MY FIRST COHO

Blog Entry Date: 1/3/2023

It was early October, 2020 and the Salmon Run was in full swing. Allan Masters and I arrived at the North Sportsman's Access of the Salmon River around lunchtime that day. We had driven all morning from York County, PA to the area we were meeting up with the rest of the Dirty Dozen, between Pulaski and Altmar, New York. We hadn't even stopped at the house we would call home for the next 4 nights. We were to anxious to get on the water. If you have ever fished during the Salmon Run in upstate New York, you know what I am saying. Imagine THOUSANDS of salmon swimming up river in their migration back to their birthplace to spawn. Giant King Salmon & Coho,with big Browns, and Steelhead following. The ultimate purpose for salmon to return to their home streams and rivers is to reproduce and ensure the survival of their offspring. Simple enough. But why is returning to the natal site part of the process? Consider the alternative: swimming upstream to just any old river could have some pitfalls.

A random river might not have suitable sites for spawning, but a salmon's birthplace is already a proven success for spawning. It may not have mates of the same species. Or conditions might not favor that type of salmon. For all these reasons, we can see why salmon navigate their way home. Oh and the big brown trout and Steelhead follow them out of the lake and into these rivers and streams to feed on the millions of eggs that fall from bellies of the migrating fish.

Allan and I arrived to the parking area and quickly began the process of putting our chest waders and boots on, assembling our fly rods, tied on the flies we wanted to start off with, jammed a sandwich down our necks, and head down the trail to the water.

If you walk fast enough, it is only about a seven minute walk from the parking area to the river. Maneuvering down the trail with your 9 foot fly rod is a battle all in it's own, navigating hanging branches through the twists and turns while you hustle to the water's edge. The air around the Salmon River has it's own smell. I personally don't find it offensive as my senses translate it to that of huge fish smacking your line followed by a long hard fight as your drag screams and your arms burn...but it smells like dead salmon. During spawning, salmon reduce their feeding activity and use up all their energy when swimming upstream against the strong current. Once they are done spawning, their bodies keep deteriorating until death.

The rest of our group were already on the water when Allan and I hit the river. As I looked up and down river I could see handfuls of other anglers lined up the sides and schools of salmon making their way up river. The area between the lake and spawning area is commonly called the GAUNTLET. Hundreds of anglers daily are there from one end of the river to the other, roll casting in repetition, hoping one of these big fish hits their fly.

I waded out into the river about 30 yards so I could get closer to the center where there was deeper water to cast into. It didn't take long to hook up on a big "zombie". That is what we call a King Salmon who's flesh has already started deteriorating due to the spawning process. Some of the look terrible. White spots on their fin edges and jaw plate, and their skin rotting off in places. Some of them aren't very pretty but are still an incredible fight on a fly rod. I beached my first King about 30 minutes after arriving. He wasn't the prettiest fish but still a big one. I released it back into the river so that he could complete his spawn and fertilize as many eggs as he could. Some people keep them, but spawning salmon fillets are NOT like the ones you see at the meat department of the grocery store. Spawning salmon meat is mushy and gross. Period.

Egg pattern flies are the most common and successful flies you can throw for King Salmon. You can throw other types of flies during the salmon run as well if you are targeting browns, or steelhead, but those species will hit egg patterns too. That is why they are following the salmon anyhow. To get fat on those eggs for the winter months.

We were all getting a few hookups on king salmon here and there, but spawning fish, as I mentioned before, reduce their feeding activity. Even though there are literally thousands of fish moving up river all day long, few of them will actually bite. The one's that do hit your fly, well I am not sure if they are just trying to kill what looks like another fish's egg or if maybe they pick them up in an effort to carry that egg to the spawning area. Who knows?

I decided to move down river a bit, partly to get away from the crowd around the hole I had been fishing for an hour or so, and also because I wanted to try to get into some other species. I hiked down about a hundred yards or so and found some faster water. I had to position myself on the opposite side of the river so I could see into the water better. I like sight fishing. If I can see fish in the water, I can cast to them and have a better chance of actually hooking up rather than blindly casting into a dark abyss where there may not be any fish at all. Wading in the Salmon River also requires chest waders and a wading staff (if you are smart).

I scanned the water, looking and looking, trying to see where the majority of fish were moving up river in the fast water and seeing if I could see anything other than King Salmon. Jimmy Coyle had just got done chasing a king down river that he hooked up on and was making his way back up to where everyone else was fishing. "See anything in there Honcho?" (I was affectionately given the river name Honcho because everyone gets a river name) Coincidentally at the very moment he was walking up from my left side I had just spotted what looked like a HUGE domestic rainbow trout.

"BIG RAINBOW RIGHT THERE!" as I pointed to it. "Well cast at him!" Jimmy replied.

I took a swing and tossed the pink estaz fly just above it to get a good drift past the trout when all of a sudden, it was TWO fish side by side and as the fly passed them, they separated. There was a big brown trout with the other fish. I did roll cast back above them and this time as the fly drifted down river, WHAM! The fish that looked like a rainbow mashed the fly. "FISH ON!"

"COHO!" Jim shouted over my right shoulder. "That is a BIG coho man!"

And so the fight began. The fish took off pulling line as my drag fought against it's pull. My line bowed over and the fish took off, first up river, then down river. I was just trying to hold on. This was a COMPLETELY different fight than a King Salmon. This fish was pissed off and did NOT want to be caught. Jimmy gave me instructions as I fought the fish. At the time I was only on my second trip up to New York and this was my FIRST coho salmon.

"Keep your hands on the cork! Let him run! Now turn his head! You got all day to fight this fish so don't lose him!" were all i could here as Jimmy yelled at me like a drill instructor preparing me for war.

I listened to Jim's instructions and did my best while the fast water pulled at my feet and calves, while I tried to keep my footing and fight the fish. It was an incredible fight unlike any I had experienced up until that fish. Just when I would gain a bunch of line back and got the fish closer to me, it would make another run, and Jimmy would start shouting instructions at me again. The coho took several runs and it felt like forever until I could feel it starting to tire.

Jimmy had finally put his rod down and got the net and was at the ready. Getting a salmon in the "hoop" is a battle all in it's own and you need a net guy who has some experience to pull it off without incident.

I walked the fish back closer to the shallow water near the edge of the river and gained as much line back as I could in the process, slowly walking backwards and reeling as fast as I could. Jimmy watched with anticipation for the moment I could get the fish's head turned and he could get the shot with the net. Left pull, switch to the right, back to the left, and BOOM! The coho was in the hoop! High fives and picture time followed. Such a pretty fish too. One I will not soon forget...for many reasons. My first coho, my sophomore trip to New York, the fight, the scenic aspect and setting as you can see from the photos. Puts this one into the category "Fish of a Lifetime" for me.

I ended up keeping the coho because it was a much "fresher" fish and took it over to Rob's Smokehouse in nearby Pulaski. We picked it up the next day and it was delicious.

If you ever have an interest in trying your hand at salmon on a flyrod in upstate New York, I suggest you try it.

Tight Lines,

Michael S. Males

Photo Credit: "King Dave" Starcher and "Cornhole Jim" Coyle
Salmon River - New York

Salmon River - New York

MY FIRST COHO

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