference. Soft tips and strong
buts allow effortless casting, high sensitivity, better hook setting and
efficient playing of the fish.
Check out our
Salmon Rod Range
Reels:
The reel is a very
important part of the salmon fisherman's set up. Fishing for salmon involves
long hours and constant casting and retrieving. The environment is also tough
on gear. Riverbeds are full of silt and when the wind blows this ends up in the
air and consequently inside everything else! Cheap reels die quickly when
salmon fishing.
Drag: The drag needs to be top notch! Salmon are hard fighting, powerful
fish. You need a drag that will give line smoothly throughout the fight. The
drag in cheaper reels may be very unreliable with jams or fades that can lose
you a 20 pounder when it panics. Once you have a top quality reel with silky
smooth drag, you will agree that it is worth the money for the peace of mind.
Size & Capacity: Most anglers fish with 6-10kg line for
salmon. Your reel needs to have the capacity for around 200 meters of this.
Line diameter has dropped significantly in the last few years and drag systems
have also improved, meaning anglers can now fish with smaller, tougher reels
than in the past. This really helps in the other prerequisite here - weight.
The lighter the reel is, the longer you will be able to fish with it, comfortably.
As already discussed, salmon fishing often (but hopefully not always) involves
long hours. A light weight, quality set up pays off in the long run as the
hours tick by.
Corrosion resistance: Your salmon reel is going to be
exposed to all sorts of nasty elements while it hunts its quarry. If you fish
in the tidal zone, saltwater becomes an issue, but the main antagonist anywhere
on the river is silt and grit. Salmon run the big glacial river systems that
scour out the high country when it rains and floods. Consequently, glacial
sediment and grit are an ever present element in the riverbed. The famous
Canterbury Nor-wester uses the salmon riverbeds as a speedway! It'll blast grit
and sediment through everything when it blows. You will be casting and retrieving
with it constantly while you fish. As you cast and retrieve line this sand
paper like material works its way deeper into your reel. This stuff kills a
cheap real in no time. Make sure you get as many high quality bearings and
stainless parts as possible. Salmon reels are worked harder than just about any
other kind of reel.
An Overhead or Spinning Reel? The choice is up to you. There
are advantages and disadvantages with each system, but casting ability, long
term reliability and line twist are need to be considered.
Overhead reels in
the hands of an expert will outcast spinning reels when it comes to distance.
The problem is they are a little tricky to get used to for a beginner. If you
don't 'thumb' the reel just right when making a cast, you can end up with a
frustrating time of unpicking the 'birds nest' in the reel! Once you develop an
'educated thumb', these reels are a pleasure to use and will give you a
distance advantage where that is important. Upriver, most of your fishing will
be with quite short casts, so the issue becomes less relevant here.
Spinning reels are
more prone to line twist, especially when you have a fish on and keep winding.
This is not normally a problem when just retrieving, but it really escalates
when playing a fish. With good technique (pumping a fish, which involves
raising the rod and winding down the line) twist is minimized but is still an
issue with spinning reels, particularly with lighter line and extended fights.
It doesn't often result in a lost fish, but can cause severe tangles and 'snarl
ups' when you go to cast again.
The advent and wide
acceptance of braid has impacted the quality of spinning reels in particular,
where small tough spin reels are now commonplace giving anglers some top
quality options.
Spinning reels are
easier to work with for the beginner, and this factor alone is why a lot of
first time anglers select a spinning style set up for salmon angling. Again
it's up to you. Being in the right place, and your fishing technique will catch
you the salmon, not which style of reel you choose!
Check Out Our Overhead Reel
Range
Lures:
When it comes to
salmon lures, it's pretty simple.
When our Chinook
Salmon enter fresh water, they stop feeding and concentrate on their spawning
run. Unlike other salmon species such as the Atlantic salmon in Europe our
Chinooks make one run and then die of exhaustion after spawning. They take a
lure out of aggression and instinct, as if snapping at a small fish. The lure
needs to be 'in their face and flashy', although not too much so. The lure that
does this with just the right ingredients and catches most of our upriver
Salmon is the silver zed spinner.
Armed with a box
full of 17-28gm silver Zed spinners, you are pretty much sorted for upriver
salmon fishing. It's that simple. Lures like Colorado spoons can be highly
effective in deep slow pools, and smaller duller coloured zed spinners such as
17gm black and golds can become effective in clearer water. When the salmon are
running and the river is milky blue then 22-28gm silver zed spinners will
produce the goods in most cases.
Selecting the right
weight of lure is important in fishing a piece of good water. As previously
mentioned, you want the Zed to be just tickling the bottom and getting in the
fishes way. In deeper, faster water, when the river is higher you may need to
go heavier, perhaps to a double Zed spinner. This is effectively two Zed
spinner blades glued together. These get down fast but don't have quite the
same action as a single blade. However it is more important to be in the strike
zone, and getting the lure down to the fish outweighs the slight decrease in
lure action. Worth having a couple in the box!
So that’s it! Not
much else you need as far as lures go! If water is heavily fished, salmon get
to see a lot of Zed spinners. In this case it is good to have different shaped
and coloured lures to get that prized strike.
Check Out
Our Metal Lure Range
Hooks:
The 'standard
issue' treble hooks that come on the Zed spinners are generally ok. However,
you can replace them with aftermarket hooks that are sharper and stronger. We
recommend that you get the best hooks possible as they are the connection point
to your fish. Blunt hooks not only miss fish, they can fall out during long
fights especially when the salmon is thrashing around in shallow water! Needle
sharp hooks keep working in as the fish is played, sinking the barb and ensuring
your fish won't throw the lure when he gets into the shallows and panics!
Line:
Monofilament has been the normal line for catching salmon for many years. However the last few years have seen a huge increase in the number of salmon anglers using braid. The reasons are simple, braid is thinner, stronger, less water and air resistant and has virtually no stretch. This gives a superior medium for general fishing. Having said that it is important that you follow some simple rules when choosing braid. Firstly choose line by diameter rather that breaking strain and secondly get a good quality make, cheap poor quality braid costs you fish and fishing time.
Reflective Tape:
There are various highly reflective prism type tapes around in an array of colours. It's a total hoot dressing up some of your lures with these, and when the water clarity gets less than ideal they can really make a difference. Adding a large strip of reflective tape down one side of a silver zed is a favourite trick of many successful salmon anglers.