Sockeye Salmon Fishing

Welcome to our Sockeye Salmon Fishing Home Page

Sockeye salmon, also known as red salmon, have silver sides with a bluish-green back. Like the chum salmon, they don’t have any distinct black spots on their body. Just prior to spawning both sexes turn red with green heads and sport a dark stripe on their sides. Males develop a hump on their back and the jaw and teeth become hooked during their move from salt to fresh water.

They have a 4 year life span, but they grow slowly. Most sockeye salmon are in the 3 to 5 pound range and any fish over 10 pounds are considered a trophy. The world record is just over 15 pounds. Sockeye salmon are found from Northwest Alaska to the Deschutes River in Oregon.

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	Rivers & Streams

Habitat

Sockeye salmon are found in freshwater lakes, streams and estuaries. Anadromous sockeye will migrate from fresh water to the ocean to feed, grow larger and mature. Adult salmon will eventually leave the ocean to enter freshwater as they migrate many miles upstream to spawn in the stream or lake of their birth. Some sockeye salmon are not anadromous, so they spend their entire lives in freshwater. These salmon are called kokanee salmon.

Sustainably Managed & Responsibly Harvested

U.S. wild-caught sockeye salmon is a smart seafood choice because it is sustainably managed and responsibly harvested under U.S. regulations. NOAA Fisheries works in cooperation with federal, state, tribal, and Canadian officials to manage these commercial, recreational, and tribal harvest of salmon and steelhead in ocean and inland waters of the West Coast and Alaska. To learn more about management of these fisheries, visit our West Coast and Alaska fisheries management pages.

Understand the Spawning Runs

The spawning runs can be different depending on the area. In some places, it starts in the summer while in others, it’s going to be a fall run. Make sure you do your research on the area that you’re planning on fishing because if you time it wrong, the fishing can be flat out terrible. Time it right and you’ll have memories that may last a lifetime. When the fishing come into the river, it is said that salmon do not feed, however, you can still catch them on a variety of baits. Flies and egg patterns become the norm over the bigger spoons, spinners and crankbaits that most anglers would troll in the open waters.

Clear Water

In clear water, the fishing can be a lot tougher. The fish see your baits easier, which makes it easier for them to eat them and it also makes it a lot easier to sight fish for them. However, they can be very spooky, so you have to be stealthy to catch more fish. Going with fluorocarbon leaders will help as well.

Low Light Conditions

You will almost always find better fishing during the low light conditions. From spring through fall, there is usually a peak bite that occurs in the mornings and evenings.

Trolling

Trolling is the most popular open water technique for salmon fishing. From the Great Lakes to some of the other big lakes that have salmon, you will find big boats trolling for salmon from spring through fall. Most anglers will hire a fishing charter to go salmon fishing, but there are plenty of anglers that troll with their own boats. Crankbaits, cut plug herring and the dodger and fly are some of the best baits to use while trolling for salmon.