Browns Campground – Green Lake Chronicles

This past weekend, the Chronicles crew ventured west to Pulaski, NY eager to get a fat Chinnok on the line on the Oswego and Salmon river. Fishing was tough, we only hooked up a few times and were not able to cross the deep parts of the Oswego river to our hot spot by the dam. The water levels were high and extremely dangerous. The salmon river was chalk full of people, but we were able to land a few fresh Chinook salmon.

The Green Lake Chronicles Crew has been making this annual trip since October 2010. We pitch our tents at Brown’s Campground located in Altmar, NY right off route 13. Browns campground is owned by Sonja Brown and operated by Pete and Monica Garner. Monica is Sonja’s daughter and has grown up watching thousands of fishermen/women enjoy the Salmon river bounty. We always arrive late, find a vacant tent site and set up shop. Even at 2AM, the campground is full of excited fishermen/women prepping their equipment for the morning outing. The scenery is amazing, located nearly on the Salmon river and the stars are as bright as LED light-bulbs. The owners are extremely welcoming and unbelievably gracious. They have a main office with a tackle shop, RV electric hook up, salmon cleaning station and bathhouse (showers and toilets included). Pricing is extremely reasonable, being dependent on length of stay, amount of people in your party and choice of camper unit or tent. What differentiates this campground from it’s competitors, is the private access to the nostalgic salmon river and the hospitable staff. Hands down some of the best people I have ever met. Campers are able to walk a short distance from their tent/camper to the lush salmon fishing grounds with their private access point. Browns also offers a fish smoking service with immediate turnaround. Catch your fish one night, surrender it to the “fillet master,” and come back the next day within 24 hours to collect a tasty smoked salmon treat.

Not only is the fishing fantastic at Browns, but there is a slew of public hunting land available nearby to chase whitetails. One of the best trips to date was October 2010. We slammed the salmon in Oswego and on the salmon river access point at Browns Campground and I shot a nice 7pt buck with my Mathews. Cast and blast can be a fun weekend for those who are looking to break up their Salmon fishing itinerary.

I plan on making a trip to Browns every year and will eventually bring my future kids along for the adventure. Monica and Pete and great people and will give you a warm welcome every time. Many of their campers are regulars dating back 20+ years. If you plan on making a trip to Salmon country, I strongly urge you check out Browns. For booking information, please contact Monica at brownscampground12@yahoo.com. If you have any questions, please contact me at greenlakechronicles@gmail.com. Thanks for reading!

Michael

After a long day of salmon fishing, I relax in the shade under my truck

Chronicles crew with a nice keeper chinook — Some of the Chronicles crew with a nice keeper Chinook Salmon

It’s that time of the year again! This weekend, we Boston boys will be making our annual trip to Pulaski, NY to butt shoulders with other fisherman on the overcrowded Salmon and Oswego River. Sounds fantastic right? The stress of potentially not securing your spot and fighting with a massive local “Oswegonian” is well worth it when your line gets tight and the drag starts screaming! A few of us went to college at SUNY Oswego and started fishing for these freak fish over eight years ago. Now that we have “respectable” jobs and more responsibility, we look forward to this annual trip to escape and continue our pursuits of these monster salmon and cold Labatt Blue.

Early Steelie caught by Mr. Jones on blue egg sac — Early Steelie caught by Davey Jones on a blue egg sac

I am going to give you the most important piece of advice to help you land a salmon this fall. Do not get too drunk the night before you fish. GET TO THE WATER VERY EARLY to secure a spot and do not leave until you are exhausted. The river will start filling up with fishermen between 6:45-7:15AM. If you safely get into position a solid hour before the others, there shouldn’t be an issue with crowds until 7:30AM. The rivers can get packed with people, but it is well worth it. The past few years, we have been having more success with hooking up and landing steelhead and bows. Salmon hook ups are frequent, but they run so hard and often come off the line.

I am not an expert at catching these things, but have had some good success following the factors listed below:

Water depth and flow – The higher the water level the better, the faster the water, the more oxygen, get the drift? There is a sweet spot with flow/depth. I like fishing the Oswego River when it’s between 4,500-6,000cfs. This river can be dangerous as hell if it get’s higher, but I have always had success during this flow.

Preliminary salmon runs – Location is key! Salmon can randomly begin their cycle depending on environmental factors such as water depth, flow and temperature. Typically the best runs start Columbus day weekend and end early November, but you never know when a major push will happen. Stay updated on local blogs and fishing reports and plan to have flexibility in setting the date for your trip.

Weather – The salmon run can greatly be affected by the weather patterns, a drop in temperature can result in a preliminary or unexpected run, as listed above. Cold nights and cooler daytime temperatures will help move the fish up river. You can never really predict the weather, but try and fish when it is getting a little colder.

“Stay Sensitive”- If you plan on using a spinning outfit, make sure you have the right line to feel your sinker kiss the bottom of the river while your leader sways into a fishes mouth. This ticking is important, because your hook (which should be on a leader, three feet behind weight) will hopefully pass through lines of fish. Salmon will rarely eat or go after your hook, so “lining” them is the best way to get success. Having minimal stretch line with narrow diameter will help you feel the tick and have more hook sets.

If you see someone attempting to snag the fish, rat their ass out to the DEC. Snagging is horrible for the fish and not real fishing. Thanks for reading and if you have any questions, please contact me at greenlakechronicles@gmail.com. Be sure to check out our Facebook and Instagram pages.

Michael

Salmon River map