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SablefishShoulder seasonBay · Washington
Whatcom Creek Waterway
48.75°N · 122.50°W · Bay · Northern Inland Waters Including The San Juan Islands
Species here · tap to switch
Best score today · 7 AM · Sablefish
- Now
- 355 PM PDT
- Best window
- 5-9 PMEbb tide
- Tide now
- High7.9 ft
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Whatcom Creek Waterway scores 75+
Checked every morning against the 14-day forecast. Free by push and email.
14-day forecast
Best days to fish
24-hour conditions · rolling from now
Conditions · 5 PM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
37Tide: High slackCurrent: 0.6 kn floodWind & pressure
ECMWF
100Wind: 6 kt SSWPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
Open-Meteo Marine
64Water temp: 60°F, hotLight: Late afternoonSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 0.1 ftSeason & habitat · Sablefish
Species seasonality
22Season: ShoulderHabitat: Poor fitDepth: Out of rangeRegulations: no rule on file
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Marine Area 7 (San Juan Islands)
No rule for Sablefish is on file here yet, so its status is unknown, not closed. Confirm limits with WDFW before you keep a fish.
Species rules 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
- 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)
Source: WDFW · synced today
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Sablefish is best here
Last week of shoulder season for Sablefish · the off season next
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- Not here
- This week
Spot profile
Whatcom Creek Waterway
- Depth
- 8-35 ftSlope
- Structure
- Bay · Inner · Semi-exposedBay · slope
- Season
- Shoulder seasonSablefish
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 Whatcom Creek Waterway
Whatcom Creek Waterway is a bay in Northern Inland Waters Including The San Juan Islands, Washington. Depth is 8-35 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads bay, 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, surfperch and Pacific halibut. Chinook salmon peak from July through September. Kelp greenling peak from October through November. Cabezon peak from May through August.
Tackle & technique
- Sablefish
- Sablefish live on soft bottoms along the continental slope, and sport anglers find adults in 700 to 2,000 feet. Fish a multi-hook deep-drop rig with glow squid skirts and squid or herring on circle hooks, using several pounds of weight and an electric reel. It takes a long run offshore and a calm day to keep the line near vertical, so most trips happen in summer.
- 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.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Inner Reach74
Channel · 0.1 mi
Top: Chinook salmonPeak season- Chinook salmon 74
- Cabezon 61
- Kelp greenling 61
6 kt SSWL 10:40 PM · 4.3 ftH 3:23 AM · 6.7 ft
- Middle Reach74
Channel · 0.4 mi
Top: Chinook salmonPeak season- Chinook salmon 74
- Cabezon 61
- Kelp greenling 61
6 kt SSWL 10:40 PM · 4.3 ftH 3:23 AM · 6.7 ft
- I and J Street Waterway73
Bay · 0.5 mi
Top: Chinook salmonPeak season- Chinook salmon 73
- Kelp greenling 65
- Surfperch 65
6 kt SSWL 10:40 PM · 4.3 ftH 3:23 AM · 6.7 ft
- Starr Rock69
Bar · 0.9 mi
Top: CabezonShoulder season- Cabezon 69
- Kelp greenling 68
- Chinook salmon 67
6 kt SSWL 10:40 PM · 4.3 ftH 3:23 AM · 6.7 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.