Waterlands

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Chinook salmonRetention open

Flat · Washington

Skokomish Flats

47.35°N · 123.12°W · Flat · Puget Sound and Hood Canal

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Best score today · 6 PM · Chinook salmon

64/100Good
Now
542 AM PDT
Best window
4-9 PMEbb tide
Tide now
High8.8 ft

Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + ECMWF · Waterlands engine

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 2 AM · now

Time2ANOW
Score54Good
Tide8.8 ftHigh
Wind2 kn SWgusts 6 · steady
Air temp52°Cool
WeatherOvercast93% cloud

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)

Source: WDFW · synced yesterday

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

Skokomish Flats

Depth
1-3 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Flat · Inner · ProtectedFlat · flat bottom
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 Skokomish Flats

Skokomish Flats is a flat in Puget Sound and Hood Canal, Washington. Depth is 1-3 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads flat, inner water and protected.

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

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.
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.
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

  • Ayres Point

    Cape · 1.7 mi

    63
    Top: Chinook salmonPeak season
    • Chinook salmon 63
    • Kelp greenling 56
    • Cabezon 53

    2 kt SWL 9:06 AM · 1.1 ftH 4:13 PM · 11.6 ft

  • Indian Hole

    Bay · 1.1 mi

    61
    Top: Chinook salmonPeak season
    • Chinook salmon 61
    • Kelp greenling 56
    • Coho salmon 49

    5 kt WSWL 9:06 AM · 1.1 ftH 4:13 PM · 11.6 ft

  • Annas Bay

    Bay · 1.2 mi

    61
    Top: Chinook salmonPeak season
    • Chinook salmon 61
    • Coho salmon 49
    • Kelp greenling 49

    5 kt WSWL 9:06 AM · 1.1 ftH 4:13 PM · 11.6 ft

  • The Great Bend

    Bend · 1.0 mi

    60
    Top: Chinook salmonPeak season
    • Chinook salmon 60
    • Kelp greenling 54
    • Coho salmon 48

    2 kt SWL 9:06 AM · 1.1 ftH 4:13 PM · 11.6 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.