Salmon River (New York)

Salmon River
River
View of the Salmon River as it passes through Pulaski, November 2009
Country	United States
State	New York
Region	Upstate New York
Tributaries
- left	East Branch Salmon River, Beaverdam Brook
- right	North Branch Salmon River, Mad River, Orwell Brook, Trout Brook
Landmark	Salmon River Falls
Source	Tug Hill
- location	Town of Montague, Lewis County
- elevation	579 m (1,900 ft)
- coordinates	43°41′34″N 75°41′15″W / 43.69278°N 75.68750°W / 43.69278; -75.68750
Mouth	Lake Ontario
- location	Port Ontario, Town of Richland, Oswego County
- elevation	76.2 m (250 ft)
- coordinates	43°34′32″N 76°12′14″W / 43.57556°N 76.20389°W / 43.57556; -76.20389Coordinates: 43°34′32″N 76°12′14″W / 43.57556°N 76.20389°W / 43.57556; -76.20389
Length	71 km (44 mi)
Basin	725 km2 (280 sq mi)
Discharge	for Pineville, New York
- average	781 cu ft/s (22 m3/s)
- max	24,000 cu ft/s (680 m3/s) December 29, 1984
- min	64 cu ft/s (2 m3/s) August 21, 1995
Location of the mouth of the Salmon River in New York State

The Salmon River is a large river in Upstate New York in the United States. The river is a popular and economically important sportfishing destination, and the most heavily fished of New York's Lake Ontario tributaries. From its headwaters in the Tug Hill region of New York, it flows 44 miles (71 km) westward through two hydroelectric dams and over the 110-foot (34 m) Salmon River Falls before it empties into eastern Lake Ontario at Port Ontario in Oswego County. The Salmon River watershed drains approximately 280 square miles (730 km²).

The river is noted for its recreational salmon fishery, which is sustained by the efforts of the Salmon River Fish Hatchery, located north of Altmar on a tributary to the Salmon River. Hatchery staff raise over three million young trout and salmon each year to be stocked in streams and lakes throughout New York State, including the Salmon River itself.

The Salmon River derives its name from the landlocked Atlantic salmon which were of great importance to Native Americans and early settlers of the region. However, these native salmon were extirpated from the river by 1872 and from Lake Ontario by 1898. Since the late 1960s, the Salmon River has been primarily with Chinook salmon, coho salmon, steelhead, and brown trout, in addition to a smaller proportion of Atlantic salmon. These fish return to the river for annual spawning runs after spending a majority of the year in Lake Ontario.