The Salmon Hole on the Winooski River — Attraction in Burlington

The riverfront and park is beautiful, but people like to leave trash throughout the place! It’s a great park to go fishing or to simply enjoy the fresh air on the walking trails. We volunteer to help pick up garbage in this park. So please do your part to help keep this place nice! Several years ago, residents have dumped car tires, vehicles, and even left a washing machine out there; which has now been rusted out and overtaken by nature. A few homeless people camp out here sometimes, especially in recent months, but as long as you don’t bother them they won’t bother you. More recently we have found quite a few drug paraphernalia on the ground, like used needles or fentanyl test strips. This location has a lot of potential, but it has been left practically unmonitored by park officials in recent months.

3/17 UPDATE: The homeless population has built a few makeshift shelters out of stones, fallen trees and other debris. People have been BBQing out here and leave trash out for others to pick up. I’ve uploaded new photos of the amount of garbage we gathered in just one day. Parts of the trail has been washed out by the flooding, and large muddy areas have made it challenging to walk through. It seems the park officials have been working on improving access to the trails, but the recent flooding has made it...

The Salmon Hole is one of my favorite overlook "parks with a very nice little trail (0.7 miles from Salmon Hole to the Intervale which then connects to more trails after a short walk down the road). The Salmon Hole itself offers nice views of the rock faces and falls/dam and mills that are part of Vermont's/Burlington's/Winooski's history and current gentrification efforts. Beyond the first stop at the water hole, you'll find a fairly well maintained trail with some stairs, bridges and boards through a quiet wooded trail that wonders along the river. Good for walking and some sections are appropriate for running/jogging as well. It's a lovely little trail and I've even seen bald eagles, great blue herons, hawks and deer in this area. I give it five stars for a simple, urban trail that is easy to access, not overly crowded, well maintained,...

Was super excited to try my luck at fishing at the Salmon hole. I packed my rods, reels, and hooks, eager to catch some salmon. The river is conveniently located within walking distance from the Airbnb I stayed in, which was a huge plus.

However, my excitement quickly turned into disappointment. I fished for an hour without catching anything. The intense sun didn't make the experience any easier.

I chatted with a few other fishermen around. One had been fishing for three hours and managed to catch only two fish. Two others who started at the same time as I did also came up empty-handed.

Despite the lack of fish, the river itself is quite beautiful. If you're planning to fish here, be prepared for the possibility of a slow day. It might be worth it if you enjoy the serene environment and have a bit...