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Coos Bay Fishing Report

Updated Fri, Sep 4, 2026 from live gauge and weather data

Oregon's great harbor: fall Chinook stacking the bay, clam flats at every minus tide and the rockfish jetties of Charleston.

2/5
Slow. Work for them.Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.
Next tide
Low 1:26 AM
Air / High
63 / 63 F
Wind
SW 14 mph

Sources: NOAA tides 9432780, Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.

Satellite view
Friday
4
September 2026

Today's Fishing Report

Generated this morning from live readings: gauge, weather model, sun and moon. A fresh report is published here every morning.

2/5Slow. Work for them.Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.

Coos Bay feels the season turning: shorter days, grouping fish. Today brings clear skies, wind SW around 14 mph, rising pressure near 1013 hPa and a high of 63. Tides: high 6:55 AM and 5:53 PM, low 12:10 AM and 11:26 AM: the moving water either side of each change is when this place feeds. Water sits around 56 F for the season (estimated). With the last quarter, the solunar majors run 5:39 AM-7:39 AM and 5:39 PM-7:39 PM: the windows to build the day around.

The plan, species by species

Chinook salmonGood

Runs push upriver: back-bounce roe through the deep slots, pull plugs in travel lanes, twitch jigs in the frog water. Fresh fish move on every rise of water.

Rockfish (Pacific)Good

Fall's flat days produce the year's best quality: bigger baits, deeper structure, lings mixed in. Jetty and shore casters score blacks in the wash on swimbaits.

SurfperchFair

Prime time builds: bigger barred perch school ahead of spawning. Fish the storms' edges: two days after a blow, the rearranged holes hold concentrated fish.

Tomorrow: Similar at 62 F. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.Next report: Sat, Sep 5, 6:30 AMHow this report is made →

Water and weather

Live readings.

Tides

NOAA station 9432780 (Charleston, Coos Bay). Fish the moving water either side of each change.

Fri
LOW12:10 AM0.1 ft
HIGH6:55 AM4.9 ft
LOW11:26 AM3.4 ft
HIGH5:53 PM7.4 ft
Sat
LOW1:26 AM0.1 ft
HIGH8:28 AM5.0 ft
LOW12:52 PM3.7 ft
HIGH7:11 PM7.3 ft

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp63 F
High / Low63 / 54 F
WindSW 14-25 mph
Pressure1012.6 hPa, rising
Sky / Rain23% cloud, 55%
Sunrise / Sunset06:44 / 19:46
MoonLast Quarter, 50%
Water temp (seasonal)~56 F est.

Bite planner

Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today. Tap a bar to see why.

5 AM8 AM11 AM2 PM5 PM8 PMsunrisesunset

Next 7 days

Tap a day for the detailed outlook.

Fri Sep 4 · Overcast, 63/54 F, wind 15 mph, rain 55%

Fair or better. Cloud and a rain chance can stretch the morning bite well past breakfast: keep moving baits tied on.

Species guide

The species that matter on Coos Bay: seasons, structure and how to fish each one. Today's ratings live in the report above.

Chinook salmon illustration

Chinook salmon

Best: Jun-Sep ocean runs

The king: the Pacific's heavyweight, intercepted trolling the ocean feeding lanes or swinging rivers on the spawning run. Runs push upriver: back-bounce roe through the deep slots, pull plugs in travel lanes, twitch jigs in the frog water. Fresh fish move on every rise of water.

Rockfish (Pacific) illustration

Rockfish (Pacific)

Best: Apr-Oct open season

The Pacific reef's crowd: black, blue, vermilion and twenty cousins stacked on structure, biting like they mean it. Fall's flat days produce the year's best quality: bigger baits, deeper structure, lings mixed in. Jetty and shore casters score blacks in the wash on swimbaits.

Surfperch illustration

Surfperch

Best: Dec-Apr spawning surf

The Pacific surf's honest wage: barred and redtail surfperch schooling in the wash, paying anglers who read the beach. Prime time builds: bigger barred perch school ahead of spawning. Fish the storms' edges: two days after a blow, the rearranged holes hold concentrated fish.

When to come: the Coos Bay calendar

Activity by species and month, and how the water warms through the year. Tap any cell.

Species activity by month

1 = slow, 5 = peak. Current month highlighted.

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Chinook salmon
Rockfish (Pacific)
Surfperch
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 56 F (estimated, not a reading).

405060JanMarMayJulSepNovSep, ~56 F now

Angler reports

Real reports from real anglers, reviewed before publishing. The water log below tracks each day automatically.

No angler reports yet this weekBe the first: your report helps every angler who checks Coos Bay today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Thu, Sep 3

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Chinook salmon led the card at excellent. High of 64 F, wind to 14 mph.

Wed, Sep 2

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Chinook salmon led the card at good. High of 62 F, wind to 16 mph.

Tue, Sep 1

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Chinook salmon led the card at good. High of 66 F, wind to 12 mph.

Where roughly, what depth, what bait. Skip anything you want to keep secret.
Only used to send you this water's report each week. No spam, ever.

Before you go

License

Oregon requires a valid fishing license for adults. Buy online from the state agency; one-day options exist for visitors.

Regulations

Oregon license + salmon/steelhead tags. Fall Chinook: bay quotas/rules annual: check ODFW. Shellfish license for clams/crab.

Access

Charleston basin ramps, Empire ramp, city docks; south jetty shore access.

About this water

Oregon's largest coastal estuary, Coos County, OR. Fall kings and clam-flat culture.

Fishing Coos Bay: the full guide

The estuary engine

Coos Bay is Oregon's largest coastal estuary: a working timber-and-fishing harbor whose fall Chinook run remains the south coast's premier salmon event: September-October fish staging through the bay's channels before the rains call them up the Coos and Millicoma forks. Trolled herring in the channels: the fleet's rhythm sets the season's pulse.

Charleston's edge

The Charleston boat basin opens onto the jetties and nearshore reefs: rockfish and lingcod off the south jetty's rocks (a genuine shore fishery: swimbaits in the wash), crab-combo trips inside the bar, and tuna runs (30-40 miles out) when summer's warm water swings close: the small port punches far above its size.

Flats and softshell gold

The bay's tidal flats run Oregon's best clamming (gapers, cockles and the famous empire clams at every minus tide: shovels and laws: check limits), while the sloughs' fall perch runs and the winter steelhead of the tributary forks keep the calendar full. Crabbing off the Charleston docks feeds families year-round: the estuary provides at every skill level.

Working the bay

Ramps at Charleston, Empire and the city docks cover the water: the bar (as ever on this coast) commands absolute respect: check the Coast Guard's restrictions daily: and the south coast's weather writes short windows: when the ocean opens, go: when it closes, the bay's inside game and the clam flats never do.

Common questions

When is the fall Chinook run in Coos Bay?

September-October in the bay's channels: trolled herring before the rains send fish upriver. It is the south coast's marquee salmon event.

Is Coos Bay good for clamming?

Among Oregon's best: gaper and cockle beds across the flats at minus tides. Shellfish license, shovel, tide book: the estuary's most democratic harvest.

Is fishing good at Coos Bay 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

Umpqua River49 miRogue River64 miFern Ridge Reservoir73 miSiletz River97 miSmith River108 miDiamond Lake110 mi
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