Today's best fishing in Friday Harbor: 6 AM to 9 AM
This page is full of real data to show you what you can see with ReelCaster in Friday Harbor.
The next 14 days in Friday Harbor
Data from: ECMWF + GFS + BlueCasterTwo weeks ahead
Most forecasts stop at the weekend. This one runs a full 14 days, so you can pick the day before you book the time off.
One number, out of 100
The best score anything in Friday Harbor reaches that day. Green is good, amber is fair, red is slow, and you can read it from across the room.
8,064 scores behind it
24 spots, every hour of every day, out to 14. This row is the best of them.
Hour by hour today at Middle Bank
All times PDTOne real spot
A city has no tide or wind of its own, so this is Middle Bank, the most fished mark in Friday Harbor, scored for Coho Salmon.
Six readings, one clock
Tide, current, wind, sea, air and sky, all lined up on the same hour, so you can see what is actually driving the score.
Currents, not just tides
Modelled flow for the water off Friday Harbor, so you can see slack coming before you leave the dock.
The spots people actually fish in Friday Harbor
18 more on the mapA year of catch reports
The order here is how much each mark actually gets fished, not today's guess. The busiest water in Friday Harbor comes first.
Today's number too
Beside each name is the best score that spot reaches today, so you can weigh a proven mark against a good forecast.
Every mark has a page
Its own chart, its own species and its own rules, worked out the same way as everything above.
- 87Middle BankKnown markBest 6 AM–9 AM · Late flood · Flat · Mixed bottom
- 86Hein BankBest 7 AM–10 AM · High slack · Flat
- 89Partridge BankBest 6 AM–9 AM · Early ebb · Flat
- 88Iceberg Point (Lopez Island)Best 6 AM–9 AM · High slack · Flat · Rock reef
- 88Mackaye Harbor / Lopez Island SouthBest 6 AM–9 AM · High slack · Flat · Mixed bottom
- 88Eastern BankBest 6 AM–9 AM · Early ebb · Flat
Every spot we score in Friday Harbor
Bathymetry: NONNA-10 + NRCanReal charted seabed
Depth soundings, not a stock map. The banks, reefs and drop-offs are where you can see them.
24 marks, all scored
Every spot we cover around Friday Harbor, each one carrying its own number for today.
Point at any of them
The name, how busy a mark it is, and the tide, sea and seabed at its best hour.
Create custom spots
Our full model on your custom private spots.
- Drop a pinAnywhere on the water. The ledge you found, the bay nobody talks about.
- Name itYour name for it, not ours. It stays private to your account.
- Choose speciesPick what you fish there, and it starts scoring from the next run.
What you can keep in Friday Harbor today
- Chinook SalmonKeep in places2 a day · min 22"Open at 1 of 24 spots we cover
- LingcodKeep in places1 a day · min 26"Open at 1 of 21 spots we cover
- Coho SalmonKeep in places2 a dayOpen at 20 of 22 spots we cover
- HalibutKeep1 a dayOpen at all 21 spots we cover
- CabezonKeep1 a day · min 18"Open at all 7 spots we cover
- Rockfish (Aggregate)ClosedShut at all 20 spots we cover
- Dungeness CrabClosedShut at all 2 spots we cover
- Kelp GreenlingClosedShut at all 6 spots we cover
Rules differ between marine areas and change in season. Check WDFW for the marine area you are fishing before you keep anything.
What you can catch in Friday Harbor
Chinook Salmon
Open at 1 of 23- Peak season
- Peak Jun-Aug
- Methods described
- 3 methods
Coho Salmon
Open at 20 of 22- Peak season
- Peak Jun-Sep
- Methods described
- 3 methods
Halibut
Open at all 21 spots- Peak season
- Peak Apr-Jul
- Methods described
- 2 methods
Lingcod
Open at 1 of 21- Peak season
- Peak Dec-Feb, May-Aug
- Methods described
- 3 methods
That was one day. Pro opens the next fourteen.
Every spot on this map, hour by hour, two weeks out, with alerts when your water crosses the score you set.
$0 today, then $33 USD a year, which is $2.75 a month. Card required, cancel any time.
When to fish Friday Harbor
Each row is shaded against that species' own best month here, so a dark cell means a good month for that fish rather than a comparison between them.
| Species | January | February | March | April | May | June | July | August | September | October | November | December |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chinook Salmon | ||||||||||||
| Lingcod | ||||||||||||
| Rockfish (Aggregate) | ||||||||||||
| Coho Salmon | ||||||||||||
| Halibut | ||||||||||||
| Dungeness Crab | ||||||||||||
| Kelp Greenling | ||||||||||||
| Cabezon |
Chinook Salmon: January fair, February fair, March good, April good, May poor, June good, July peak, August peak, September good, October poor, November poor, December fair. Lingcod: January good, February good, March fair, April fair, May fair, June good, July good, August good, September fair, October fair, November fair, December good. Rockfish (Aggregate): January fair, February fair, March fair, April good, May good, June good, July good, August good, September good, October fair, November fair, December fair. Coho Salmon: January none, February none, March none, April none, May none, June excellent, July peak, August peak, September peak, October poor, November none, December none. Halibut: January none, February poor, March good, April peak, May peak, June peak, July peak, August good, September poor, October none, November none, December none. Dungeness Crab: January fair, February fair, March fair, April poor, May fair, June fair, July excellent, August peak, September excellent, October good, November fair, December fair. Kelp Greenling: January fair, February fair, March fair, April fair, May good, June good, July good, August good, September good, October good, November good, December fair. Cabezon: January good, February good, March fair, April fair, May fair, June fair, July fair, August fair, September fair, October fair, November good, December good.
- Chinook Salmon. Friday Harbor (San Juan Islands) sees a strong summer peak in July–August as maturing Fraser and Puget Sound Chinook stage and migrate through Haro Strait and adjacent waters. A secondary winter/spring presence reflects resident 'blackmouth' (immature feeder Chinook) that overwinter in the San Juans, dipping in late spring as they disperse and post-spawn adults exit the system.
- Lingcod. Lingcod are resident ambush predators in the San Juans year-round, so abundance never drops to zero. The curve peaks May–July when males guard nests on rocky reefs and post-spawn females recover in shallower water, with a slight late-winter dip during deep spawning migrations.
- Rockfish (Aggregate). Rockfish (copper, quillback, black, yelloweye, etc.) in the San Juan Islands are long-lived, highly site-attached residents of rocky reefs and pinnacles. Biological abundance is essentially flat year-round with no migratory pulse, though winter storms and summer thermoclines can shift depth distribution without changing total presence.
- Coho Salmon. Coho returning to Puget Sound and Fraser systems transit San Juan Channel and surrounding Friday Harbor waters with resident 'bluebacks' building through early summer and peak ocean-run adults staging late July through mid-September. Abundance collapses by mid-October as fish push into natal rivers, with no meaningful saltwater presence November through May.
- Halibut. Pacific Halibut in the San Juan Islands show a clear bi-modal abundance pattern driven by spawning migration: fish move offshore to deep water (>200 fathoms) in winter to spawn, return inshore in spring with a peak in late April–May, briefly thin in early summer, then peak again in mid-summer (July) as feeding fish concentrate on banks like Hein and Salmon Bank. Abundance tails off through fall as fish drift back to deeper shelf waters.
- Dungeness Crab. Dungeness crab are resident year-round in the San Juans, so abundance never drops to zero; the summer peak (July–early August) reflects post-molt hardened adults filling out after the spring/early-summer molt, while a mid-spring dip corresponds to the soft-shell molting period when many crabs are buried and vulnerable. Legal-size abundance eases slightly in fall as fished-down populations recover before winter.
- Kelp Greenling. Kelp Greenling are year-round residents in San Juan Island kelp and rocky reef habitats, so abundance stays near baseline most of the year. A modest late-summer through early-fall peak (Aug–Oct) reflects post-spawn aggregation on shallow reefs and increased juvenile recruitment to nearshore kelp, with adult males guarding nests in fall further concentrating fish in accessible inshore zones.
- Cabezon. Cabezon are highly resident, non-migratory ambush predators on rocky reefs around the San Juan Islands, so biological abundance is essentially flat year-round. Localized aggregations occur during the winter/early-spring spawn when males guard nests, but total stock presence in Friday Harbor waters does not meaningfully change week to week.
Before you go
Water around Friday Harbor falls into 3 areas, and the rules can differ between them. Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife sets them.
- 6 6 — East Juan de Fuca Strait
- 7 7 — San Juan Islands
- 18-11
Saltwater fishing licence
Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife · 2026-27
Annual, Resident, 16 to 69: $40.71
Puget Sound Dungeness crab $11.89, required to drop a pot in Puget Sound, on top of a shellfish licence.
A saltwater licence does not cover shellfish. The combination licence covers both and works out cheaper than buying them apart.
Fishing Friday Harbor
Friday Harbor sits in the middle of a tidal crossroads. Haro Strait runs deep and cold along the west side of San Juan Island, San Juan Channel splits the archipelago down the middle, and the eastern end of the Strait of Juan de Fuca opens to the south over Salmon Bank and Hein Bank. Currents here move a lot of water past rock, and that is the whole story: sand lance and herring get pushed against banks, points and reef edges, and everything else feeds where the tide sets up. The international boundary with Canadian water lies just west of the island, so a short run can put you in a different jurisdiction than the one you launched in.
Chinook are present in some form most of the year. Resident blackmouth hold around bait through the cool months and fish well into early spring, then abundance softens in late spring before mature Fraser and Puget Sound fish push through Haro Strait and past the banks in July and August. Coho show up in June and build through September, then leave. Halibut are a spring and early summer story on Salmon Bank, Hein Bank and the Strait edges, thinning as fish drift back toward deeper shelf water. Lingcod, rockfish, cabezon and kelp greenling are resident on the reefs and stay catchable year round, shifting depth rather than disappearing. Dungeness crab fill out after the spring molt and fish best from midsummer into fall.
Plan around the exchange, not the clock. Trolling and mooching work the salmon rips, jigging covers the reefs, and slack water is often the only workable window on the bigger banks.
Work the tide, not the clock. Cattle Pass rips hard on a big ebb, so aim for the last of the flood and the soft water behind slack, then drift jigs along the San Juan Channel edges. Salmon Bank and Hein Bank stack bait when current sweeps the top, and a mooched cut plug in 80 to 120 feet gets bit. Haro Strait fishes best early, before the afternoon westerly sets wind against tide and turns it ugly. For lingcod, drop straight down on the rock and hold bottom.
Common questions about Friday Harbor
›What is the best time of year to fish Friday Harbor?
Midsummer is the strongest all round window, with Chinook peaking in July and August as maturing Fraser and Puget Sound fish push through Haro Strait and the surrounding channels. Coho build from June and hold at their best from July into September, while Pacific halibut run hottest from April through July on the banks. If you want bottomfish instead, lingcod fish well through the winter months and again in summer, and rockfish stay steady on the reefs almost all year.
›Which fish can you catch around Friday Harbor and where do they hold?
The headline species are Chinook and coho salmon, Pacific halibut, lingcod and rockfish, with kelp greenling, cabezon and Dungeness crab rounding out the mix. Salmon travel the current lines of Haro Strait, San Juan Channel and the edges of Salmon Bank, while halibut stack on gravel and cobble banks such as Salmon Bank and Hein Bank. Lingcod, rockfish, cabezon and greenling are resident fish that sit tight to rocky reefs, pinnacles and kelp edges. Dungeness crab work the softer bottom in the shallower bays.
›What techniques work best for salmon in the San Juan Islands?
Trolling is the workhorse method around Friday Harbor, letting you cover the tide rips and drop offs where Chinook and coho stage. Mooching and live bait drifting are long standing local approaches when fish are stacked on a bait ball or holding along a specific current seam. Many anglers switch to jigging when they mark concentrated bait and salmon in the water column.
›Can you fish from shore in Friday Harbor or do you need a boat?
Shore access can produce, because several of the resident species hold within casting range of rocky shoreline and kelp edges, including rockfish, kelp greenling and cabezon. Crab gear such as pots and ring nets can also be worked from docks and beaches where access allows. That said, the marquee fisheries here are boat based, since Chinook, coho and halibut all relate to offshore current lines and banks like Salmon Bank and Hein Bank that shore anglers cannot reach.
›When is the best time to crab for Dungeness near Friday Harbor?
Dungeness crab are resident year round but the quality swings with the molt cycle. Spring is the weak stretch, when many adults are soft shelled and buried in the substrate. Fishing improves sharply from July, peaks in August and stays excellent into September as hardened post molt crabs feed heavily in shallower water, then eases through October and the winter.
›What conditions and safety issues should anglers plan for around Friday Harbor?
Haro Strait and San Juan Channel move enormous volumes of water on each tidal exchange, so strong currents, standing rips and sudden chop are normal rather than exceptional, and small boats should plan trips around the tide rather than the clock. Fog and building afternoon wind are both common in the islands, so carry proper navigation gear and monitor the forecast before crossing open water. You are also fishing near the international boundary, with Canadian waters immediately west, so know which side of the line you are on and which management area you are fishing before you drop gear.