Salmon River’s lower fly stretch stays shut until hatchery egg take is secured

New York DEC is again holding closed the popular quarter-mile lower fly-fishing section of the Salmon River — from the Route 52 bridge in Altmar up to the Salmon River Fish Hatchery boundary — after low reservoir levels blocked the usual mid-September open. Syracuse.com updated the situation through late September as the peak run week arrived.

About 16 miles of river below Route 52 and the upper fly water above the hatchery remain open. DEC delayed the seasonal baseflow bump from 185 to 335 cfs because Salmon River Reservoir sat below the federal-license threshold; raising flows too early could pull Chinook out of Lake Ontario into warm, low water.

The lower fly zone stays closed until DEC collects enough salmon eggs at the hatchery to support Lake Ontario stocking. Anglers packing Oswego County for the fall run should plan around that short but heavily fished corridor until DEC says egg take is secure.

This is a The Gillnet news desk summary, not a reprint.

Source: Syracuse.com — Low water closes portion of Salmon River popular with anglers for second year in a row (updated through late September 2026). Also: CNY Central — DEC delays Salmon River fishing in select area due to low water levels.