Months come from each species' own season curve around Oak Harbor. A strong month is strong for that fish, not a ranking against the others. Time of day, when it is shown, is today's forecast and moves with the tide.
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 | ||||||||||||
| Coho Salmon | ||||||||||||
| Halibut | ||||||||||||
| Lingcod | ||||||||||||
| Dungeness Crab | ||||||||||||
| Black Rockfish | ||||||||||||
| Chum salmon | ||||||||||||
| Surfperch | ||||||||||||
| Flounder / Sole (Flatfish) | ||||||||||||
| Herring | ||||||||||||
| Squid - Opal |
Chinook Salmon: January none, February poor, March fair, April good, May excellent, June excellent, July peak, August peak, September good, October poor, November poor, December poor. Coho Salmon: January none, February none, March poor, April poor, May none, June fair, July peak, August peak, September peak, October fair, November none, December none. Halibut: January none, February poor, March excellent, April peak, May peak, June peak, July excellent, August good, September poor, October poor, November none, December none. Lingcod: January good, February excellent, March excellent, April fair, May fair, June poor, July fair, August fair, September good, October fair, November good, December good. Dungeness Crab: January fair, February poor, March poor, April fair, May fair, June excellent, July peak, August excellent, September excellent, October good, November fair, December fair. Black Rockfish: January fair, February fair, March good, April good, May good, June good, July good, August good, September fair, October fair, November fair, December fair. Chum salmon: January none, February none, March none, April none, May none, June none, July none, August none, September excellent, October peak, November peak, December none. Surfperch: January poor, February fair, March fair, April fair, May fair, June excellent, July excellent, August excellent, September good, October good, November fair, December fair. Flounder / Sole (Flatfish): January poor, February fair, March good, April excellent, May excellent, June good, July excellent, August good, September fair, October fair, November fair, December fair. Herring: January excellent, February peak, March good, April fair, May poor, June poor, July poor, August poor, September fair, October good, November fair, December fair. Squid - Opal: January peak, February poor, March fair, April good, May fair, June poor, July none, August poor, September excellent, October peak, November peak, December peak.
These are today's forecast windows, taken at the spot leading each species. They are not a standing schedule.
Peaks in July and August.
Oak Harbor (Whidbey Island, north Puget Sound near Skagit/Fraser feed) holds resident 'blackmouth' immature Chinook through winter/spring providing a moderate baseline, with a spring feeder build in May-June. The dominant peak is the July-August (weeks 28-32) migratory summer run of mature Chinook staging and moving toward the Skagit, Stillaguamish, and Fraser systems, tapering through September as fish enter rivers.
Peaks in July, August and September.
Coho move into Oak Harbor's Whidbey Island waters (Saratoga Passage/Skagit Bay approaches) primarily as maturing adults staging for fall spawning runs, peaking late August through mid-September (weeks 34–36) when schools of feeding coho are thickest in Puget Sound. A modest spring/summer bump (weeks 13–18) reflects immature 'resident' or early-returning coho feeding on baitfish, while winter shows near-absence as fish have either spawned out or remain far offshore.
Peaks in April, May and June.
Pacific halibut in the Strait of Juan de Fuca/Deception Pass waters near Oak Harbor peak in late spring through early summer (May–July) as fish move onto shallower feeding grounds after winter spawning in deeper offshore waters. Abundance dips in late fall and winter when many adults migrate to deep-water spawning aggregations, though a residual local population keeps the curve above zero year-round.
Excellent in February and March.
Lingcod are a resident, structure-oriented species in Oak Harbor's Whidbey Island waters and are present year-round, but abundance peaks late winter through spring (Feb–May) when mature fish migrate onto shallow rocky reefs to spawn and males guard nests. Post-spawn dispersal and summer movement to deeper water lowers nearshore density into summer, with a gradual autumn rebuild.
Peaks in July.
Dungeness crab are present year-round in Oak Harbor's Whidbey Island waters, but abundance of legal, hard-shell crab peaks in mid-to-late summer (weeks 25-28) after the spring/early-summer molt when crabs harden and fill out. A late-summer soft-shell molt causes a slight dip, followed by a secondary fall recovery, with the lowest legal-size abundance in late winter/early spring as post-molt and dispersal reduce catchable biomass.
Good in March, April, May, June, July and August.
Black rockfish are resident, non-migratory reef dwellers in the Puget Sound/Whidbey Island area, so abundance stays near baseline year-round with no true biological gaps. A modest spring peak (March–April) reflects post-winter movement toward shallower nearshore reefs and pre-spawn/parturition aggregations as water warms, with abundance easing slightly in the coldest late-winter weeks when fish hold deeper and less concentrated.
Peaks in October and November.
Puget Sound chum are a fall run; Oak Harbor waters near Whidbey Island see fish staging and migrating from late September, peaking in mid-to-late October (weeks 40-42) as they push toward natal streams. Abundance drops sharply by mid-November after spawners move into rivers, with the stock biologically absent through the rest of the year.
Excellent in June, July and August.
Shiner and striped surfperch are resident year-round in Oak Harbor's Whidbey Island waters, so abundance never drops to zero. The strongest peak comes in fall (Sept–Nov) when surfperch stage in the shallows around eelgrass beds and gravel beaches to give birth to live young, with a smaller spring bump as fish move inshore with warming water.
Excellent in April, May and July.
Flatfish (starry flounder, sole, and Pacific halibut recruits) inhabit Oak Harbor's Whidbey Basin sand flats year-round, so no true biological zero exists. Abundance builds through spring as fish move shallow to feed and spawn, peaking April–May, with a secondary late-summer bump when juvenile recruits and halibut foraging overlap on the flats before winter dispersal to deeper channels.
Peaks in February.
Pacific Herring in Oak Harbor's Whidbey/Penn Cove waters peak in late winter to early spring (Feb–Apr) when mature adults school densely to spawn on eelgrass and shallow substrate. Abundance drops through summer as spent fish disperse into deeper Sound waters, with a modest fall uptick as juveniles and pre-spawn schools aggregate before the next spawning cycle.
Peaks in January, October, November and December.
Opal (market) squid in Puget Sound waters near Oak Harbor show a bimodal inshore spawning presence, with a strong late spring/early summer aggregation (roughly April–June) and a larger fall run (September–November) when squid move into nearshore piers and lit waters. Numbers thin over the coldest deep-water winter weeks and the mid-summer lull between spawning waves.
It depends on the species. Chinook Salmon peaks in July and August. Coho Salmon peaks in July, August and September. Halibut peaks in April, May and June. Lingcod is excellent in February and March. Dungeness Crab peaks in July. Black Rockfish is good in March, April, May, June, July and August.
On November 1, 2026, the forecast windows are Dungeness Crab 8 AM to 6 PM, Surfperch 10 AM to 6 PM, Herring 10 AM to 6 PM and Squid - Opal 10 AM to 6 PM. These are today's model windows, not a standing schedule.