Skagit River Salmon Fishing 2024

The Skagit River is the premier river of the north cascades draining a massive watershed and providing up to 80% of the influx of freshwater into the Puget Sound.

Winding through miles of mountainous terrain, foothills, and farmland before dumping into Skagit Bay between Stanwood and La Conner.

This unique Skagit River salmon fishing page is meant to provide you with a one-stop resource for planning a fishing trip to the Skagit River.

Many references on the internet to Skagit River fishing will be filled with out-of-date information, but this page is updated and fed automatically based on data being published by a variety of sources to help you have success fishing on the Skagit River.

Whether you are reading this to prepare for your first-ever fishing trip to the Skagit River or this is your local favorite place to fish, I hope you find these resources helpful.

Table of Contents

Current River Conditions on the Skagit River

If you know anything about fishing for salmon and steelhead it’s that the river conditions often determine your go/nogo decision.

There are many river flow (measured in Cubic Feet per Second) graphs you need to keep an eye on in evaluating the Skagit River conditions for fishing.

All of the river flow graphs or links on this page come with the following disclaimer:

All data values are qualified as provisional and are subject to revision. Provisional data are released on the condition that neither PNWBestLife.com, the USGS nor the United States Government may be held liable for any damages resulting from its use. Please see http://help.waterdata.usgs.gov/policies/provisional-data-statement for more information

Lower Skagit River near Mount Vernon CFS

Refer to the following link for the authoritative but still provisional CFS data on the USGS site: Skagit River near Mount Vernon CFS.

The above link allows you to select for gauge height as well and is a good way to evaluate the lower section of the Skagit River for fishability.

Skagit River near Marblemount CFS

Refer to the following link for the authoritative but still provisional CFS data on the USGS site: Skagit River near Marblemount CFS.

If you are considering fishing higher up on the Skagit River, looking at the flows near Marblemount may be more helpful.

Skagit River Salmon Fishing 2024

Here’s an account of where we are right now though in this run:

Updated status on hatchery coho returning to the Skagit River

The above graph will update every Thursday typically, with the first coho usually arriving to the hatchery in the first half of September.

When to fish for coho on the Skagit River?

When looking at a chart like the above, you want to visually ascertain when the run really begins to be fishable in most years. The Marblemount hatchery where the Skagit Spring coho are headed for is about 80 miles from where the river dumps into Skagit Bay.

There will be coho present in the lower river in late August and certainly by the first week of September. The graph is only capturing when they arrive at the hatchery and the early part of a salmon run typically will spend more time in the river compared to later in the run when they charge upriver with much more urgency.

Forecast for 2024 Skagit River Coho

After several very challenging middle-late 2010’s, the Skagit river coho run starting in 2020 has really rebounded driving great in-river fisheries and prolific North Puget Sound opportunities.

Where are we expected to be in 2024 though?

According to the PFMC Data Sheet presented at this year’s North of Falcon, the Skagit Coho return is supposed to be around 63,000 hatchery fish and 27,000 natural spawners. Wow! If accurate, this would be one of the best runs of the past decade.

Fishing Regulations on the Skagit River for 2024-2025

Species	Date	Additional Rules
from the mouth (a line projected from the terminus of the jetty with McGlinn Island to the white monument on the easterly end of Ika Island, then to a white monument on the westerly end of Craft Island, then to a white monument near the corner of the levee on the westerly side of Dry Slough, and then to a white monument on the easterly side of Tom Moore Slough) to Hwy. 536 at Mt. Vernon (Memorial Hwy. Bridge) CRC (830)
All species	Mar. 1-Aug. 13	Selective gear rules. Except: Anglers fishing for sturgeon must use bait. Anglers may not use hooks that measure greater than 1/2” from point to shank, except anglers fishing for sturgeon may use single-point barbless hooks of any size.
All species	Aug. 14-Oct. 31	Night closure.
Dolly varden/bull trout	Mar. 1-Jan. 31	Min. size 20”. May be retained as part of trout daily limit.
Other trout	Mar. 1-Jan. 31	Statewide min. size/daily limit. Except: Cutthroat trout and wild rainbow trout min. size 14”.
Other game fish	Mar. 1-Jan. 31	Statewide min. size/daily limit.
Salmon	Sept. 1-Oct. 31	Min. size 12”. Daily limit 2. Release Chinook and chum.
from Hwy. 536 at Mt. Vernon (Memorial Hwy. Bridge) to mouth of Gilligan Creek CRC (830)
All species	June 1-Aug. 13	Selective gear rules. Except: Anglers fishing for sturgeon must use bait. Anglers may not use hooks that measure greater than 1/2” from point to shank, except anglers fishing for sturgeon may use single-point barbless hooks of any size.
	June 16-July 15	Night closure.
	Aug. 14-Oct. 31	Night closure.
Dolly varden/bull trout	June 1-Jan. 31	Min. size 20”. May be retained as part of trout daily limit.
Other trout	June 1-Jan. 31	Statewide min. size/daily limit. Except: Cutthroat trout and wild rainbow trout min. size 14”.
Other game fish	June 1-Jan. 31	Statewide min. size/daily limit.
Salmon	July 1-July 15	Min. size 12”. Daily limit 4. Release all salmon other than sockeye.
Salmon	Sept. 1-Oct. 31	Min. size 12”. Daily limit 2. Release Chinook and chum.
from mouth of Gilligan Creek to the Dalles Bridge at Concrete CRC (830)
All species	June 1-Aug. 31	Selective gear rules. Night closure. It is unlawful to use hooks other than those measuring 1/2” or less from point to shank.
	Sept. 1-Sept. 30	Single-point barbless hooks required. Bait prohibited. Night closure.
	Oct. 1-Oct. 31	Night closure.
Dolly varden/bull trout	June 1-Jan. 31	Min. size 20”. May be retained as part of trout daily limit.
Other trout	June 1-Jan. 31	Statewide min. size/daily limit. Except: Cutthroat trout and wild rainbow trout min. size 14”.
Other game fish	June 1-Jan. 31	Statewide min. size/daily limit.
Salmon	July 1-July 15	Min. size 12”. Daily limit 4. Release all salmon other than sockeye.
Salmon	Sept. 1-Oct. 31	Min. size 12”. Daily limit 2. Release Chinook and chum.
from the Dalles Bridge at Concrete to 200’ below the mouth of Baker River CRC (830)
All species	June 1-Sept. 15	Selective gear rules. Night closure. It is unlawful to use hooks other than those measuring 1/2” or less from point to shank.
	Sept. 16-Sept. 30	Night closure. Bait prohibited. Single-point barbless hooks required.
	Oct. 1-Oct. 31	Night closure.
Dolly varden/bull trout	June 1-Jan. 31	Min. size 20”. May be retained as part of trout daily limit.
Other game fish	June 1-Jan. 31	Statewide min. size/daily limit.
Salmon	Sept. 16-Oct. 31	Min. size 12”. Daily limit 2. Release Chinook and chum.
between a line projected across the thread of the river 200’ above the east bank of the Baker River and a line projected across the thread of the river 200’ below the west bank of the Baker River CRC (830)
All species	June 1-Sept. 15	CLOSED WATERS.
	Sept. 16-Sept. 30	Single-point barbless hooks required. Bait prohibited. Night closure.
	Oct. 1-Oct. 31	Night closure.
Dolly varden/bull trout	Sept. 16-Jan. 31	Min. size 20”. May be retained as part of trout daily limit.
Other trout	Sept. 16-Jan. 31	Statewide min. size/daily limit. Except: Cutthroat trout and wild rainbow trout min. size 14”.
Other game fish	Sept. 16-Jan. 31	Statewide min. size/daily limit.
Salmon	Sept. 16-Oct. 31	Min. size 12”. Daily limit 2. Release Chinook and chum.
from a point 200’ upstream of the mouth of the Baker River to the Hwy. 530 Bridge at Rockport CRC (830)
All species	June 1-Sept. 15	Selective gear rules. Night closure. Anglers may not use hooks that measure greater than 1/2” from point to shank.
	Sept. 16-Sept. 30	Single-point barbless hooks required. Bait prohibited. Night closure.
	Oct. 1-Oct. 31	Night closure.
Dolly varden/bull trout	June 1-Jan. 31	Min. size 20”. May be retained as part of trout daily limit.
Other trout	June 1-Jan. 31	Statewide min. size/daily limit. Except: Cutthroat trout and wild rainbow trout min. size 14”.
Other game fish	June 1-Jan. 31	Statewide min. size/daily limit.
Salmon	Sept. 16-Oct. 31	Min. size 12”. Daily limit 2. Release Chinook and chum.
from Hwy. 530 Bridge at Rockport to Cascade River Rd. (Marblemount Bridge). CRC (830)
All species	June 1-July 15	Anti-snagging rule. Night closure.
	July 16-Sept. 15	Night closure. Selective gear rules. Anglers may not use hooks that measure greater than 1/2” from point to shank.
	Sept. 16-Sept. 30	Night closure. Bait prohibited. Single-point barbless hooks required.
	Oct. 1-Oct. 31	Night closure.
All game fish	June 1-Jan. 31	Statewide min. size/daily limit.
Salmon	July 1-July 15	Min. size 12”. Daily limit 4 including no more than 2 adults. Release all salmon other than hatchery Chinook.
Salmon	Sept. 16-Oct. 31	Min. size 12”. Daily limit 2. Release Chinook and chum.
from Cascade River Rd. (Marblemount Bridge) to Gorge powerhouse at Newhalem CRC (830)
All species		Internal combustion motors prohibited. Selective gear rules.
All game fish	June 1-Jan. 31	Catch and Release. Except: 2 hatchery steelhead may be retained.

Note: These fishing regulations do not include the portions of the Skagit River above the confluence with the Cascade River.

Please refer to WDFW’s emergency rules page for a full list of rules that are in effect.

It’s your responsibility as the recreational angler to know ALL of these rules, not just what is discussed here on the blog.

Full time PNW fisherman, hunter and harvester of local foods.

Kyle

Sharing content and insights on sustainable harvest through fishing, hunting, foraging, and shellfish gathering. I have 20+ years of experience building technology solutions and my goal is to build digital solutions to help you, on your learning journey toward more successful harvest recreation. I’ve lived in the PNW most of my life and I have 30+ years of angling experience to share.