I grew up fishing for salmon and steelhead. All the streams and rivers around where I grew up were full of them, fished in the ocean a lot for salmon too.
Most of the salmon caught I would smoke. I first made a brine out of salt and let it sit overnight. Then I'd wash the salt off and put the fish in a marinade of honey, brown sugar and maple syrup. Lay the fish out in the smoker and sprinkle red and black pepper over it. I always used alder for salmon. Smoke until done.