Coho salmon
Excellent
The river run. Float gear with roe or a jig, or cast spinners and spoons in the slower tailouts after a rise in water.
Barkley Sound Fishing Report
Updated Fri, Sep 25, 2026 from live weather and water data
Barkley Sound between Bamfield and Ucluelet: summer chinook and coho, the Alberni Inlet sockeye route and the Broken Group Islands.
2/5
Slow. The wind owns today.45 km/h gusts make boat control the real battle.
Next tide
Low 6:09 p.m. model
Air / High
12 °C / 13 °C
Wind
SSE 3 km/h
Sources: modelled tide curve, Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.
Today's Fishing Report
Barkley Sound has cool water and fish holding a little deeper and slower. Today brings cloud cover, wind SSE around 3 km/h, rising pressure near 1005 hPa and a high of 13 °C. Tides: high 12:01 p.m., low 5:46 a.m. and 6:09 p.m.: the moving water either side of each change is when this place feeds. Water sits around 13 °C for the season (estimated). With the full moon, the solunar majors run 10:25 AM-12:25 PM and 10:25 PM-12:25 AM: the windows to build the day around.
Chinook (spring) salmon
Good
Fish are staging or moving to the rivers. On the coast, the deeper banks and the winter feeders; in Great Lakes rivers, drifted roe and spinners in the deeper runs.
Tie on: Float and roe · Swung fly through the tailout · Jerkbait, long pauses · Hair jig on the rock. Prime windows: 10:25 AM-12:25 PM, 10:25 PM-12:25 AM, 4:55 AM-5:55 AM. Similar at 13 °C. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.
Before you go
British Columbia requires a fishing licence for most fishing, from C$11.43. British Columbia fishing licence: cost, rules and where to buy →
Chasing chinook (spring) salmon here? Check the size and bag limits with BC Freshwater Fishing before you keep anything; the Chinook (spring) salmon page has the seasons and the tactics.
Fishing times for Barkley Sound today
Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today from sunrise (07:12), sunset (19:12), the moon and today's score, with the modelled tide changes in the panel below. Tap a bar to see why.
Bite planner
Solunar majors 10:25 AM-12:25 PM and 10:25 PM-12:25 AM; minor 4:55 AM-5:55 AM. Full Moon, 99% lit.
Water and weather
A modelled tide curve for these coordinates and the forecast for the day.
Tides (modelled)
Modelled sea level curve from Open-Meteo Marine for these coordinates, datum mean sea level. Fish the moving water either side of each change.
A model, not the official prediction: times can drift by tens of minutes inside bays and estuaries. Check the Canadian Hydrographic Service predictions at tides.gc.ca for the exact times before you rely on them.
Fri
LOW5:46 a.m.-1.09 m
HIGH12:01 p.m.1.36 m
LOW6:09 p.m.-1.02 m
Sat
HIGH12:11 a.m.1.23 m
LOW6:16 a.m.-1.18 m
HIGH12:30 p.m.1.36 m
LOW6:45 p.m.-1.28 m
Right now
Latest readings
Air temp12 °C
High / Low13 °C / 11 °C
WindSSE 3 km/h, gusts 5 km/h
Pressure100.51 kPa, rising
Sky / Rain100% cloud, 50%
Sunrise / Sunset07:12 / 19:12
MoonFull Moon, 99%
Water temp (seasonal)~13 °C est.
7-day fishing forecast: which day to fish Barkley Sound
The best day on Barkley Sound this week looks like Sunday Sep 27, at 4 out of 5, against 2 today. Every day is scored by the same engine as the report above: pressure trend first, then wind, sky and season. Pick a species and the plan for that day changes with it.
Best day this week: Sunday, Sep 27 — good at 4/5, falling pressure, usually the best window of a week.
Today, Sep 25 — Tough
45 km/h gusts make boat control the real battle.
- Solunar majors
- 10:25 AM-12:25 PM and 10:25 PM-12:25 AM
- Minor period
- 4:55 AM-5:55 AM
- Sun
- 07:12 to 19:12
- Moon
- Full Moon, 99% lit
- Sky and wind
- Rain, 45 km/h
- Rain chance
- 50%
Scores are a planning aid built from forecast data, not a promise.
Species guide
The species that matter on Barkley Sound: seasons written for the Canadian year, and how to fish each one. Today's ratings live in the report above.
Chinook (spring) salmon
BC coast: spring to late summer; Great Lakes tributaries: September and October
The biggest Pacific salmon, called spring or king on the BC coast. Feeds along the kelp lines, points and tide rips of the BC coast before running rivers in late summer; introduced to the Great Lakes, where it runs the tributaries in fall. Retention on the BC coast changes by area and by DFO fishery notice. Fish are staging or moving to the rivers. On the coast, the deeper banks and the winter feeders; in Great Lakes rivers, drifted roe and spinners in the deeper runs.
Coho salmon
BC coast: July to September; rivers: October and November
Silver, aggressive and surface-oriented. Feeds hard along the BC coast through summer and runs the Fraser Valley and Island rivers in fall, the Vedder and the Stamp among them. Hatchery coho are marked by a clipped adipose fin; what may be kept depends on the water and the DFO notice. The river run. Float gear with roe or a jig, or cast spinners and spoons in the slower tailouts after a rise in water.
Pacific halibut
Spring and summer on the BC coast, under DFO limits
The big flatfish of the outer coast: Bamfield, Ucluelet, Tofino, Nootka and the north coast. Annual and daily limits and size rules are set by DFO and change during the season. Fewer fish; the offshore banks on the calm days.
Lingcod
Spring to fall, with a winter closure in many areas
The toothy reef fish of the BC coast, on rock piles and pinnacles. Limits and closures vary by DFO management area. Fish move shallower; jig the rocky points.
Pink salmon
Late summer, mainly in odd-numbered years in the south
The smallest and most numerous Pacific salmon. In the south of BC the big runs come in odd-numbered years; the fish crowd the estuaries and the lower rivers in August and September. The run is over.
When to come: the Barkley Sound calendar
Activity by species and month for the Canadian year, and how the water warms and cools. Tap any cell.
Species activity by month
1 = slow, 5 = peak. Current month highlighted. January is midsummer here.
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Chinook (spring) salmon
Coho salmon
Pacific halibut
Lingcod
Pink salmon
SlowPeak
Water temperature through the year
Typical surface temperature for this water type in degrees Celsius; today is around 13 °C (estimated, not a reading).
Angler reports
Real reports from real anglers, reviewed before publishing. Nothing here is copied from a shop or a charter. The water log below tracks each day automatically.
No angler reports yetBe the first: your report helps every angler who checks Barkley Sound today.
Water log, last days
Auto-logged from live dataThu, Sep 24
3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Coho salmon led the card at excellent. High of 13 °C, wind to 21 km/h.
Wed, Sep 23
3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Coho salmon led the card at excellent. High of 13 °C, wind to 29 km/h.
Tue, Sep 22
3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Coho salmon led the card at excellent. High of 13 °C, wind to 16 km/h.
Before you go
Licence
BC freshwater fishing licence, from C$11.43 for a resident adult, with higher prices for other Canadians and visitors. Details and where to buy →
Regulations
Size and bag limits, closed seasons and protected areas are set by BC Freshwater Fishing and, in salt water and for salmon, by Fisheries and Oceans Canada, and change: confirm the current rules on the agency page linked from the British Columbia licence page before you keep anything.
Access
The DFO tidal licence and salmon stamp apply; the sockeye fishery exists only by DFO notice, and the area limits are linked below.
About this water
Barkley Sound is a bay or coastal water in British Columbia, Canada, covered from the British Columbia reports and listed in all Canada waters.
Fishing Barkley Sound: the full guide
Barkley Sound
Barkley Sound is the wide bay on the west coast of Vancouver Island between Bamfield on the east and Ucluelet on the west, scattered with the Broken Group Islands of the Pacific Rim National Park Reserve and leading inland up the Alberni Inlet to Port Alberni. Salmon bound for the Somass River and the rivers of the coast pass through it, and the sound is fished from all three towns. The report on this page is scored for the sound, with a modelled tide curve.
Species and seasons
Chinook and coho feed at the mouth of the sound and along its outer edges through summer, with the Somass chinook moving up the inlet in late summer; sockeye bound for the Somass pass through in early summer, fished only when DFO opens a fishery. Halibut, lingcod and rockfish are fished outside.
Where to fish it
The outer edges of the sound and the banks beyond are fished on the calm days; the islands and channels inside are sheltered water. Bamfield and Ucluelet have their own pages, as does Port Alberni at the head of the inlet. In the late summer the chinook bound for the Somass gather at the entrance of the Alberni Inlet before moving up, a well-known fishery for boats from all three towns.
Planning a visit
Ucluelet is reached on the highway from Port Alberni, and Bamfield on a long gravel road or by the passenger freighter from Port Alberni. The Broken Group is national park reserve, with its own rules for camping and landing.
The water through the year
Early summer brings the sockeye through the sound, midsummer the chinook and coho on the outside, and late summer the chinook moving up the inlet. Winter storms roll in from the Pacific.
Reading this report here
The tide panel shows a modelled curve, labelled as a model; the official times are the Canadian Hydrographic Service’s. Swell and wind decide the outside days; pressure and sky build the score.
Licence, access and rules
The DFO tidal licence and salmon stamp apply; the sockeye fishery exists only by DFO notice, and the area limits are linked below. The national park reserve has its own regulations.
Common questions
Where is Barkley Sound?
On the west coast of Vancouver Island, between Bamfield and Ucluelet, at the mouth of the Alberni Inlet.
Can I fish for sockeye in Barkley Sound?
Only when DFO opens a recreational sockeye fishery by notice.
What are the Broken Group Islands?
An island group in the sound that is part of the Pacific Rim National Park Reserve.
Is fishing good at Barkley Sound right now?
Check the daily report at the top of this page: it is regenerated every morning from live data. Today's read: Slow. The wind owns today. 45 km/h gusts make boat control the real battle.
Nearby waters
Where this page's numbers come from
- Tide curve (modelled)
- Open-Meteo Marine, sea level height including tides
- Open-Meteo forecast model
- https://open-meteo.com/
- Moon and solunar windows
- Calculated on this site
- The written guide on this page
Pablo Ruiz Quintero
Readings refresh on a 30-minute window. The full method, with every figure and its source, is on How our reports are made. Something wrong here? Tell us and it goes in the log with the date.