Puget Sound Fishing Report: Salmon Runs, Crab Pots, and Trout Action

This is Artificial Lure and you’re tuned in for your Puget Sound angling report on this brisk Wednesday, October 8th, 2025. If you’re heading out around Seattle, here’s what you need to know to set your drag and expectations right. Starting with the sunrise at 7:18 AM and sunset just after 6:33 PM, you’ll have a solid shot at both dawn and dusk bites, which should be lively today with good tidal movement. Seattle’s tides are looking prime for morning and evening fishing—expect a big high tide at 7:16 AM around 14.7 feet, then a slack out to low at 1:10 PM before another push back up to a 15.4-foot high at 6:37 PM. This swing promises active fish near structure and channels, especially around high slack early and late in the day, according to tides.net. Weather conditions are seasonably classic for October—a cool start near 50 degrees, possible cloud cover or fog in the morning, and breaking into the low 60s if the sun pops. Keep a windbreaker handy, as brisk breezes can roll in off Elliott Bay and the Narrows. If you’re after salmon, you’re in luck—anglers are still riding high on the buzz of a historic run. Puget Sound Energy and WDFW just announced sockeye numbers returning to the Skagit River system shattered records: almost 92,000 sockeye made it back from June through October, an incredible recovery story for local waters. While most of those fish are past their peak in our area, late-run silvers (coho) are still patrolling local beaches and estuaries, and hatchery chum are beginning to stage at creek mouths. Recent catches have been dominated by coho averaging 4–8 pounds, with a few chrome-bright stragglers in the mix. Cast small herring-pattern spoons, chartreuse hoochies behind a flasher, or even twitch marabou jigs in deeper pockets. The Buzz Bomb remains a local favorite—pink for coho and blue or green for chum. Try the Point No Point and Lincoln Park beaches on an outgoing tide for walkers and casters. Saltwater trout folks are reporting solid cutthroat action in the southern Sound, especially in the mornings near creeks and tide rips. Skinny-profile minnow lures, like silver Kastmasters or the smaller Flatfish, are drawing strikes, especially when twitched erratically—advice straight from Gone Fishing Northwest. If bottom-fishing is your game, Dungeness crab have been active in deeper pots, though you’ll need to work for a legal haul closer to Seattle as pressure increases. Squid are just starting to show in Elliott Bay; night jigs off Pier 86 or the Edmonds pier could pay off as we get closer to full fall runs. Hot spots? My picks this week: - Shilshole Bay and Meadow Point for coho and sea-run cutthroat—drift just off the eelgrass at dawn. - Dash Point Pier for a bit of mixed-bag action: salmon, perch, maybe an early winter blackmouth if you’re lucky. Freshwater, the rivers have colored up from rains but are still churning with salmon, though most fish are getting dark. If you’re chasing the last of the bright ones, head to This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI.