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.
Nootka Sound Fishing Report
Updated Fri, Sep 25, 2026 from live weather and water data
Nootka Sound on the west coast of Vancouver Island: chinook and coho in the sound and on the outside, halibut on the banks, reached from Gold River and Tahsis.
3/5
Fair. Fish the windows.A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.
Next tide
Low 6:15 p.m. model
Air / High
9 °C / 14 °C
Wind
NNW 11 km/h
Sources: modelled tide curve, Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.
Today's Fishing Report
Nootka Sound is in its cool-water rhythm: slower presentations and the warmest hours of the day. Today brings cloud cover, wind NNW around 11 km/h, rising pressure near 1008 hPa and a high of 14 °C. Tides: high 12:08 p.m., low 5:51 a.m. and 6:15 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 15 °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 Nootka Sound today
Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today from sunrise (07:17), sunset (19:17), 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
LOW5:51 a.m.-1.16 m
HIGH12:08 p.m.1.32 m
LOW6:15 p.m.-1.08 m
Sat
HIGH12:16 a.m.1.17 m
LOW6:21 a.m.-1.24 m
HIGH12:36 p.m.1.38 m
LOW6:51 p.m.-1.33 m
Right now
Latest readings
Air temp9 °C
High / Low14 °C / 8 °C
WindNNW 11 km/h, gusts 20 km/h
Pressure100.77 kPa, rising
Sky / Rain91% cloud, 18%
Sunrise / Sunset07:17 / 19:17
MoonFull Moon, 99%
Water temp (seasonal)~13 °C est.
7-day fishing forecast: which day to fish Nootka Sound
The best day on Nootka Sound this week looks like Sunday Sep 27, at 4 out of 5, against 3 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 — Fair
A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.
- Solunar majors
- 10:25 AM-12:25 PM and 10:25 PM-12:25 AM
- Minor period
- 4:55 AM-5:55 AM
- Sun
- 07:17 to 19:17
- Moon
- Full Moon, 99% lit
- Sky and wind
- Overcast, 23 km/h
- Rain chance
- 18%
Scores are a planning aid built from forecast data, not a promise.
Species guide
The species that matter on Nootka 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 Nootka 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 Nootka 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 15 °C, wind to 10 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 16 °C, wind to 8 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 15 °C, wind to 19 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 the salmon conservation stamp apply; halibut are recorded as the licence requires.
About this water
Nootka Sound is a bay or coastal water in British Columbia, Canada, covered from the British Columbia reports and listed in all Canada waters.
Fishing Nootka Sound: the full guide
Nootka Sound
Nootka Sound is the deep inlet system on the west coast of Vancouver Island between Kyuquot and Clayoquot, reached by road from Campbell River through Gold River, or on the logging roads to Tahsis. Its inside waters are sheltered fjords; its outside faces the open Pacific. Salmon bound for rivers from the island to the Columbia pass along this coast in summer, and the sound is one of the island’s best-known salmon destinations. The report on this page is scored for the sound, with a modelled tide curve.
Species and seasons
Chinook and coho are the fish, from early summer, with the chinook returning to the sound’s own rivers, the Burman and Gold among them, in late summer. Halibut and lingcod are fished on the outside banks and reefs. DFO sets the salmon and halibut rules by area and changes them by notice.
Where to fish it
Boats fish the entrance of the sound and the outside shoreline on the calm days, and the inside channels when the swell is up. The lodges and the marinas at Gold River and Tahsis are the bases; the Uchuck, a coastal freighter from Gold River, reaches the remote corners of the sound.
Planning a visit
Gold River is about ninety minutes by road from Campbell River; Tahsis is further, on gravel. Services are limited, so bring fuel, food and a plan for the weather. The outside is open ocean: know the swell forecast before leaving the sound.
The water through the year
Summer is the season: chinook from June, coho building through August, the local chinook returning in late summer. Fall rains fill the rivers; winter storms close the outside.
Reading this report here
The tide panel shows a modelled curve, labelled as such; the Canadian Hydrographic Service publishes the official predictions. On this coast the swell and the wind decide the day more than anything; pressure and sky build the score.
Licence, access and rules
The DFO tidal licence and the salmon conservation stamp apply; halibut are recorded as the licence requires. Area limits and closures are on the DFO pages linked below, and much of the land around the sound is First Nations territory.
Common questions
How do I get to Nootka Sound?
By road from Campbell River to Gold River, about ninety minutes, or on logging roads to Tahsis.
When is the best fishing in Nootka Sound?
Summer, from the first chinook in June to the coho and the returning local chinook in late summer.
Is Nootka Sound safe for small boats?
The inside channels are sheltered; the outside is open Pacific and needs a seaworthy boat and a swell forecast.
Is fishing good at Nootka Sound right now?
Check the daily report at the top of this page: it is regenerated every morning from live data. Today's read: Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.
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.