Waterlands

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Chinook salmonCatch & release

Bar · Washington

Belle Rock

48.49°N · 122.75°W · Bar · Northern Inland Waters Including The San Juan Islands

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Best score today · 11 AM · Chinook salmon

74/100Great
Now
6811 AM PDT
Best window
11 AM-3 PMFlood tide
Tide now
Flooding2.4 ft ▲

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 11 AM · now

Time11ANOW
Score68Great
Tide2.4 ft ▲Flooding
CurrentSlack0.1 kn
Wind6 kn Sgusts 12 · steady
Sea stateCalm0.1 ft · 2 s
Air temp59°Mild
WeatherOvercast100% cloud
Water55°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Marine Area 7 (San Juan Islands)

IN EFFECT NOW

Chinook salmon(hatchery-marked)

Catch & release
Daily limit
No retention
Possession
Not published
Size
Not published
Season
Sep 1 to Sep 30, 2026
Annual quota
Not published
Changes
Closed from Oct 1
Other
Bellingham Bay has a separate daily limit 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

Belle Rock

Depth
80-250 ftDrop-off
Structure
Ledge · Outer · ExposedLedge · 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 Belle Rock

Belle Rock is a bar in Northern Inland Waters Including The San Juan Islands, Washington. Depth is 80-250 ft, with a drop-off. Its profile reads ledge, outer water and exposed.

Waterlands scores 11 species here; the best right now are kelp greenling, cabezon and lingcod. It is peak season now for Chinook salmon and coho 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

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

  • Decatur Head

    Cape · 1.9 mi

    82
    Top: Chinook salmonPeak season
    • Chinook salmon 82
    • Coho salmon 82
    • Kelp greenling 75

    6 kt SH 4:43 PM · 7.1 ftL 10:09 PM · 4.4 ft

  • Green Point

    Cape · 2.4 mi

    78
    Top: Chinook salmonPeak season
    • Chinook salmon 78
    • Coho salmon 78
    • Kelp greenling 75

    6 kt SH 4:27 PM · 7.4 ftL 9:58 PM · 4.6 ft

  • Dot Rock

    Bar · 2.0 mi

    74
    Top: Coho salmonPeak season
    • Coho salmon 74
    • Chinook salmon 73
    • Kelp greenling 72

    6 kt SH 4:43 PM · 7.1 ftL 10:09 PM · 4.4 ft

  • Davis Bay

    Bay · 2.3 mi

    74
    Top: Coho salmonPeak season
    • Coho salmon 74
    • Chinook salmon 73
    • Kelp greenling 73

    6 kt SH 4:43 PM · 7.1 ftL 10:09 PM · 4.4 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.