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.
Tofino Fishing Report
Updated Fri, Sep 25, 2026 from live weather and water data
Tofino and Clayoquot Sound: offshore chinook and halibut from the surf town at the end of the road.
2/5
Slow. Work for them.Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.
Next tide
High 12:14 a.m. model
Air / High
15 °C / 15 °C
Wind
NW 29 km/h
Sources: modelled tide curve, Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.
Today's Fishing Report
Tofino has cool water and fish holding a little deeper and slower. Today brings clear skies, wind NW around 29 km/h, rising pressure near 1010 hPa and a high of 14 °C. Tides: high 12:03 p.m., low 5:48 a.m. and 6:11 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 14 °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 Tofino today
Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today from sunrise (07:14), sunset (19:14), 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
LOW5:48 a.m.-1.10 m
HIGH12:03 p.m.1.31 m
LOW6:11 p.m.-1.05 m
Sat
HIGH12:14 a.m.1.17 m
LOW6:18 a.m.-1.17 m
HIGH12:32 p.m.1.35 m
LOW6:45 p.m.-1.27 m
Right now
Latest readings
Air temp15 °C
High / Low15 °C / 11 °C
WindNW 29 km/h, gusts 45 km/h
Pressure100.98 kPa, rising
Sky / Rain0% cloud, 23%
Sunrise / Sunset07:14 / 19:14
MoonFull Moon, 99%
Water temp (seasonal)~13 °C est.
7-day fishing forecast: which day to fish Tofino
The best day on Tofino 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
Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.
- Solunar majors
- 10:25 AM-12:25 PM and 10:25 PM-12:25 AM
- Minor period
- 4:55 AM-5:55 AM
- Sun
- 07:14 to 19:14
- Moon
- Full Moon, 99% lit
- Sky and wind
- Overcast, 35 km/h
- Rain chance
- 23%
Scores are a planning aid built from forecast data, not a promise.
Species guide
The species that matter on Tofino: 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 Tofino 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 Tofino 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 14 °C, wind to 6 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 18 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 17 °C, wind to 18 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, with halibut recorded as the licence requires.
About this water
Tofino is a coastal town in British Columbia, Canada, covered from the British Columbia reports and listed in all Canada waters.
Fishing Tofino: the full guide
Fishing Tofino
Tofino sits at the tip of the Esowista Peninsula at the end of Highway 4, at the mouth of Clayoquot Sound, better known for its surf beaches than its fishing. Its charter boats fish the offshore banks and the edges of the sound for salmon and bottom fish, and the sheltered inlets of Clayoquot for those who stay inside. The report on this page is scored for the town, with a modelled tide curve.
Species and seasons
Chinook and coho feed off the coast through summer, and halibut and lingcod are fished on the offshore banks and reefs. The rules are set by DFO by area and by notice.
Where to fish it
Charters run from the harbour to the offshore banks on the calm days; Clayoquot Sound’s inlets are sheltered water. The beaches are surf, not fishing beaches, for most visitors. The waters off Vargas and Flores islands and the outer edge of Clayoquot Sound are the usual salmon grounds, and the offshore banks are for halibut on the calmest days; inside, the long inlets such as Tofino Inlet are protected from the swell.
Planning a visit
Tofino is a popular summer destination, and accommodation books up; the drive from Port Alberni is long and winding. Clayoquot Sound is a UNESCO biosphere region and much of it is First Nations territory, with parks and reserves that have their own rules.
The water through the year
Summer is the fishing season; winter is storm-watching season on this coast. The first chinook appear offshore in early summer, the coho build through July and August, and the halibut fishing is best in the settled weather of midsummer. From October the storms arrive, and few boats go out until spring.
Reading this report here
The tide panel is a modelled curve, labelled as such; the Canadian Hydrographic Service publishes the official tables. Swell and wind decide the offshore days; pressure and sky build the score.
Licence, access and rules
The DFO tidal licence and the salmon conservation stamp apply, with halibut recorded as the licence requires. The area rules are on the DFO pages linked below.
Common questions
Is there good fishing in Tofino?
Yes, offshore for chinook, coho, halibut and lingcod, mostly by charter in summer.
When is fishing season in Tofino?
Summer; winter is storm season on the open coast.
Do I need a licence to fish from a Tofino charter?
Yes, a DFO tidal licence, which charters can help you buy online before the trip.
Is fishing good at Tofino right now?
Check the daily report at the top of this page: it is regenerated every morning from live data. Today's read: Slow. Work for them. Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.
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.