South Fork Salmon Update: July 8, 2025

Harvest Estimation

I’ve received a few calls asking why the fishery closed when the check station board still showed adult harvest numbers in the 300s. It’s a good question, and I want to take a moment to clarify.

The number displayed at the check station represents only the fish we physically handled—not the total estimated harvest. We can’t intercept every harvested fish; anglers sometimes leave outside of staffed hours or through alternate routes. Because of this, our harvest estimate is always higher than the physical count.

This season, we handled about 75% of the estimated total harvest at the check station. That’s a solid rate, and as someone who fishes the South Fork myself, I believe it reflects the fishery accurately. The final harvest estimate was 128 more adults than what we touched directly—averaging out to about 7 adults per day over the 18-day season that we didn’t physically check. That’s reasonable, and I’m confident in the accuracy of this year’s estimates. 

Season Summary

Although our harvest share was relatively modest this year (520 clipped adults), we had great opportunity on the South Fork with 18 open days, including three full weekends with excellent catch rates. Many anglers were able to take home fish to share with family and friends, which is what this fishery is all about.

A few of us from the office even made it out during the last week, fishing with our kids and helping to pass on a love for salmon and the outdoors. Watching young anglers hook their first Chinook in such a spectacular canyon was a reminder of just how special this fishery really is. On one hand, I thought, “Man, these kids are lucky.” On the other, I realized, “They’re hooked now—just like the rest of us.”

 

Thanks to all of you for making this another great season on the South Fork. I hope you had a fantastic year on the water, and I look forward to seeing many of you out there again next season.

We’ll be holding season scoping meetings in February 2026—in person, with an option for online comments. I’ll send out an announcement with dates in January.

Until then, enjoy the rest of your summer. And as always, feel free to reach out if you want to talk fisheries management in the McCall Subregion.