Humber River

The Humber is the Atlantic salmon river most Newfoundland anglers mean when they talk about big fish. It runs in two parts. The Upper Humber comes down out of the Long Range past Big Falls, in Sir Richard Squires Memorial Provincial Park, and into Deer Lake near Reidville. The Lower Humber leaves Deer Lake and runs a short, heavy course through Humber Village and Steady Brook to tide at Humber Arm, below Corner Brook. Most of the run is grilse, but the Humber is known for a share of large multi-sea-winter salmon, and every one of those goes back: in Newfoundland no salmon of 63 cm or more may be kept.

It is a big river to fish. The Lower Humber is wide and powerful, and the Deer Lake power plant feeds it, so the Humber Village gauge never drops as low as a natural river would. Plan on wading the edges and the tails of the big pools, or fishing from a boat with a guide. As a rough guide from the gauge's summer record, the lower river fishes well between about 190 and 340 m³/s, and over about 460 it is high and fast. The upper river is smaller and drops low in a dry summer. Swing wet flies on a floating line, try a riffling hitch on the long glides, and keep a bomber for fish that will not move to a wet fly. The fish come in June and July, and the best of the season is usually July.

It is Class 6 water: fly only, a single barbless hook, two salmon a season under 63 cm on tags 1 and 2, and 3 released a day. From September 8 to October 7, subject to DFO's in-season review, the main stem from Boom Siding at the Deer Lake outlet to the lower end of Shellbird Island stays open for catch and release, with no fishing on the tributaries. Hot, low summers bring the environmental protocol, which can close the river from 10:01 a.m. each day, so check the In-Season River Status before you drive. A non-resident needs a licensed guide or a resident relative. Corner Brook and Deer Lake have the services.