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[ajransom]

Been a strict C&R fly fisher but wouldn't mind keeping the odd fish for the BBQ. Although I really love ocean caught salmon (in accordance with current regs, of course) I've never eaten one out if the river.

My question is this: do salmon caught in the river (eg Vedder) taste as good as an ocean caught? If yes, does a bit of color make much of a difference?

Thanks in advance!

[typhoon]

Maybe not as good as ocean caught, but can still be very good. Ignoring sockeye since you mention the Vedder...
Coho with sea lice are excellent.
Chrome coho with no lice and most of their scales are very good.
Red springs can be excellent if not too coloured up.
White springs go soft very quickly so it would have to be very clean for me to keep one. I haven't personally seen one in the Vedder that I would keep. Apparently bar fishing in the Fraser they catch some nice ones though...
If I keep a chrome Pink or Chum with lice it is to give away.

[CohoJake]

Last August I caught and ate a red spring from the ocean (up near Port Hardy) that was a female.  It was obviously chrome, and the eggs were not fully mature.  The flesh was bright orange in color, but the taste was bland - it just wasn't a very fatty fish.  Then in September I caught and kept a male white spring from the Vedder (Chilliwack actually) near the upper boundary.  It was a very early fish (mid-September) but it was gold tinged on the outside and had lost many scales.  My wife and I (and our friend who was also there for the red spring) all agreed that it was one of the best tasting chinook we have ever had.  I kept two more gold colored males in September and they both had marble flesh and were delicious - I used most of them for sashimi because it was that good.  I kept a white female spring in early October and it was so-so quality, even though she wasn't more colored than the males I had kept. 

Of coho last year, although I generally agree that more scales is better quality, I found the divide between the sexes to be just as stark.  Males, even when slightly pink on the outside, were better than the chrome female coho.  Of course, as it is my wife and I fight over the eggs (her for caviar, me for bait) so if I didn't keep any females neither one of us would be happy!

The chrome pinks I have seen kept on the Vedder generally have faded flesh even if they have sea lice, so I haven't even bothered to keep one for the smoker.

[Rodney]

http://www.fishingwithrod.com/articles/fishery_issues/when_should_you_not_keep_a_salmon_in_rivers.html

[RalphH]

there is about as many opinions on the 'quality' of various salmon and at various stages of their lives as people who fish for them. Each species has a different flavour. Sockeye are considered the best by most followed by Red springs, coho then pink and chum. White springs taste exactly like red springs when they are chrome bright but for whatever reason lose flavour within a few days once they enter fresh water. Some folks won't eat pink or chum but in good condition I find them good to eat. These fish are sold commercially both fresh, frozen and canned and there is a god market for them. Generally I avoid fish that have grey bellies when they come out of the water. Sea lice are a good indicator of quality but drop off the fish within a couple of days once they enter freshwater. Look for brightness or at minimum a silvery sheen to the scales,  firm bellies, absence of marks or suspicious white patches on the skin and fins that are intact - if the fins particularly the tail are ragged, stubby or  white-ish at the edges let them go.

[ajransom]

Thanks guys! Appreciate your thoughts.

[Chehalis_Steel]

Coho are by far the best to keep if you're fishing in freshwater since they still taste good even when they go into spawning condition. I've kept fish that LOOK dark (no white spots or dark belly though but already colored) and they still tasted okay.

IME Chum and Pinks are pretty terrible to eat as soon they aren't silver any more since they seem to lose condition really quickly once in the fresh water.

[Knnn]

Thanks Rod, another informative article.

[FlyFishin Magician]

IMHO, bullet chrome fish from a river are pretty much the same quality as ocean caught fish.  In fact, I'd argue that a Fraser Sockeye is just about as good a fish as you'll find anywhere.  Fraser springs are also excellent quality, although I don't fish for them unless there is a sockeye opening.  Cap coho are also very good quality, as are Squamish pinks (and chum - although I've only tried smoked chum).  Red springs are excellent, even if slightly coloured.  White springs from the Vedder are another story.

If you take just one piece of advice from here...DO NOT EVEN THINK OF WHACKING A DARK WHITIE FROM THE VEDDER!!!!  You'll stink up the whole area!!!   

FYI - my buddy Stratocaster posted an interesting topic about the quality of red springs here:

http://www.fishingwithrod.com/yabbse/index.php?topic=30819.0