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Chinook salmonRetention open

Bay · Washington

Possession Sound

47.99°N · 122.31°W · Bay · Puget Sound and Hood Canal

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Best score today · 7 PM · Coho salmon

75/100Great
Now
684 PM PDT
Best window
5-8 PMEbb tide
Tide now
High10.1 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
Score68Great
Tide10.1 ftHigh
CurrentSlack0.1 kn
Wind4 kn NEgusts 8 · steady
Sea stateCalm0.1 ft · 3 s
Air temp62°Mild
WeatherMostly cloudy62% cloud
Water55°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Marine Area 8-2 (Ports Susan and Gardner)

IN EFFECT NOW

Chinook salmon(hatchery-marked)

Catch & release
Daily limit
No retention
Possession
Not published
Size
Not published
Season
Aug 1 to Sep 25, 2026
Annual quota
Not published
Changes
Closed from Sep 26
Other
The Tulalip Terminal Area has separate rules. 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 Retention open (2 salmon combined per day)

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

Possession Sound

Depth
80-450 ftDrop-off
Structure
Bay · Inner · Semi-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 Possession Sound

Possession Sound is a bay in Puget Sound and Hood Canal, Washington. Depth is 80-450 ft, with a drop-off. 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, 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

  • Skiou Point

    Cape · 4.2 mi

    71
    Top: Chinook salmonPeak season
    • Chinook salmon 71
    • Kelp greenling 70
    • Cabezon 67

    4 kt NEL 9:33 PM · 5.7 ftH 2:32 AM · 8.4 ft

  • Port Gardner

    Bay · 3.6 mi

    69
    Top: Kelp greenlingShoulder season
    • Kelp greenling 69
    • Chinook salmon 68
    • Cabezon 66

    4 kt NEL 9:37 PM · 5.7 ftH 2:36 AM · 8.4 ft

  • Maple Cove

    Bay · 4.1 mi

    69
    Top: Kelp greenlingShoulder season
    • Kelp greenling 69
    • Chinook salmon 68
    • Cabezon 61

    4 kt NEL 10:08 PM · 5.6 ftH 2:56 AM · 8.7 ft

  • Tulalip Bay

    Bay · 4.5 mi

    69
    Top: Kelp greenlingShoulder season
    • Kelp greenling 69
    • Chinook salmon 68
    • Cabezon 66

    4 kt NEL 9:33 PM · 5.7 ftH 2:32 AM · 8.4 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.