Salmon River
The best month to fish the Salmon River is January. The month to avoid is June. Right now, in August, this is not the river to book.
- January: 71 out of 100
- February: 71 out of 100
- March: 71 out of 100
- April: 41 out of 100
- May: 35 out of 100
- June: 31 out of 100
- July: 37 out of 100
- August: 37 out of 100
- September: 71 out of 100
- October: 71 out of 100
- November: 71 out of 100
- December: 71 out of 100
Water averages 69°F this month. Above about 68°F a trout that is fought and released often dies anyway, so this is a month to fish somewhere else or at first light only.
GAUGE 13317000 · COLOURED BY AUGUST
Month by month
| MONTH | TYPICAL FLOW | RANGE (P20–P80) | WATER | AIR HIGH | RAIN | SCORE |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 3,887 cfs | 3,812–4,282 | — | — | — | 71 |
| February | 4,158 cfs | 3,844–4,668 | — | — | — | 71 |
| March | 5,810 cfs | 5,088–7,582 | — | — | — | 71 |
| April | 13,775 cfs | 10,120–18,590 | — | — | — | 41 |
| May | 36,675 cfs | 27,000–43,260 | — | — | — | 35 |
| June | 32,125 cfs | 20,800–43,730 | — | — | — | 31 |
| July | 9,144 cfs | 6,696–12,810 | 69.4°F | — | — | 37 |
| AugustNOW | 4,783 cfs | 3,763–5,508 | 69.4°F | — | — | 37 |
| September | 3,965 cfs | 3,482–4,238 | — | — | — | 71 |
| October | 4,645 cfs | 4,291–5,025 | — | — | — | 71 |
| November | 4,971 cfs | 4,472–5,499 | — | — | — | 71 |
| December | 4,110 cfs | 3,904–4,592 | — | — | — | 71 |
WHERE THESE NUMBERS COME FROM
Flow and water temperature are medians of the monthly means reported by USGS gauge 13317000 over 2006-2025. Air temperature and precipitation are ten-year normals from Open-Meteo at this river’s gauge coordinates.
The window is deliberate. USGS’s own full-record statistics for a dammed river reach back before the dam — at Lees Ferry, to 1922, forty-one years before Glen Canyon closed — and describe a river that no longer exists.
Flow is scored against this river’s own fishable band of 4,158–9,144 cfs. There is no universal band: 8,000 cfs is low water on a big tailwater and a flood on a spring creek.
Water temperature is a ceiling rather than a weight. Above about 68°F a trout that is fought and released frequently dies anyway, so no month above that line is scored as worth booking, however good its flow.
The Salmon River is at its best in January, flows near 3,887 cfs.
← RIVERS GOING WELL IN AUGUSTRegulations, licences and access change without notice and are not reproduced here as fact — check the state agency before you travel. A median describes twenty years; it does not forecast your week. Source: U.S. Geological Survey, National Water Information System.