Salmon counts rise

GOOD FISHING – Don Richards, a visitor to the Gander River from Topsail, casts his rod to catch a salmon. One had hopped in front of him only a few minutes earlier. Figures from the Department of Fisheries and Oceans show most salmon counts are up from

Published on July 15, 2010

Andrew Robinson

Rivers busy in central region

The river is high, the anglers are out aplenty, and the fish are flying.

That seems to be the scenario across the province, where most salmon rivers have reported counts exceeding the five-year average from 2005-2009.

As of July 4, 603 salmon were counted at the Salmon Brook station just outside of Glenwood. The brook connects to the Gander River, and is generally considered a good indicator for activity on the Class I river.

By July 12, 2009, only 407 salmon had passed through the station, according to Department of Fisheries and Oceans data. The five-year average up to July 4 is 249.

Calvin Francis, a guardian from Clarke’s Head, said fishing has been so strong on the river, even people who might not traditionally have luck catching salmon are getting bites.

“Even those who are less experienced are having success,” he said.

On the Terra Nova River, 942 salmon had passed through the DFO counting station, well above the five-year average of 325.

On the Ragged Harbour River near Carmanville and Musgrave Harbour, fishing has been good according to John Kelly, a member of the Ragged Harbour River Conservation Group.

“Even those who are less experienced are having success.” - Calvin Francis

“The water looks good, and there’s a nice few salmon on the move, and a fair amount being caught,” he said.

Compared to previous years, he said water levels could be considered high, which might be due to the amount of precipitation over the last month.

“I like it high. It’s better for the salmon, too. At least they have a chance to go on through ... when the water is down, it warms up, and they just lie around in deeper pools.”

Max Holwell, who works out of DFO's Twillingate detachment, said this has been one of the best years in a long time for salmon returns in early July.

“Maybe with the amount of water on the rivers, the salmon are coming in, as opposed to holding up by the rivers, and going right along to their spawning beds,” he said, adding climate changes in salt water may have led to improved survival rates for salmon.