Holy smoked salmon! We’ve hit August in a flash and, by now, many anglers may have enjoyed chances to hook a Chinook, sockeye, and coho salmon, or maybe even a “trifecta” of those species, in what’s clearly turned out to be a memorable summer.
In early June, my fishing journey began in Marine Area 11 (Tacoma-Vashon Island) around the Tacoma area off the Clay Banks where we landed a nice hatchery Chinook! This came on the heels of decent coho fishing in Marine Area 10 (Seattle/Bremerton area) and an early morning hatchery Chinook bite at the Tulalip Bay Terminal Fishery. Fast forward to July when I ventured to northcentral Washington for a massive Columbia River sockeye run that eclipsed 697,707 by July 9 the highest return since Bonneville Dam was constructed in 1938—waxing the preseason forecast of 401,700—and dipped into an easy limit of sockeye at Brewster Pool and a batch of summer Chinook at Chelan Falls. While this was happening east of the Cascades, a promising sockeye run of 56,750 was heading up the Skagit River and into Baker Lake and should carry the lake fishery well into August. Could the record return of 65,000 sockeye in 2023 be surpassed in 2024? Stay tuned, but my gut feeling has me leaning toward yes! To top it off, summer crabbing was phenomenal in Puget Sound when it opened last month. The ocean from Neah Bay to Ilwaco was good Chinook and coho fishing. I didn’t get a chance to venture to the Strait of Juan de Fuca between Sekiu and Port Angeles (Marine Areas 5 and 6), but my friends were raving about the decent hatchery Chinook action they found on a Fourth of July holiday trip.
This kind of bliss reminds me of why I enjoy being on the water during the summer. You can literally point a finger in any direction and it’s likely you’ll have a fairly good chance to catch a fish! Sure, we’re all limited to how much free time we have, but it’d be wise to take advantage of some well-deserved R&R on the water in August.
August Angling
My top spots for salmon this month include Buoy 10 near the Columbia River mouth; Baker Lake in Whatcom County; possibly Wenatchee Lake in Chelan County; the open marine areas of Puget Sound; and Long Beach, just outside of Ilwaco off the southern coast. While the Columbia River Chinook and coho returns aren’t as glamorous compared to previous years—the total fall Chinook forecast of 547,800 is similar to the five-year return average of around 564,300 and lines up with the 2023 forecast of 547,400 (720,237 was the actual return in 2023)—they still should generate excitement at Buoy 10 and off Ilwaco and all coastal points to the north, if the ocean is still open in August. The Columbia coho forecast of 356,900 is down from 809,500 but is a fair number and will offer moments of exhilaration.
If there was one area to place on my radar in late summer, it’d be off Long Beach at Cape Disappointment (ignore the name because it’s not disappointing at all if the salmon are there), where I first got hooked on this shallow water fishery more than a decade ago. We’d troll in 20 to 50 feet of water with just a banana weight and whole herring through the huge schools of anchovies that would constantly make our rod tip vibrate. Keeping up the speed on your boat by going at a fast clip of 2.5 to 3.5 miles per hour is vital and you only need 13 to 15 pulls of line off the reel. Then kick back and wait for those kings to smash your bait and head out into the horizon like a fast-moving locomotive.
Just inside the Columbia River mouth is the infamous Buoy 10 salmon fishery where on busy weekends there’ll be an armada of boats stretching in all directions as far as your eye can see.
Look for snappy salmon around the “Wing Walls” just outside the Port of Ilwaco, Desdemona Flats, above and below the Astoria-Megler Bridge on both sides of the Washington and Oregon border, and the Blind Channels just above the bridge on the Washington side.
If you want to stay close to home it’d be wise to hit Marine Areas 10 and 11 for coho and possibly Chinook if the quota stretches into August. Same goes for Marine Area 9 for Chinook and then in August, hatchery coho will remain fair game. Marine Area 7 is open for hatchery coho in August but could be closed for kings if the quota is achieved. Check the WDFW website for any updates on openings or closures.
Continue to Crab
Pulling up a pot full of Dungeness crab this summer has been sweet. Crabbing is open through Sept. 2 (with crabbing allowed on Thursdays to Mondays of each week) in Marine areas 12 north of Ayock Point, 9, 8-2, 8-1, 6, 5, and 4 east of Tatoosh-Bonilla Island line. Marine Areas 10 and 11 are open for crabbing through Aug. 26 (with crabbing allowed on Sundays and Mondays of each week). Marine Area 7 South is open through Sept. 30 (with crabbing allowed on Thursdays through Mondays of each week). Marine Area 7 North could open from Aug. 18 through Sept. 30 (with crabbing allowed on Thursdays through Mondays of each week), although the opening date is dependent on in-season, shell-condition test results. Be sure to fill out your summer crab catch cards immediately after landing crabs and prior to re-setting your traps. Anglers who crab in Marine Area 7 after Labor Day weekend will need a winter catch card. You can find the news release by going to the WDFW website at: wdfw.wa.gov/.
