Puget Sound Salmon Forecasts 2023

Nice chinook salmon caught around Sekiu

This is the big forecast news dump we’ve been waiting for! There’s so much information on what we can expect with regards to salmon fishing in Puget Sound revealed at the beginning of North of Falcon with these forecasts now released.

There was also some framing of the kind of salmon seasons we can expect. I will unpack all of it for you in this blog post, including details about the nearly 4 million pinks (humpies) expected to return to Puget Sound in 2023!

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Washington State Steelhead update January, 2023

steelhead 15 lb buck
Steelhead 15 lb buck

We are about halfway through the month of January, and for many folks, the steelhead season in the state of Washington has been predictably frustrating. However, there are some bright spots you should certainly be aware of and some updates to the content here that I want to highlight.

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Understanding Puyallup River Fishing Regulations 2022

Puyallup River can draw quite a crowd during pink salmon season

Historically, the Puyallup and Carbon Rivers are places you can fish 7 days a week for several months of the summer/fall, and thousands of people each year look forward to this wonderful part of the calendar.

However, in 2022 the fishing regulations have changed significantly, limiting how many days a week these rivers can be fished and the months they are open. This blog article gets to the bottom of why things changed.

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Washington Winter Steelhead Update January 2021

Nice coastal steelhead January 2021
Nice steelhead from a coastal Washington river in January 2021

We are only a couple of weeks into 2021 and the early winter steelhead season is winding down already. I like to think of the winter steelhead season as broken down into thirds: Early, middle, and late.

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Orting Foothills Trail Biking

The Foothills Trail runs parallel to the Carbon River
The Foothills Trail runs parallel to the Carbon River for a stretch near the town of Orting

Okay, so maybe you can’t quite convince your family to join you on an epic quest for winter steelhead or blackmouth, but recreating outside together is an essential part of experiencing the PNW Best Life.

Last week, we were finally rewarded with a nice stretch of sun, and that pattern looks to repeat for most of this week as well. All bets are off after that! So why not dust off the ole bike and get the family out riding (or walking) on the awesome Foothills Trail near Orting, WA?

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Lake 22 Hike

Lake 22 hike mt pilchuck barely in view
Mt Pilchuck barely in view

It’s fall and you might be looking to hit that popular summer hike that you are hoping has less foot traffic on it now. Lake 22 would not be such a hike, but the views and the trail are worth braving the crowds.

As we made our way down, we probably passed 30-40 people and saw another 20 staging near the trailhead with a completely full parking lot by 10 am on a Saturday in late October.

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