Waterlands

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Pacific halibutRetention open

Bar · Washington

Colvos Rocks

47.95°N · 122.67°W · Bar · Admiralty Inlet

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Best score today · 5 PM · Pacific halibut

74/100Great
Now
582 PM PDT
Best window
4-6 PMEbb tide
Tide now
Flooding8.0 ft ▲

Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 2 PM · now

Time2PNOW
Score58Good
Tide8.0 ft ▲Flooding
CurrentFlood0.3 kn · toward SSE
Wind2 kn NEgusts 8 · steady
Sea stateCalm0.1 ft · 3 s
Air temp64°Mild
WeatherPartly cloudy45% cloud
Water55°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Marine Area 9 (Admiralty Inlet)

IN EFFECT NOW

Pacific halibut

Retention open
Daily limit
1 per day
Possession
2 in possession
Size
No minimum size.
Season
Aug 16 to Sep 30, 2026
Annual quota
6 halibut per year
Changes
Closed from Oct 1
Other
Annual limit 6 halibut. Record each halibut on your WDFW catch record card right away. Only one daily limit may be on board the vessel. The fishery can close early when the quota is taken. Annual limit 6. Barbless hooks required in Marine Areas 5 through 13. Vessels fishing for bottomfish or halibut must carry a descending device rigged for immediate use.

From WDFW Puget Sound and Strait of Juan de Fuca halibut seasons page, read Sep 13

Other species here

  • Chinook salmon Catch & release (No retention)
  • Chum salmon Catch & release (No retention)
  • Coho salmon Retention open (2 salmon combined per day)
  • Lingcod Check regulations
  • Pink salmon Retention open (2 salmon combined per day)
  • Rockfish Closed (No retention)
  • Sockeye salmon Retention open (2 salmon combined per day)

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Pacific halibut is best here

Shoulder season for Pacific halibut · 1 more week at shoulder

Pacific halibut season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Pacific halibut · 1 more week at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • Not here
  • This week

Pacific halibut in Washington

Spot profile

Colvos Rocks

Depth
10-80 ftDrop-off
Structure
Ledge · Inner · Semi-exposedLedge · drop-off
Season
Shoulder seasonPacific halibut

NOAA NCEI DEM, sampled Sep 14 on a 3.4 m grid. Depths are feet below NAVD 88, not chart datum (MLLW), so they can differ from a chart by a few feet. Not for navigation.

About this spot

Fishing Colvos Rocks

Colvos Rocks is a bar in Admiralty Inlet, Washington. Depth is 10-80 ft, with a drop-off. Its profile reads ledge, inner water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 11 species here; the best right now are kelp greenling, cabezon and lingcod. It is peak season now for coho salmon and Chinook salmon, and shoulder season for kelp greenling, cabezon, lingcod and Pacific halibut. Kelp greenling peak from October through November. Cabezon peak from May through August. Lingcod peak from April through June.

Tackle & technique

Pacific halibut
Halibut sit on sand and gravel bottoms near drop-offs, bars and pinnacles, most often in 90 to 500 feet in Alaska and on the shelf off Washington, Oregon and far northern California. Anchor up-current of a likely edge and fish herring, squid, octopus or a salmon head on a circle hook with 24 to 32 ounces of weight, or bounce a large jig on the bottom. The best bite usually comes in the hour around slack tide.
Kelp greenling
Kelp greenling are solitary bottom fish of rocky shores, jetties and kelp beds, usually in water shallower than 60 feet. Use a small number 4 to 6 hook with sand shrimp or marine worms, or a small lead-head grub, dropped to the bottom and reeled up slightly. Larger fish show in October and November when they spawn close to shore, and mornings tend to fish best.
Cabezon
Cabezon sit in rock crevices, kelp beds and jetty boulders from the intertidal zone to about 100 feet and feed mostly on crabs and small fish. Fish a fish-finder rig with sand shrimp, squid or crab right on the bottom in the rocks, or drag a lead-head grub slowly through the kelp. Expect snags, and do not eat the roe, which is toxic.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Basalt Point

    Cape · 0.8 mi

    74
    Top: Coho salmonPeak season
    • Coho salmon 74
    • Chinook salmon 72
    • Kelp greenling 68

    2 kt NEH 3:55 PM · 9.2 ftL 9:55 PM · 5.3 ft

  • Olele Point

    Cape · 1.7 mi

    74
    Top: Coho salmonPeak season
    • Coho salmon 74
    • Chinook salmon 72
    • Kelp greenling 68

    2 kt NEH 3:55 PM · 9.2 ftL 9:55 PM · 5.3 ft

  • Snake Rock

    Bar · 0.5 mi

    69
    Top: Kelp greenlingShoulder season
    • Kelp greenling 69
    • Cabezon 68
    • Lingcod 67

    2 kt NEH 3:55 PM · 9.2 ftL 9:55 PM · 5.3 ft

  • Klas Rock

    Bar · 0.9 mi

    69
    Top: Kelp greenlingShoulder season
    • Kelp greenling 69
    • Cabezon 68
    • Lingcod 67

    2 kt NEH 3:55 PM · 9.2 ftL 9:55 PM · 5.3 ft

Scores and forecasts are for planning only and can be wrong. Conditions on the water change fast; check the marine forecast before you go. Regulations change during the season, so confirm limits and closures with WDFW before you keep a fish.