Late summer and early fall are a great time to cast your line for salmon. The fall salmon run can be lucrative for anglers if you know the top spots. Find out where to fish for salmon this autumn at a park or campground near you.
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1. Eleven Mile State Park, Colorado
Fishing Licensing Information: Colorado Parks and Wildlife
Where can you fish for salmon? Count Eleven Mile State Park is among the top answers to this question. Gold-medal fishing opportunities exist throughout the year, and competitive anglers can enter tournaments. Home to one of Colorado’s largest reservoirs, Eleven Mile State Park is stocked with brown, cutthroat, and rainbow trout, northern pike, and delicious Kokanee salmon. Conveniently located south of Lake George, about one hour’s drive west of Colorado Springs, you can fish at Eleven Mile for the day, but an overnight fishing-camping trip is ideal. Waterfront camping, scenic vistas, uncrowded boating, and of course award-winning fishing make the park a must for any nature lover.
Obtain a Colorado Fishing License
2. Connecticut River Tributaries in Connecticut
Fishing Licensing Information: Connecticut Department of Energy & Environmental Protection
Atlantic salmon are making something of a comeback in the state of Connecticut. Anadromous male adults run up the Connecticut River and its larger tributaries. Broodstock adults are stocked during the fall into portions of the Shetucket and Naugatuck Rivers. Additionally, young salmon are stocked in numerous tributaries within the Connecticut and Pawcatuck River drainages, where they can be abundant. To protect these populations, salmon fishing in the state is limited to specific sections of the Naugatuck, Housatonic, and Shetucket Rivers. Anglers may keep one catch per day through August, and a catch and release requirement goes into effect September 1-December 15, so be sure to double-check regulations in advance of your trip.
Get a Connecticut Fishing License
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3. North Shore Streams in Minnesota
Fishing Licensing Information: Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
It probably comes as no surprise that Minnesota ranks among the best places where to fish for salmon. In the state’s North Shore streams that fan out as tributaries from Lake Superior, the salmon fishing is particularly awesome. Pink salmon frequently migrate through the North Shore streams and are fairly easy to find in part because they enter the tributaries in large numbers and the waters are lower and clearer in the fall. Generally, there is not a specific secret spot in the area as most Lake Superior tributaries from Duluth to Canada have a solid run of pink salmon.
Get a Minnesota Fishing License
4. Lake Shasta in California
Fishing Licensing Information: California Department of Fish and Wildlife
Among California fishing lakes, Shasta Lake remains supreme. With nearly 370 miles of shoreline, Shasta Lake is the state’s largest man-made reservoir and one of the deepest as well. Its vastness and depth mean the waters stay cold enough for salmon to truly thrive. While anglers come to Lake Shasta to pursue a variety of fish, king salmon remain the most popular, and for good reason. Stocked as fingerlings, Chinook salmon regularly grow fat in this lake, often topping out at ten pounds or more. When deciding where to fish for salmon, Lake Shasta should be on any serious angler’s list.
Obtain a California Fishing License
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5. Lake Aeroflex in New Jersey
Fishing Licensing Information: New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife
New Jersey in fact has a handful of lakes that are cool enough to support a salmon population. Lake Aeroflex, located about an hour’s drive northwest of Newark, is stocked with the hard-fighting salmonid species. This salmon is actually the lake-dwelling version of Atlantic salmon and completes its entire life cycle in the freshwater lake. The species bears a close resemblance to brown trout, so be sure to know the difference between the two before casting your line so you reel in what you want (and stay in compliance with catch ordinances).
Get a New Jersey Fishing License
Are you ready for your adventure? Plan your camping trip!