Salmon river setup

[kmofom]

Alright guys I've barely been out this year between work, a year and a half year old and a pregnant woman who is due in 1 week. Well I'm lucky enough to have 2 days to head up to ny with my father in law.

So I'm looking for some guidance on lures and reel selection. I already have my 9ft rod I'm just trying to figure out how much line I'll need on tap out there and what lures or bait to use. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

[Inishmore3]

Call the Salmon River Sport Shop in Pulaski. They will tell you everything.

[Mikey topaz]

For salmon u want a 8-10 fluro leader im guessing your going to be spin fishin..... Main line comin off the reel i would spool up with gamma 10-12 lb test same diameter as regular mono just has a higher breakin strength,Take the main line from the reel tie a barrell swivel and then the other end of the barrell tie your fluro four ft leader with the fly/eggsack your going to use. Take two splitshots and put them right above the barrell swivel remember depending where you are fishing depends on how many weights, for the most part two shots is all i ever fish goodluck

[Delawareriver]

Assuming you are talking about salmon fishing? Some solid advice Mikey posted. For salmon I use a 7/8wt fly rod as it easier to get into a motion of casting and swinging in one motion and you are allowed to have a weighted fly. But for spinning rods your average 2500-3500 series reel will work fine. 8-10lb line with flouro leader is Excellent advice. Lots of things to use but gonna be honest with you salmon fishing on the salmon river is glorified snagging, sooner you accept it the sooner you can be successful up there. You will have guys try to tell you that they bite but in all honesty after the first mile of the river they are so spooked that it's rare it have one legitily bite. Once I realized that I started hooking fish, I'll use black sponge and you cast and let it sink into the run ideally with the weight and the hook fully extended across the seam where you think the salmon are sitting or moving through. Then once you start taping bottom you lift up one time and hope the hook and whatever you have on it swings into the mouth of a salmon. Takes practice but once you figure it out you can be surprised how successful you will be if there is fish there to be caught.

Steelhead on the other hand do bite and I will actually fish for them but would take a very long post to even start to give you solid advice. Best bet is to hit up a tackle shop or go with a guide to teach you how to steelhead fish first hand

Real good advise from both Mikey and Delaware. As Delaware mentioned, if it's steelhead or browns your after it will save you a potentially significant learning curve hiring a guide to get you started and pointed in the right direction. There's a number of good guides on the river and more who I'd stay away from but it's money very well spent if your pursuit is trout. Also as Delaware's said, salmon regardless of what some people want to believe are there to spawn and while some salmon will hit a lure out of aggression, they're purpose in the river is to further the species and they're not interested in biting. 99% of the fish hooked are snagged. That being said, there's a huge difference between casting 10 split shots with an 8/0 hook and surf rod versus the approach Mikey and Delaware recommended. Find the seams or holes the fish are running and get your drift down to where your ticking the bottom. Salmon have huge mouths and if you perfect your drift you'll be surprised how many salmon you'll hook up just by virtue of your line basically drifting into their mouth. If your interested in keeping a fish or two, fish hooked in the mouth can be retained, fish foul hooked anywhere else have to be released. Many people break off any fish hooked outside the mouth so others around them can keep fishing, just something to consider. With the lighter leader your leader should break as opposed to your main line. One last bit of advise, if possible I would avoid your two day trip being the Columbus Day Weekend. Very crowded on the river that weekend. Good luck and look forward to seeing a report.