Waterlands

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Chinook salmonCatch & release

Cape · Washington

Dungeness Spit

48.17°N · 123.15°W · Cape · Central U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca

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Best score today · 9 AM · Chinook salmon

79/100Great
Now
713 PM PDT
Best window
5-8 PMDusk
Tide now
High7.2 ft

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 3 PM · now

Time3PNOW
Score71Great
Tide7.2 ftHigh
CurrentFlood0.4 kn · toward ENE
Wind11 kn SWgusts 13 · steady
Sea stateLight chop0.7 ft · 6 s
Air temp57°Mild
WeatherMostly cloudy52% cloud
Water55°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Marine Area 6 (East Juan de Fuca Strait)

IN EFFECT NOW

Chinook salmon(hatchery-marked)

Catch & release
Daily limit
No retention
Possession
Not published
Size
Not published
Season
Aug 16 to Sep 24, 2026
Annual quota
Not published
Changes
Closed from Oct 16
Other
Dungeness Bay is closed to salmon through Sept. 30. Some bays, piers and creek mouths have separate rules or closures. Check the pamphlet. Barbless hooks required in Marine Areas 5 through 13. Season and limits as listed in WDFW's 2026-27 List of Agreed Fisheries. WDFW's adopted rule (WAC 220-313-060, WSR 26-13-052) sets the same rules for these dates.

From WDFW 2026-27 List of Agreed Fisheries (final), read Sep 13

Other species here

  • Chum salmon Catch & release (No retention)
  • Coho salmon Retention open (2 salmon combined per day)
  • Lingcod Check regulations
  • Pacific halibut Retention open (1 per day)
  • Pink salmon Retention open (2 salmon combined per day)
  • Rockfish Closed (No retention)
  • Sockeye salmon Catch & release (No retention)

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Chinook salmon is best here

Peak season for Chinook salmon · 1 more week at peak

Chinook salmon season by week of the year. Peak season for Chinook salmon · 1 more week at peak.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Chinook salmon in Washington

Spot profile

Dungeness Spit

Depth
Up to 50 ftNearest water
Structure
Bar · Inner · Semi-exposedBar · drop-off
Season
Peak seasonChinook salmon

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 Dungeness Spit

Dungeness Spit is a cape in Central U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca, Washington. Depth in the nearest water is up to 50 ft, with a drop-off. Its profile reads bar, inner water and semi-exposed.

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

Tackle & technique

Chinook salmon
Chinook hold near bait off points, kelp edges and tide rips, usually suspended 20 to 120 feet down and deeper as the sun gets higher. Troll slowly, under 2 mph, with a flasher and herring, hoochie or spoon on a downrigger, or mooch a plug-cut herring at the depth where the sounder shows bait. Winter blackmouth and feeder kings sit within 10 feet of the bottom in 60 to 200 feet.
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

  • Gibson Spit

    Bar · 7.7 mi

    72
    Top: Chinook salmonPeak season
    • Chinook salmon 72
    • Kelp greenling 70
    • Cabezon 67

    3 kt ENEL 9:06 PM · 4.9 ftH 12:57 AM · 6.1 ft

  • Kiapot Point

    Cape · 8.2 mi

    72
    Top: Chinook salmonPeak season
    • Chinook salmon 72
    • Kelp greenling 70
    • Cabezon 67

    3 kt ENEL 9:06 PM · 4.9 ftH 12:57 AM · 6.1 ft

  • Kulakala Point

    Cape · 5.3 mi

    71
    Top: Chinook salmonPeak season
    • Chinook salmon 71
    • Kelp greenling 69
    • Cabezon 67

    3 kt ENEL 9:06 PM · 4.9 ftH 12:57 AM · 6.1 ft

  • Dungeness Bay

    Bay · 1.0 mi

    68
    Top: Chinook salmonPeak season
    • Chinook salmon 68
    • Kelp greenling 67
    • Cabezon 64

    11 kt SWL 8:35 PM · 4.7 ftH 12:42 AM · 5.8 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.