← California fishing maps

Best chinook salmon lakes in California

12 California waters hold chinook salmon, 6 mapped with real state-agency depth surveys. Ranked below by size and depth-data quality — open any water to see exactly where to fish it: depth contours, scored spots with plain-English reasons, seasonal windows and bait picks. The king. Deep, cold open water all summer; staged off river mouths in fall. Follows the 42-52°F band.

1. Shasta Lake — 517 ft max · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Crappie, BluegillWhy #1: mapped size signal; contours are approximated · no verified access record attached
2. Folsom Lake — 281 ft max · survey depth data · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Crappie, BluegillWhy #2: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 9 public access sites
3. Don Pedro Reservoir — 400 ft max · Largemouth Bass, Crappie, Channel Catfish, Rainbow TroutWhy #3: mapped size signal; contours are approximated · no verified access record attached
4. Central Monterey Bay — 2757 ft max · survey depth data · Chinook Salmon, California Halibut, Surfperch, LingcodWhy #4: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 1 public access site
5. Northern Monterey Bay — 870 ft max · survey depth data · Chinook Salmon, California Halibut, Surfperch, LingcodWhy #5: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 2 public access sites, 1 carry-in or shore-oriented
6. Klamath River — 12 ft max · Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon, SteelheadWhy #6: mapped size signal; contours are approximated · 2 public access sites
7. Southern Monterey Bay — 315 ft max · survey depth data · Chinook Salmon, California Halibut, Surfperch, LingcodWhy #7: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 2 public access sites
8. Sacramento River (Redding) — 15 ft max · Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, SteelheadWhy #8: mapped size signal; contours are approximated · 7 public access sites
9. Napa River — 35 ft max · survey depth data · Striped Bass, Chinook Salmon, SteelheadWhy #9: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · no verified access record attached
10. American River (Lower) — 12 ft max · Striped Bass, Chinook Salmon, SteelheadWhy #10: mapped size signal; contours are approximated · 5 public access sites
11. Petaluma River — 39 ft max · survey depth data · Striped Bass, Chinook Salmon, SteelheadWhy #11: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · no verified access record attached
12. Trinity River — 10 ft max · Chinook Salmon, Steelhead, Brown TroutWhy #12: mapped size signal; contours are approximated · no verified access record attached

Find the closest chinook salmon waters to you →

When to fish chinook salmon in California

• Spring 5–40 ft — Cold surface water lets kings feed shallow — warm-water pockets near river mouths and the first drop-off hold bait and fish.
• Summer 50–120 ft — Kings ride the 42-52°F band well below the thermocline — deep basins and steep structure where bait schools stack.
• Fall 10–50 ft — Spawning-run fish stage off tributary mouths before running the rivers — the year's best big-fish window.
• Winter 30–90 ft — Immature kings winter deep and scattered; a slow deep troll finds loners.

Also in California: best largemouth bass lakes · best smallmouth bass lakes · best crappie lakes · best bluegill lakes · best channel catfish lakes · best rainbow trout lakes · best striped bass lakes · best steelhead lakes · best brown trout lakes · best brook trout lakes · best kokanee lakes · best spotted bass lakes · best brown bullhead lakes · best california halibut lakes · best surfperch lakes · best barred sand bass lakes · best spotted sand bass lakes · best kelp bass lakes · best california scorpionfish lakes · best lingcod lakes · best black rockfish lakes · best cabezon lakes · best copper rockfish lakes

Chinook Salmon elsewhere: Ontario · British Columbia · Québec · Michigan · New York · Washington · Alaska · Idaho