Waterlands

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Chinook salmonCatch & release

Bay · Washington

Davis Bay

48.46°N · 122.93°W · Bay · Northern Inland Waters Including The San Juan Islands

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Best score today · 9 AM · Chinook salmon

76/100Great
Now
734 PM PDT
Best window
4-6 PMEbb tide
Tide now
High6.5 ft

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 4 PM · now

Time4PNOW
Score73Great
Tide6.5 ftHigh
CurrentEbb1.3 kn · toward SSE
Wind10 kn SSWgusts 16 · steady
Sea stateLight chop0.5 ft · 2 s
Air temp60°Mild
WeatherMostly cloudy76% 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

Davis Bay

Depth
15-60 ftDrop-off
Structure
Bay · Outer · ExposedBay · 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 Davis Bay

Davis Bay is a bay in Northern Inland Waters Including The San Juan Islands, Washington. Depth is 15-60 ft, with a drop-off. Its profile reads bay, outer water and exposed.

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

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.
Coho salmon
Coho feed in the top 30 to 50 feet along tide rips, kelp edges and bait schools, and often hit within a few feet of the surface. Troll faster than for Chinook, 2 to 4 mph, with a small flasher and hoochie, bucktail fly or herring, or cast spinners and flies from beaches near stream mouths as fish stage in late summer. The hour around a tide change is often the best window.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Davis Point

    Cape · 0.5 mi

    77
    Top: Chinook salmonPeak season
    • Chinook salmon 77
    • Kelp greenling 67
    • Coho salmon 65

    10 kt SSWL 9:30 PM · 5.0 ftH 12:49 AM · 5.6 ft

  • Rowboat Cove

    Bay · 0.3 mi

    73
    Top: Chinook salmonPeak season
    • Chinook salmon 73
    • Kelp greenling 66
    • Cabezon 63

    10 kt SSWL 9:30 PM · 5.0 ftH 12:49 AM · 5.6 ft

  • Mya Cove

    Bay · 0.4 mi

    73
    Top: Chinook salmonPeak season
    • Chinook salmon 73
    • Kelp greenling 66
    • Cabezon 63

    10 kt SSWL 9:30 PM · 5.0 ftH 12:49 AM · 5.6 ft

  • Jones Bay

    Bay · 1.5 mi

    67
    Top: Chinook salmonPeak season
    • Chinook salmon 67
    • Kelp greenling 65
    • Pacific halibut 62

    10 kt SSWL 9:30 PM · 5.0 ftH 12:49 AM · 5.6 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.