Derrick Sander and I started fishing last Friday morning just downstream of the pack bridge below the confluence of the Middle Fork with the main Salmon River. Derrick hooked two steelies, one on a wood grub drifted deep though the hole, and one on a grub fly that he tied. Both fish got off before they were landed. We fished all day, and no additional fish were hooked.

Saturday morning we fished at the Middle Fork confluence hole. No steelhead were hooked, although I did catch and release several cutthrout trout and one bull trout. In the early afternoon, Derrick went downstream to fish Friday's hole and I stayed to fish the deep drifts by the cliffs. Derrick hooked two more steelies, and was able to land one. It was a bright silver native hen measuring about 35" in length and about 5" across the top of her back. As he was fishing alone at the time, he was not able to successfully photograph the fish before she was released. Both fish were hooked with wood grubs. We both fished the hole well into darkness with no further success.

Sunday we fished the same hole unsuccessfully in the morning until about noon when we packed up and started the 8-hour drive back to SLC.

At the anglers check station near North Fork, the report was quite good. 50 or so fish were kept and 60 or so fish were released for the weekend at the time of our report, about 2 p.m. Most of the fish were caught upstream of where we were fishing. This was not surprising as there was much more fishing pressure by anglers upstream of the Middle Fork confluence on the main Salmon.

The water clarity was pretty good and got better each day we were there. Heavy rains from last week had muddied the water somewhat. This next week could be a very good time to go try for some Salmon River steelhead for those who are interested in making the trip.

Call Kathy at the North Fork Store (208-865-2412) for current river conditions and reports.

Good baits to try would be roe, nightcrawlers, shrimp, and wood grubs, and other soft, smelly baits drifted deep in the holes. The fish were quite selective and not yet very aggressive, as we had no luck with lures, spinners, spin-n-glows, and bright yarn attractors.

Expect to put in many hours fishing for each fish caught. It is demanding and often unsuccessful fishing, but the reward of a hard fighting steelhead on the end of your line makes it all worth it.

Tight lines.