09/26/2026
Was this chinook salmon too dark to be kept? 😉 Freshwater salmon fisheries are known as terminal fisheries, meaning that adult salmon are on their final stage of migration and the hatchery or spawning channel is the last stop. Once these fish enter their natal stream, their colouration begins to change and you will encounter many variations.
Sometimes, if the fish have been holding in the estuary for awhile due to low river level, they may already start colouring up. Other times, the fish may shoot straight into the river, and they are usually bright silver. Coho salmon tend to hold onto their silvery body longer than other species. Chinook salmon, like this one, can be silver, but can also be coppery, brown, grey, green.
When retaining a salmon in these terminal fisheries, it's good to be a bit selective. Body colouration may indicate the meat quality, but not always the case. If a fish is very coloured, it more likely than not has been in the river for awhile and has been losing fat. I was quite comfortable with retaining this particular specimen. This fish had just come in from the sea, it was no longer silver before entering freshwater, so I was confident that the meat quality is still excellent.
Every now and then there'd be a ding d**g who wants to tell you that a spawner should not be kept when you decide to legally retain a salmon in freshwater. Don't let dumb comments like that bother you. Whether it is caught in the sea, or in the river, silver, or slightly coloured, the fate of these fish is already decided. An angler who legally keeps a salmon in the ocean is no different than an angler who legally keeps a salmon in freshwater. Both dead salmon will not contribute to population recruitment. It doesn't make one angler more responsible than the other. In fact, anglers who take part in selective terminal fisheries have a lot less impacts than anglers who take part in mixed stock fisheries in the sea or estuary.
