As the weather warms and steelhead anglers look to shake their winter blues along the Salmon River, they need to be aware of reduced daily and possession limits.
Due to lower numbers of returning steelhead, the Idaho Fish and Game Commission modified the seasons and reduced bag limits statewide for the 2020 seasons.
On the Salmon River, the steelhead limits for the spring season is one steelhead a day and three in possession, with no size restriction. The season limit is 20. All limits are for adipose-clipped steelhead only. Steelhead with an intact adipose fin must be released immediately.
Anglers are reminded that these changes are not reflected in the seasons and rules brochure. To see a summary of modifications made to the 2019-21 printed steelhead seasons and rules, specific to the 2020 spring season, visit Idaho Fish and Game's Steelhead Seasons and Rules Page at https://idfg.idaho.gov/fish/steelhead/rules.
Other important reminders include:
- Anglers who keep a steelhead must immediately validate their permit. To validate the permit, remove one numbered notch from the permit, write in the river location code, and enter the month and day of the catch. To do so, anglers are encouraged to keep a knife and pen handy.
- Any angler, who has attained the bag, possession, or season limit, must stop fishing for steelhead including catch-and-release fishing.
- All fish that are hooked, landed, and reduced to possession shall be counted in the limit of the person hooking the fish.
- Only barbless hooks may be used. Bending the barbs down to the shank of a single, double, or treble hook will meet this requirement.
These rules can be found on pages 39-40 and 43-44 of the fishing seasons and rules brochure. For questions about current steelhead fishing, call the Salmon Region Fish and Game office at 208-756-2271 or visit https://idfg.idaho.gov/fish/steelhead.