FISHING GUIDE · SALMON RIVER, NEW YORK

Salmon River, Pulaski, New York Fishing Guide

The Salmon River is a Lake Ontario tributary with big fall runs of chinook and coho salmon, then steelhead from late fall through spring. Most of the river is open with special gear rules from mid-August to mid-April, and two short stretches near Altmar are fly-fishing-only and catch-and-release. DEC owns fishing easements along about 12 miles of bank, so use marked parking and paths.

📍 Salmon River, Oswego County, New York. It runs about 17 miles from the Lighthouse Hill Reservoir in Altmar, past Pulaski, to Lake Ontario at Port Ontario. The Salmon River Fish Hatchery is in Altmar, on Beaverdam Brook.

Map: spots, ramps and marinas

★ Fishing hot spot · ● Boat ramp · ● Marina · ▭ Protected area (solid red = no fishing, dashed = fishing with rules)

Open the full U.S. Great Lakes map →

Quick facts

The river is about 17 miles long, and about 12 miles have DEC Public Fishing Rights along the banks.
DEC stocks it yearly with about 300,000 chinook, 80,000 coho and 30,000 Atlantic salmon, plus steelhead.
The Salmon River Fish Hatchery is the egg collection point for all of New York's Lake Ontario chinook, coho and steelhead stocking.
There are two catch-and-release, fly-fishing-only sections near Altmar: the Lower Fly and Upper Fly sections.
In September 2026, DEC delayed opening the Lower Fly section because of low reservoir water, to protect the hatchery egg take.

What you can catch

Chinook (king) salmon
Stage off the mouth in late August, enter around Labor Day; peak run late September to mid-October.
Coho salmon
Stage with the chinook in late August and run in fall.
Steelhead
Enter late October through spring; spawn mid-March to early April.
Brown trout
Enter mid-September to mid-November.
Atlantic salmon
Run can start as early as July; Lake Ontario limit 1, 25-inch minimum.
Smallmouth bass
Also found in the river.

Month by month

January	Winter steelhead. Lower Fly section open (Sept 15 - May 15).
February	Winter steelhead fishing.
March	Steelhead; they spawn mid-March to early April.
April	Upper Fly section opens April 1. Special tributary gear rules end April 14 below Rte. 52.
May	Late steelhead. Lower Fly section closes May 15; floating fly lines only in fly sections from May 1.
June	Statewide gear rules apply below Rte. 52 (April 15 - Aug 14).
July	Atlantic salmon can start running.
August	Chinook and coho stage off the mouth late August. Special hook, weight and night-fishing rules start Aug 15.
September	Chinook enter around Labor Day; Lower Fly section normally opens Sept 15 (delayed in 2026 for low water).
October	Peak chinook through mid-October; steelhead start entering late October.
November	Steelhead; browns run until mid-November. Upper Fly section closes Nov 30.
December	Winter steelhead.

Tips

Use only marked parking, footpaths or road crossings to reach Public Fishing Rights banks; do not cross private land.
No fishing in Beaverdam Brook from its mouth to the upstream edge of the hatchery property.
From Aug 15 to April 14 below the Rte. 52 bridge: one single-point hook with gap up to 1/2 inch, weight within 4 feet of the hook, and no night fishing (except as allowed).
In the fly sections, use a traditional fly rod, fly reel, fly line and artificial fly only, and release every fish.
Douglaston Salmon Run near the mouth is a fee area, shown on DEC's map.

Rules and license

New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC), Region 7 · Official rules page ↗

Fishing license needed age 16+. Annual: $25 resident (16-69), $5 resident 70+, $50 nonresident; 7-day $12 resident / $28 nonresident; 1-day $5 / $10.
Lake Ontario and tributaries: brown trout, steelhead, coho and chinook 3 per day combined, 15-inch minimum, but steelhead 25 inches in tributaries; no more than 1 steelhead and 1 brown trout in tributaries.
Lower Fly section: County Rte. 52 bridge in Altmar upstream 0.25 mile to Beaverdam Brook; open Sept 15 - May 15; catch and release, fly gear only.
Upper Fly section: from above the hatchery property 0.6 mile up to the Lighthouse Hill Reservoir tailrace; open April 1 - Nov 30; catch and release, fly gear only.
Fly sections: fishing only from 1/2 hour before sunrise to 1/2 hour after sunset; closed outside the open season.
Beaverdam Brook and tributaries closed to fishing from their mouths to the upstream boundary of the hatchery property.
Below Rte. 52, Aug 15 - April 14: no night fishing (except night fishing allowed Lake Ontario to the Rte. 3 bridge from April 1 - Aug 14), single hook with gap up to 1/2 inch.
Atlantic salmon: 1 per day, 25-inch minimum. Lake trout: Dec 1 - Sept 30, 2 per day.

Rules change. Always check the official page before you fish.

Boat ramps and marinas

The map above shows 8 boat ramps and 4 marinas from OpenStreetMap. Tap any dot for directions.

Green Point Marima
Mexico Point Boat Launch
North Pond Sandy Creek Waterway Access
Selkirk Marina

Sources

Checked October 2026. BigJoe does not invent facts: every number on this page comes from the sources listed above.