When do salmon and steelhead run in the Humber River?
Chinook stage off Humber Bay from late July, enter the river in early September, and peak from mid-September to mid-October. Steelhead follow them in during October and stay through the winter. The Humber is the salmon river closest to downtown Toronto, and at Old Mill it's the most crowded water I know. I used to fish it a lot. In salmon season I stay away from Old Mill, but in winter it's a different place.
Fresh salmon push up the Humber on rising water, so the day or two after a good rain is the time to go. Low, clear water holds fish in the pools and makes them harder to fool.
See today's flow, water temperature and access points →The season on the Humber
| When | What's happening | Where you can fish |
|---|---|---|
| Late July – August | Chinook stage off the mouth | Humber Bay Park and the river mouth |
| Early September | First fish enter the river | The mouth up to Old Mill |
| Mid-Sept – mid-Oct | Peak run, and the heaviest crowds | Anywhere below Eglinton |
| October – Dec 31 | Coho tail off, steelhead arrive | Below Eglinton, and Eglinton to Hwy 407 |
| Jan 1 – the opener | Sporadic winter steelhead | Below Eglinton only |
| Early spring | Redhorse run, spring browns, a few steelhead | Below Eglinton only |
| Late April | Spring steelhead around the opener | Below Eglinton, and Eglinton to Hwy 407 again |
Eglinton Avenue to Lake Ontario is open all year for trout and salmon. Old Mill is inside this stretch.
Eglinton to the south side of Hwy 407 is open from the fourth Saturday in April to December 31. Upstream of Eglinton, brook, brown and rainbow trout have a combined limit of two (one on a conservation licence).
Above Hwy 407 is a fish sanctuary from January 1 to the Friday before the opener, and from October 1 to December 31.
A fish hooked anywhere other than the mouth must be released right away. Confirm the rules for Zone 16 in the current Ontario fishing regulations before you fish.
Old Mill in the fall
Most people meet the Humber run at the Old Mill dam. Salmon stack in the pool below it and try to jump it, and on a fall weekend the bank is lined with anglers and the paths with people who came to watch. TRCA runs guided salmon-run walks from Étienne Brûlé Park, just upstream.
In salmon season it's extremely crowded, and I avoid it. If you go anyway, go on a weekday at first light, take the end of the line instead of squeezing into the middle, and don't drop in below someone and cut off their drift. With that many fish in one pool, a lot of what gets hooked is foul-hooked, and those fish go straight back.
There's other water. Staging fish can be caught off the mouth at Humber Bay Park with spoons and spinners at dawn and dusk, before they commit to the river, and the whole river from the lake up to Eglinton is open.
Old Mill in winter
Winter is a different story. The crowds are gone, and because everything below Eglinton is open all year, it's still legal water after the extended reaches close on January 1.
On February 19, 2024, I caught the two steelhead below at Old Mill on a white woolly bugger under a float, fished on a spinning rod. It was so cold that once I'd handled and released them, I packed up and ran back to the car to warm my fingers.
Cold water changes how you fish it. The most common mistake is fishing too shallow and too fast. In winter the fish are down deep and barely moving, so set the float so the bait drifts within about two feet of the bottom, hold it back, and give the slow, deep water more drifts than you would in October. Roe isn't the only option. A woolly bugger under a float works too, on an ordinary spinning rod. The winter steelhead guide has the full setup.
Check today's conditions for steelhead on the Humber →
Old Mill in spring
This stretch gets one of the biggest redhorse runs in the area. In early spring you're more likely to hook a redhorse than a steelhead here, so don't be surprised when the fish on the end of the line turns out to be a big sucker.
Brown trout are caught here in spring too, and they'll take lures as well as bait, even a Rapala crankbait in Firetiger. Because the river is open all year below Eglinton, this is legal water for browns and steelhead before the opener, when the reaches upstream are still closed.
Why the lower Humber is parkland
On October 15, 1954, Hurricane Hazel turned the Humber into a flood. On Raymore Drive, upstream in Weston, 35 people were killed when the river took their street. Afterwards, land in the worst-flooded areas was expropriated and homes were no longer allowed on it. Much of the valley you walk through to reach the river today is parkland because of that decision. In 1999 the Humber was designated a Canadian Heritage River.
Common questions
When do salmon run in the Humber River?
Chinook stage off Humber Bay from late July and enter the river in early September. The run peaks from mid-September to mid-October, and Coho carry on into late October. Rising water after rain brings fresh fish up.
Can you fish at Old Mill on the Humber?
Yes. Old Mill is below Eglinton Avenue, and the Humber from Eglinton down to Lake Ontario is open all year for trout and salmon. In salmon season it is one of the most crowded spots in the Toronto area.
When can you catch steelhead in the Humber River?
Steelhead follow the salmon in during October. They can be caught sporadically through the winter below Eglinton, which stays open all year, and spring is good again around the trout opener at the end of April.
What else can you catch at Old Mill in spring?
Redhorse run up this stretch in large numbers in early spring, and you are more likely to hook one than a steelhead then. Brown trout are caught in spring too, including on crankbaits.
Is the Humber River open for fishing in winter?
Below Eglinton Avenue, yes, all year. Eglinton to Hwy 407 is open from the fourth Saturday in April to December 31, so it is closed from January 1 to the opener. Above Hwy 407 is a sanctuary from October 1 to the opener.
Read next
For timing on every Ontario river, see when salmon run in Ontario and when steelhead run in Ontario. West of Toronto, the Credit River runs on a similar schedule, and Bronte Creek runs last of all.