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Baker Lake Fishing Report

Updated Fri, Oct 23, 2026 from live gauge and weather data

A 4,755-acre Baker River reservoir northeast of Concrete, where trapped-and-hauled sockeye support a summer fishery set each year by WDFW.

3/5
Fair. Fish the windows.A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.
Water temp
~47 F est.
Air / High
52 / 53 F
Wind
SSW 4 mph

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

Satellite view
Friday
23
October 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.

3/5Fair. Fish the windows.A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.

Baker Lake is in its winter mode: slow, deep and deliberate. Today brings clear skies, wind SSW around 4 mph, steady pressure near 1024 hPa and a high of 53. Water sits around 47 F for the season (estimated). With the waxing gibbous, the solunar majors run 9:45 AM-11:45 AM and 10:16 PM-12:16 AM: the windows to build the day around.

The plan, species by species

Rainbow troutExcellent

In cold water rainbows use the deepest pools in rivers (Vermont), so slow, deep drifts there are the usual approach; Michigan DNR notes lake rainbows are also taken with bait or by jigging through the ice.

Tomorrow: Similar at 54 F. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.Next report: Sat, Oct 24, 6:30 AMHow this report is made β†’

Before you go

Washington requires a fishing licence from age 16, from $39.95 for residents. What a Washington licence costs and where to buy it β†’

Chasing rainbow trout here? Check the size and bag limits with WDFW before you keep anything. The season dates for Washington, read off the agency, are on the Washington seasons page.

Water and weather

Live readings.

No live gauge on this water

Conditions here are modeled from weather, season and the nearest stations. Water readings appear when a USGS gauge is available.

30405060JanMarMayJulSepNovOct, ~47 F now

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp52 F
High / Low53 / 39 F
WindSSW 4-7 mph
Pressure1024.1 hPa, steady
Sky / Rain0% cloud, 1%
Sunrise / Sunset07:39 / 18:01
MoonWaxing Gibbous, 91%
Water temp (seasonal)~47 F est.

Bite planner

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

5 AM8 AM11 AM2 PM5 PM8 PMsunrisesunsetPRIMEPRIME

Which day to fish Baker Lake this week

The best day on Baker Lake this week looks like Wednesday Oct 28, at 4 out of 5, against 3 today.

Best day this week: Wednesday, Oct 28 β€” good at 4/5, falling pressure, usually the best window of a week.

Today, Oct 23 β€” Fair

A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.

Solunar majors
9:45 AM-11:45 AM and 10:16 PM-12:16 AM
Minor period
4:11 AM-5:11 AM
Sun
07:39 to 18:01
Moon
Waxing Gibbous, 91% lit
Sky and wind
Overcast, 9 mph
Rain chance
1%

Forecast-based scores, less reliable further out: how the score is built.

Species guide

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

Rainbow trout illustration

Rainbow trout

Spring and fall in most lakes; rivers fish year-round while the water stays cool

A cold-water trout native to Pacific drainages from Alaska to Baja California, now stocked in most states and fished in rivers, tailwaters and lakes. In cold water rainbows use the deepest pools in rivers (Vermont), so slow, deep drifts there are the usual approach; Michigan DNR notes lake rainbows are also taken with bait or by jigging through the ice.

When to come: the Baker Lake 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
Rainbow trout
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 47 F (estimated, not a reading).

30405060JanMarMayJulSepNovOct, ~47 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 Baker Lake today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Thu, Oct 22

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Rainbow trout led the card at excellent. High of 53 F, wind to 8 mph.

Wed, Oct 21

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Rainbow trout led the card at excellent. High of 63 F, wind to 7 mph.

Tue, Oct 20

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Rainbow trout led the card at excellent. High of 63 F, wind to 5 mph.

Where roughly, what depth, what bait. Skip anything you want to keep secret.
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Before you go

License

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

Regulations

Washington fishing license. WDFW's Baker Lake page lists a season from the fourth Saturday in April to October 31 and a 6-inch minimum, 18-inch maximum for trout and kokanee; bull trout and Dolly Varden may not be kept. Sockeye seasons are set yearly (2026: July 11-August 31, four per day).

Access

Forest Service campgrounds and water access areas in the Mount Baker National Recreation Area; mandatory watercraft inspections during the sockeye fishery (WDFW).

About this water

A 4,755-acre reservoir on the Baker River in Whatcom County, Washington, part of Puget Sound Energy's Baker River Project.

Fishing Baker Lake: the full guide

The reservoir

WDFW lists Baker Lake in Whatcom County at 4,755 acres and 703 feet of elevation, six miles northeast of Concrete. It is a Baker River reservoir in the Mount Baker National Recreation Area, and WDFW names bull trout, kokanee, mountain whitefish, rainbow trout and sockeye salmon among its fish.

How the sockeye get there

Baker sockeye are native to the lake and river. Returning fish are trapped below the two dams on the lower Baker River and trucked above them, where they go to artificial spawning beaches, to the hatchery run with Puget Sound Energy, or into Baker Lake. WDFW, the Upper Skagit Indian Tribe, the Swinomish Indian Tribal Community and Puget Sound Energy manage the run together; it has grown from fewer than 100 fish in 1985 to a record of nearly 92,000 in 2025.

The 2026 sockeye season

For 2026, WDFW opened Baker Lake to sockeye from July 11 through August 31 with a daily limit of four, regardless of how many fish were in the lake, against a forecast return of 70,861. Seasons are set each year, so read WDFW's Baker River sockeye page and the current Sport Fishing Rules before planning a trip.

Kokanee and trout

WDFW says kokanee fishing can be excellent in April, May and June and again in fall, and that kokanee and sockeye generally take a boat even though shoreline access is good. The lake is closed to the taking of bull trout and Dolly Varden, and a 200-foot radius around the pump discharge at the south end is closed to all fishing.

Before you launch

Expect mandatory aquatic invasive species inspections during the sockeye fishery. WDFW also warns that boat ramps, campgrounds, restrooms and trash service are limited around this remote lake, and asks anglers to pack out their trash.

Common questions

How does the sockeye fishery work?

Returning sockeye are trapped below the lower Baker River dams and hauled above them; once hatchery needs are met, the remaining fish go into Baker Lake for natural spawning and the sport fishery.

Can I keep bull trout?

No. WDFW says Baker Lake is closed to the taking of bull trout and Dolly Varden.

Do I need a boat?

Shoreline access is good, but WDFW says kokanee and sockeye generally require a boat.

Is fishing good at Baker Lake 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

Skagit River36 miSkykomish River59 miLake Sammamish80 miLake Washington81 miLake Chelan84 miIcicle Creek91 mi

Where this page's numbers come from

Weather and pressure
Open-Meteo forecast model
Queried at 48.7000, -121.6500 in this water's own timezone. A model, not an observation.
Moon and solunar windows
Calculated on this site
Astronomical calculation from these coordinates and the date, not a third-party feed. How much weight it deserves.
Pages checked
The facts in the written guide were checked against these pages, from the agencies and operators that manage the water, on October 5, 2026. Anything we could not verify was taken out.
The written guide on this page
Pablo Ruiz Quintero
How this page was made. The daily report is computed by our scoring engine from live readings; nobody types it. The written text was drafted with AI assistance from the official pages listed above, and its facts were checked against those pages by automated verification on October 5, 2026; anything that could not be verified was taken out. Pablo Ruiz Quintero sets every guideline, the data-verification system and the minimum standards a page must meet to be published, reviews page structure and approves what goes live; the responsibility is his, and the AI carries out the work. We work this way because it is how one person can keep every page current with named sources. Errors are published in the verification log; the full policy is in the editorial policy.

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.