Waterlands

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Chinook salmonRetention open

Bar · Washington

Case Shoal

47.85°N · 122.67°W · Bar · Puget Sound and Hood Canal

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Best score today · 11 AM · Chinook salmon

73/100Great
Now
685 PM PDT
Best window
5-9 PMEbb tide
Tide now
Ebbing9.9 ft ▼

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 5 PM · now

Time5PNOW
Score68Great
Tide9.9 ft ▼Ebbing
CurrentEbb0.3 kn · toward NE
Wind3 kn NEgusts 9 · steady
Sea stateCalm0.1 ft · 2 s
Air temp61°Mild
WeatherMostly cloudy58% cloud
Water55°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Marine Area 12 (Hood Canal)

IN EFFECT NOW

Chinook salmon(hatchery-marked)

Special rules
Daily limit
Not published
Possession
Not published
Size
Not published
Season
Aug 1 to Sep 30, 2026
Annual quota
Not published
Changes
Catch & release from Oct 1
Other
South of Ayock Point: hatchery Chinook may be kept (Chinook minimum 20 inches), release wild Chinook, chum and sockeye. North of Ayock Point: release all Chinook, chum and sockeye. 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 (4 salmon combined per day)
  • Lingcod Check regulations
  • Pacific halibut Closed (No retention)
  • Pink salmon Retention open (4 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

Last week of peak season for Chinook salmon · shoulder season next

Chinook salmon season by week of the year. Last week of peak season for Chinook salmon · shoulder season next.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Chinook salmon in Washington

Spot profile

Case Shoal

Depth
10-70 ftDrop-off
Structure
Shoal · Inner · Semi-exposedShoal · 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 Case Shoal

Case Shoal is a bar in Puget Sound and Hood Canal, Washington. Depth is 10-70 ft, with a drop-off. Its profile reads shoal, 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, lingcod and surfperch. 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

  • Termination Point

    Cape · 2.2 mi

    75
    Top: Chinook salmonPeak season
    • Chinook salmon 75
    • Kelp greenling 72
    • Cabezon 69

    3 kt NEL 10:24 PM · 4.5 ftH 3:33 AM · 8.3 ft

  • Squamish Harbor

    Bay · 0.7 mi

    74
    Top: Kelp greenlingShoulder season
    • Kelp greenling 74
    • Chinook salmon 72
    • Cabezon 70

    3 kt NEL 10:23 PM · 4.8 ftH 3:34 AM · 8.7 ft

  • Sisters

    Bar · 1.7 mi

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

    3 kt NEL 10:24 PM · 4.5 ftH 3:33 AM · 8.3 ft

  • Rock Island

    Bar · 1.9 mi

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

    3 kt NEL 10:24 PM · 4.5 ftH 3:33 AM · 8.3 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.