Best chinook salmon lakes in Washington
11 Washington waters hold chinook salmon, 8 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.
- Lake Chelan — 1400 ft max · survey depth data · Smallmouth Bass, Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Lake TroutWhy #1: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 11 public access sites
- Willapa Bay — 94 ft max · survey depth data · Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon, Cutthroat TroutWhy #2: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 4 public access sites
- Grays Harbor — 116 ft max · survey depth data · Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon, Cutthroat TroutWhy #3: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 5 public access sites
- Lake Washington — 214 ft max · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Crappie, Yellow PerchWhy #4: mapped size signal; contours are approximated · no verified access record attached
- Columbia River — Reach 1 of 5 — 117 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon, SteelheadWhy #5: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · no verified access record attached
- Riffe Lake — 360 ft max · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Crappie, BluegillWhy #6: mapped size signal; contours are approximated · no verified access record attached
- Dungeness Bay — 162 ft max · survey depth data · Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon, Cutthroat TroutWhy #7: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 3 public access sites
- Sequim Bay — 126 ft max · survey depth data · Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon, Cutthroat TroutWhy #8: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 1 public access site
- Willapa River — 49 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon, SteelheadWhy #9: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · no verified access record attached
- Liberty Bay — 66 ft max · survey depth data · Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon, Cutthroat TroutWhy #10: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 4 public access sites
- Cowlitz River — 10 ft max · Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Coho Salmon, SteelheadWhy #11: mapped size signal; contours are approximated · 3 public access sites
Find the closest chinook salmon waters to you →
How to use this ranking
The order is a map-planning ranking, not a claim about today's fish population. It favors larger mapped waters and gives survey-backed contours a three-times data-quality boost. Agency population surveys, current regulations, access and recent conditions should make the final decision.
Compare maximum depth across 37,233 lake records · See Washington waters with public access data
When to fish chinook salmon in Washington
- 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 Washington: best largemouth bass lakes · best smallmouth bass lakes · best crappie lakes · best bluegill lakes · best channel catfish lakes · best rainbow trout lakes · best yellow perch lakes · best common carp lakes · best coho salmon lakes · best steelhead lakes · best brown trout lakes · best brook trout lakes · best kokanee lakes · best cutthroat trout lakes
Chinook Salmon elsewhere: Ontario · British Columbia · Québec · Michigan · New York · California · Alaska · Idaho