Atlantic Salmon and Brook Trout Fishing on the Humber River, Newfoundland, Canada

A Satellite Shot of the Humber Valley in the Spring. Courtesy NASA

The Humber River has a total drainage area of 8,124 km² (Porter et. al. 1974). It has excellent smolt and parr rearing water  (Bourgeois et al 2001). The total length of all streams on the Humber River System to which adult Atlantic salmon return to spawn is 2450.50 km. This translates into a total production area for Atlantic salmon of over 11.5 million m². It is the second largest river on the island of Newfoundland and one of the best by quality of habitat.

Since the closure of the commercial fishery in 1992, estimates of the size of the salmon population and the egg deposition figures on the Humber River increased (Mullins, C and G. Chaput, 1993). This continued through the 1990s as did increases in average grilse and mature salmon size (Mullins et al 1999). It is considered one of the healthiest salmon populations in the province (which is 60% of all atlantic salmon producing rivers in North America).

28.3 million eggs is the calculated conservation requirement to meet target egg deposition. 

The Lower Humber from the air. During late July and August the sun sets in the canyon about 7 PM and we fish until about 10PM. Over a dozen shoals can be found in this area alone supporting dozens of pools....our guides know where.

186% of target was achieved in 1996 for the total watershed. Calculated requirements 15,749 small and 934 large salmon.  Spawning escapement calculated as: 22,748 small and 2,064 in 1995; 26,478 small and 2,524 large in 1996.  The salmon run now exceeds all other rivers on the Island with 1999 counts at 32,018 fish and growing.  The ten year average for large salmon ranges as high as 32%. Large salmon counts for 1999 were 4,433 - nearly 14% of all salmon were large and accounted for 18% of the landings despite virtually all local angling effort being focused in late June and early July when mature fish are extremely rare! For example, since 1992 an average of 44% of all salmon that are killed on the Humber come from the Big Falls area in 2-3 weeks (Mullins, C and D. Caines 1998).  Typical estimates based on 8 years of counting trap data suggest that this river is currently producing between 30,000 and 50,000 salmon annually with 30 to 40% mature fish.  The counting fence/traps were discontinued in 1999 but the regression line and counts show a growing population and increasing average fish size.

Like virtually all rivers in our area, the Humber is predominantly a 4 or 5 year river (egg to 1SW small salmon a.k.a. grilse). Thus the majority of smolts are 3 or 4 year old river age smolts.  These smolt then over-winter in the ocean for 1 winter and return as 1SW virgin spawners of 3 to 8 pounds.  An example is of the life cycle of a 5 year old grilse salmon is as follows.....the run of 1992 spawned in late October or early November of 1992 and the eggs hatched into alevin in 1993 (0 age class) which grew for 3 more years (93-94, 94-95, 95-96) and produced the smolt of 1996 which then entered the ocean in summer 1996 and returned in the summer of 1997 as 1SW grilse of 3 to 8 pounds. Hence 1992 to 1997 ...a 5 year river.  There is an annual variance between the number of  3 year river age and 4 year river age smolts. Thus the Humber is a 4 or 5 "year river". This is natures way of hedging against a total loss in any one year. The main provincial range for age from egg to grilse is 4 to 8 years. As a general rule, the farther north the river (and thus colder the water and slower growth of the parr), the longer the cycle. The lower humber looks like a daunting river to fish but if one thinks of it as being two or three smaller gravel rivers cover in a couple feet of water you will begin to see it has many shoals and channels and move wading than be done in a week. The large gravel spawning shoals are structured and provide defined pools, divots, and pockets that are not always easily visible from the surface but hold fish the same as this structure would on any river.

The Humber is one of the few rivers on the Island to have a

The 3SW virgin salmon of the Humber are 22 to 25 pounds and administer adrenaline to any angler.

significant percentage of the populations comprised of 2SW virgin spawners (10 to 14 pounds). Moreover, it has good population of 3SW first time spawners (22 to 25 pound fish).(DFO Sci Stock Status Update D2-02(2002)).  The very large salmon the Humber is famous for are primarily comprised of its 3SW virgins, 3SW repeat annual spawners, the giant 35+ pound 3SW alternate spawners (spawning every second year after its maiden spawning at 3SW ie spending two winters in the ocean between spawnings), and the common to some other rivers very old 2SW annual and alternate spawners. The fact that the population is growing is evidenced by the sex ratio which varied from 50.9 to 69.2 percent female for grilse over the 10 years from 1989 to 1999 with an average of ~60%. The sex ratio for large salmon averaged 69% female based on commercial catch data from pre 1991, but more recent trap data suggest ~90% (small data set).  Average female grilse weight for the last 10 years ranged from 1.33kg to 2.0kg with the 10 year average being 1.71kg.  It is currently likely around 2.0 kg. A trend of increasing grilse size is apparent (Mullins, C and D. Caines 1999).

The Complexity of the Salmon Population in the Humber System

So, you want to predict how big the run will be this year and reserve your trip to a year with a huge run of salmon? This river is unique in the province in that it is an example of a river that has virtually every age class and spawning pattern of salmon known to science. Basing a prediction on the number of salmon that bred in a given year and then projecting forward is not straight forward and simple. Some smolts produced by the

Some pools go into shadow as early as 5PM and many more by 7:30PM while darkness falls around 10PM. Wading shoal of 100s of yards are everywhere and all hold 20+ pound fish.

 1992 spawners in our example above would have stayed in the river for 3 years from (egg to smolt) and then returned in 1996 as 1SW grilse (a 4 year cycle), some will stay out in the ocean for two winters before returning to spawn and return as larger 2SW salmon and still others will wait 3 sea winters before returning as what we call "A Lower Humber Fish".  These early smolters usually account for less than 30% of the total annual grilse run for most of our rivers and only the Humber seems to have a significant run of 2SW and unique 3SW virgin spawners.  Still others would stay in the river for 5 years before smolting and most would return in 1998 as grilse.  Multisea winter fish that are 5 year smolters are likely very rare.  These late smolters usually account for 10% to 50% of the total grilse production on many Newfoundland rivers. Moreover, some smolts produced from this 1992 spawning run that were 4 year old river smolts would have stayed out for 2 winters at sea to grow to 10 to 20 pounds and returned in 1998 as 2SW virgin small salmon while still others would stay out to sea 3 years and returned in 1999 as large virgin 3SW or multi-sea-winter salmon (aka MSW) of about 22 to 25 pounds.  So, how significant are these other lesser runs of fish?  Currently, the 2SW repeat spawning 3 or 4 year old smolt  the Humber is famous for likely make up about 30% of the salmon with 3SW virgins adding another 10+% to the run according to the Dept of Fisheries and Oceans and throw a curve ball in any simple calculations as they will have a unique survival rate at sea as will the 3SW virgin spawners.  Smolt survival at sea is an important part of the factoring process when predicting runs of fish.  However, the majority of the small grilse of late June and early July in the 2003 run will likely be from 1997 spawners (4 year smolts that are 1SW).

Brook Trout Production on the Humber

The population estimates and dynamics of the sea running brook trout of the Humber River system are still a mystery and have not undergone any scientific assessment.  Basically there is little or nothing known for any provincial rivers or lakes and little or no comparable studies.  However, one can loosely infer from other studies that the sea runs have a population cycle of 6-7 years and the trout put on approximately 1.25 pounds per year in the ocean.  They generally leave the river for the first time when "smolt sized" or 12 to 20 cm and 3 to 4 years of age.  A very old trout will be 6 to 8 years old in most systems. They do not migrate to the open ocean like salmon but hang around our Bays and feed.

While brook trout are leaving and entering the river throughout the year, two main runs occur. The first is in late April and May with fish moving into and out of the river. We can fish the tail of this run during the first week of June. The second run is a spawning run and starts in late July and continues through August. During September and October the sea run trout enter the small tributaries to prepare for spawning in late October and November.

Description of the Lower Humber River

All I could hear while standing on Stag  Island was a scream that sounded like "DID YOU SEE THE SIZE OF THAT CREATURE THAT JUST ROSE FOR MY FLY ! "

The Humber valley is bedded in a base of limestone and sandstone derivatives and conglomerates and lined with birch, maple, spruce, and balsam fir.  A comment we commonly get in late July and August is "can you smell that ?" as the valley is perfumed with a heavy fragrance of spruce and balsam fir on calm mornings and evenings.  Very little of the river bank is inhabited by humans but a road runs along the valley and can been seen from the river in two locations.  The Lower Humber has long held the title of the best location on the Island of Newfoundland for trophy class salmon and accounts for more trophy salmon than any other river in the Province.  See the Lower Humber Photo Album link at the bottom of this page for a few recent examples. Large salmon counts for 1999 were 4,433 - nearly 14% of all salmon!  The ten year average ranged as high as 32% pre 1999 but is now thought to be consistantly 30 to 40%. During August and September this translates into large pre-spawn staging areas where a relatively high percentage all salmon are over 20 pounds!  The Humber is the only river on the Island to produce a number of 30+lbs salmon to anglers annually. It also produces a few 40 or 50 pound class fish. The largest from 2005 was approximately 50+ pounds and 3 fish over 50 inches were landed.
 
 

The Lower Humber Salmon Runs

The first run has already started by the begining of the season (June 1st). This run is primarily 10 to 18 pound female fish but the water is very high and the run very small so we generally do not fish it. The next main run is grilse which usually starts by June 15th. The grilse from the early runs of mid to late June are very difficult to catch despite the fact that about 30 to 50% of the entire annual run swims through the Lower Humber in about 2 weeks. We generally don't fish this section of the river because the salmon are migrating too fast and predominantly at night. They generally run the entire 19 km from the Ocean in about 2 hours!  One can sit at the "Back Run" of "Big Rapids" and set your watch based on when you see the first salmon jump - 2 hours after high tide! However, most of the fish run at night and so we chase them farther up river to the Upper Humber where they run both day and night and hold in some areas.

The first good fishing opportunity comes in early July in the lower Humber. Fish are usually seen

A fresh large lower humber salmon about to be set free. Read More Here

around the home pool or last holding area before Deer Lake at Boom Siding. This is mostly grilse of 4.5 to 5.5 pounds and some small 2SW salmon of about 8 to 16 pounds.
Late July and August is when the Lower Humber is truly ready for salmon fishing with runs of large 2SW salmon and multi-winter first time spawning salmon (12 to 30 pounds) and a relatively high percentage of 3SW to 3SW+1,2,3,4 repeat spawning salmon running and  holding throughout the 15 km of fishable water. Some grilse are available but the average fish weight is 14.7 pounds and thus ranks as one of the highest globally. Common weights are 7-8, 12, 15  and 22 to 25 pounds with small grilse being rare in August. The most common trophy weights are 20 to 26 pounds but larger fish are available and seen and fished over virtually daily. Fish over 26 pounds have not been landed on any other Newfoundland river other than the Humber in any significant number in recent history.

The Lower Humber Sea-Run Brook Trout Runs

The Lower Humber has two main brook trout runs. The first run occurs in May and early June and is a false or non-spawning run. In order to land significant amounts of these fish one needs to fish the tides and during late evening along the weed beds with subsurface flies. Intermediate, sinking lines or sinking tips are the order of the day. Huge specimens are available up to 8 pounds but normally will range from 1 to 5 pounds. The primary food of this run are: smelt, smaller trout, lunged snails, and stick caddis nymphs. This is one of the best times for truly huge trout but not great numbers of fish will be landed.
The spawning run starts in full swing on about July 20th and carries through August. Typical weights are 3/4 to 2 pounds or 14 to 19 inches but specimens up to 6 pounds have been landed. Catch rates on this run can vary from 1 to 3 dozen a day.

Prime hatches are:
Salmon Caddis in early July (optimum dates are July 2 to 8th) This is our largest hatch and typically produces large trout
Cream Tent Caddis late July (optimum dates are July 20 to 30th)
Stick Caddis (July and August)
Large flying black Ants in late June and early July (optimum dates are June 25th to July 4th)
Yellow Bellied Stone fly early July (optimum dates are June 30 to July 15th)
Large black Stone fly (June)
Small black Stone fly early August (optimum dates are July 30 to August 6th)
Black May fly May June and July
Pale Dunns (June)
Fluorescent green Stone fly late June and early July (mostly upper Humber)
Orange puppy hatch or orange collared beetle (August)
Dobson fly (August)
Sorry the trout are not fond of Midges
many other lesser hatches

Some Lower Humber Fishing Areas in order from Deer Lake and heading down stream to the ocean (links to photos soon!). This is not a complete list of all the fishing areas and there are dozens more not listed. Click here for a map of the pools.

The Upper Humber River - atlantic salmon and brook trout fly fishing trips

Canoes Trips on the Humber

For the canoe enthusiasts we have two legs of the upper humber that we offer. For the

Canoeing the Forks Rapids 
on the Upper Humber.

uppermost section from the Upper Upper Humber to Big Falls we can "put in" at one of 4 spots. The farthest up river is called the Flats Pool (0 km), the next is Birchy Dam (not a real dam at 6 km), then Riverside (12 km), and finally we can take out at Dancing Point 20 km from where we started. This is a wonderful trip with many good fishing areas including The Flats, Flats Run, Birchy Steadies (trout), Birchy Dam area, The Forks Run, The Forks, Alder Steady, Gales, Riverside, Smooth Rapids, and Dancing Point. Each of these areas has many pools to fish. The second offering is from Little Falls to Cache Rapids but has only 1 decent pull out along its length. This is a nice trip and includes famous areas like Little Falls, Cable Pool, 17 Mile Pool, Drill Hole, Camp 9 Reef, Black Reef, Harriman Steady, Bitsacks Island, Cache Rapids, and others.
 

Most of the upper Humber varies from 50 to 200 yards wide with most of the fishing locations being 40 to 80 yards wide.  Much of the wider expanses of water in this river are very shallow and not used by the migrating fish as they may only be 6 inches deep. Structures vary from classic pools, to flat fast flowing shallows with channels, to rocky reefs surrounded by deep calm but quickly flowing water. Ideal water speeds for either wet or dry fly in a single location abound. Most of the fishing locations have defined runs and pools,

The top of the remote Smooth Rapids on the Upper Humber River, Newfoundland, Canada.  About 1000 yards of classic, wade-able, water is found below here with numerous lays, runs, riffles, and steady pools that would take days to cover effectively. The river can be waded across on one of the many gravel, stone, or bedrock  reefs.  This spot fishes well when at the right water level after July 15th....One can watch the pressure wakes from the migrating salmon swimming into the lays as you cast to them.......here he comes, ...watch out,... get your fly on him.....and so goes the fun.

a few do not and require expert guidance for success.  The majority of fishing locations are 3-5 feet deep with only a few being 6+ feet deep. 95% of all fishing locations we frequent can be fished very effectively by wading; while the remaining 5% require a boat to properly fish during typical water levels in June and early July or to access as we fish a couple of remote stretches that  may be 1 to 3 miles from the nearest road.  The river bottom varies from slippery slate and limestone derivatives, to small pebbles and standstone, to sand. Most of the river is 4 to 6 feet deep with deeper holding pools and shallow shoals scattered along its course.  From Birchy Basin to Bear Reef much of the river is calm and the river bottom and pools are composed of small stones and sand spotted with large boulders. From Bear Reef to Camp Nine Reef the river has a number of ledge-like bedrock reefs, a small falls (Little Falls or John's Falls) with many ladder-like ledges above it (Cabin Pool, Mistaken Point, Bud's Pool, The Run, The Landing, Upper and Lower reefs, etc.) and one major falls (The Big Falls). This contrasts the upper pools from the Flats Pool to Smooth Rapids which are shoal areas and rapids found spotted along a steady part of the river.

Premium Trout Water on the Upper Humber

Trouters will find large colored brook trout available in most areas we salmon fish on the upper Humber including: Cache Rapids, Harriman Steady, Little Falls, The Steady below cabin pool, Joe's Brook, Mistaken Point, Dancing Point, Smooth Rapids, The Forks Area, Birchy Dam Area, Birchy Steadies, The Flats, etc. Most of these brook trout will run 1 to 2 pounds with some 3 pounders caught annually and occasionally a huge specimen is hooked. Commonly seen wildlife along this stretches of this river include: eagles at Mistaken Point, a great horned owl roost above Cabin Pool and another above Alder Steady, colored foxes, caribou and moose at many locations, beaver, muskrats, mink, and otter, various birds of prey and waterfowl, and occasionally a lucky glance at a lynx or bear. Bring lots of film.
 

The Salmon Runs

The Upper Humber is considered by many to  be one of the best locations

39 inch Atlantic salmon (22 pounds) from the Upper Humber. What a fight in the high waters of June! Read More Here

 on the Island of Newfoundland for grilse (salmon 4-8 lbs).  It produces more grilse to recreational anglers than any other river on the Island and "glory days" with extreme catch rates are sometimes seen.  This is not to suggest that the upper sections produce only grilse! Many areas will have holding pools filled with a mixture of grilse, and multi-winter salmon weighing 8 to 25 pounds all through July, August, and September (eg Cache Rapids, Harriman's Steady, 17 Mile Pool, Island Pool, Mistaken Point, Smooth Rapids, Alder Steady, Gales, Mercer's Pool, and tributaries like Taylor's Brook). During June this area of the Humber above Deer Lake is fished rather than the lower section because the fish are migrating too fast and often at night on the lower section. They can swim the 19 kilometers of river from the Ocean to Deer Lake in 2 hours as they do not hold in any of the pools until early July! Some salmon caught around Big Falls will still have sea-lice on them despite being caught 70 km from the Ocean! These fish have migrated upstream this far in under 48 hours!
 
 
 
 

The Flat's on the upper Humber is a premium pool that fishes well during most of late June, July, August and early September. Note the second angler in the grass at the far left.

The first run consists primarily of 10 to 18 pound fish from June 1 to June 15.  We generally do not book clients for this run on this river as catch rates are low (2 or 3 a week) and the water very high - but boy do they fight!.  The spring run off is usually completely finished by early July and the river settles and demands rain to maintain water levels.  From about June 20 to July 20 we see the peak of the grilse run with the salmon being predominately one sea winter salmon of 3.5 to 7 pounds (aka grilse).  "Guestimets" from trap counts by government scientists suggest that this accounts for 50% of an annual run of 30,000 to 50,000+.  You can imagine the scene on the funneling spots or necks in the river when 15,000 to 25,000 grilse are moving through in less than a month! Have you ever had 500 to 750 salmon swim literally past your boot in a day - every day?  During this run is when we can (but not every day) see extreme catch rates.  However large fish in excess of 10 pounds are rare during this run and account for only about 5% of landings.  To say the action can be fast and furious under normal conditions when a big movement of fish is happening is a very sound statement - for atlantic salmon fishing that is.  From July 20 to August 10 we have a run of large hen grilse (5.5 to 6.5 pounds) and 1SW and 2SW salmon that are jacks (male salmon of typically 8 to 18 pounds) with many of the large pools holding 10 to 25 pound fish in them.  Basically, during late July and August we see a mixture of large grilse of 5 to 8 pounds, jacks, and 2SW to 3SW virgin fish, and repeat spawners.  Like August, September sees a mixed run of fall fish weighing from 7 to 25 pounds. Occasionally some of the shallow pools on the upper Humber can get too warm (65 to 70^oF) for sensible fishing during long periods of bright sun and little or no rain.

Cache rapids is the fisrt major obstacle to migration on the Upper Humber.

This can occur during midday in the later half of August and so we usually concentrate on the very cool Lower Humber, Serpentine River, or other cool rivers during these conditions.

During warm periods anglers can still catch salmon in the warm river by fishing down stream of the many small, cool, feeder streams at places like, Joe's Brook, Brook Pool, Gales, etc. The outlets will draw salmon like a magnet to the cool, oxygenated water. Another common technique for lazy rises is to go subsurface. When the water temperatures go above 66oF anglers will find the hottest water at the surface (where many anglers present their flies).  Many angler will find the "lazy rises" very frustrating as the salmon slowly swim up to the fly and then turn back down to the bottom. Often, the fish hit the hot temperature band near the surface and then turned away from the hot water not the fly. Switching to clear leaders, small flies, and an intermediate line or sinking tip or line will help fix this problem. The salmon hate to swim through that top hot layer.
 

Some of the most beautiful spots to fish on the upper Humber are enclosed in a large provincial park to ensure protection of this area for future generations.  This park area is one of the most popular photography sites visited by our guests and is an area Lee Wulf said, "must be visited by every Atlantic salmon angler some time during their life" and is "a unique, awe-inspiring spectacle".  Lee was one of the most traveled Atlantic salmon anglers that ever lived. Many guests enjoy watching the very fresh salmon trying to leap over Big Falls.  During peak periods in late June and July it is not uncommon to have nearly every fishermen walk away with their limit after a few hours of fishing! See our Upper Humber Photo Album for some recent photos.
 
 

A shaded spot for reflection..... a spot every atlantic salmon angler could waste away the days. Have you every seen a 20+ pound atlantic salmon jump through 18 feet of air, defy gravity as it hung in space in the water spilling over the edge of a falls, then.......in shock.... watch as it powered its way through the bottomless spill and over the lip of the falls? Some of our guests have.......

Salmon jumping at big falls on the Upper Humber River, Newfoundland, Canada.  "Salmo salar" AKA "Silver Leaper". No wonder they are considered the undisputed King of Freshwater Gamefish.

Bonia's shoal on the Lower Humber is only one of dozens of areas with large fall salmon, glassy water, and good mid day dry fly fishing.

The Lower Humber has long held the title of the best trophy salmon river in Newfoundland and Labrador. It is the only river in the province to have a significant portion of its run consisting of virgin 3SW fish. In the Fall these fish are typically 22 to 25 pounds and provide a seasoned Atlantic salmon angler with an excellent opportunity to hunt very large salmon in the hundreds of lays that hold them. Very large capacity reels with a strong disc drag are required as the river has no confining pools and a fish can easily run 300 yards of backing from a reel even with a strong drag. Hence, a boat to chase the fish with is advised in most areas to increase success. Anglers are advised to use thin diameter gel spun 20+ pound backing in order to double the backing capacity on a large arbour reel. However, beware of one major point. Gel spun polyethalene (GSP) is very very slippery. Only a locking knot will allow you to join pieces of it together and to properly attach a fly line and a reel to this material. Moreover, test your knots with well over 10 pounds of strain as even most locking knots will unravel and slip free. We have developed two simple knots that hold every time and will share them and other secrets. I personally use a Hardy Viscount 10/11 with a disc drag and 625 meters of gel spun backing. This may sound like a bit of "over kill"....until you fish here.

This is a large fast flowing river with large fast running fish. But, the surface is amazingly flat and mirrored and requires expert guidance to have any success in this 50+ yard wide river. There is little joy to be had from casting to the tail of a fish or presenting a fly 30 feet from it.

The cool high water of the fall concentrates some of the holding and the running fish as they move in toward shore

This river is well known for its fall run of grilse and teen weight fish but also for a small run of very very large male salmon of 25 pounds and up to and over 40 pounds. The fight these fresh fish give in the cool high water is as good as it gets. About 25% to 50% of fish landed are very fresh while the others have started to get color or are colored.

During this time of year the catch rates are highly variable as is the weather. Fall rains during this time are usually a blessing, but can be a curse. Some rain brings fresh running salmon to join the staler holding fish throughout the system but the tail end of a hurican can temporarily reduce catch rates. The humber, unlike some rivers, does not have a problem with fallen leaves matting or dirting up the water. Under less than disasterous conditions anglers frequently land 3 to 6 fish a week. This is still Atlantic salmon fishing, even on a virtually angler free river full of trophy fish. Another factor is that many of our guests target only the very biggest salmon and pass up on the smaller fish and thus have an increased average fish weight but lower numbers. The river is virtually angler free all fall as residents have killed the maximum season limit allowed long before the fall and have hung up the rod for the rifle. Fishing pressure is very low with typically less than 5 anglers on 15 Km of river with dozens of fishing areas containing multiple pools in each area.

Fall atlantic salmon fishing in our area is best during mid day.

Typically fishing starts around 9 or 10 AM and continues until near dark. Fishing the early mornings typically does not produce many fish and mid day often produces the best results. Typical peak catch rates are had during the highest tides of the month and at the start of a good rain and after the water starts to fall off after the rain. Anglers are advised to bring clothes that can be added in layers as daily temperatures can fluctuate between -2oC to 25oC and one never knows from one week to the next what to expect.







 
 
 

There he is!	Let the battle begin!

Combine your fishing with a hunting trip. Caribou, bear, moose call for details....

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