Marine Zone

MARINE FISHING

September 10, 2026

Announcements

Ocean salmon closed from Leadbetter Point, WA to Cape Falcon, OR:

• Effective 11:59 PM Tuesday, September 8, 2026, the ocean recreational fishery in the area between Cape Falcon and Leadbetter Point (Columbia River Subarea) is closed to fishing for salmon. Possession of salmon on board a vessel is prohibited in the Columbia River Subarea.

Ocean coho salmon from Cape Falcon to Humbug Mountain:

• Effective Saturday, September 12, 2026, at 11:59PM, the recreational fishery from Cape Falcon to Humbug Mountain is closed to the retention of coho salmon. The season remains open for all salmon except coho (Chinook salmon, 24" minimum length) with a daily bag limit of two salmon.

Report commercial derelict crab pots

If you are out on the ocean or in the Columbia River from now through the beginning of October, please report coordinates of any commercial derelict crab pots you see by emailing Jill.M.Smith@odfw.oregon.gov. These reports are distributed to derelict gear recovery permitted participants, enabling them to target gear recovery efforts now that the commercial crab season is closed in the ocean.

As of Jan. 1, 2026, an Ocean Endorsement is needed for most recreational anglers fishing in the ocean. Check the Ocean Endorsement page for more information.

Saltwater News Bulletins

Be among the first to know about in-season changes! You can subscribe to receive emails and text message alerts for marine topics that interest you. It's easy to unsubscribe at any time. Your contact information will remain confidential. Three different lists of interests to ocean enthusiasts are available: bottomfish, halibut and ocean salmon.

Albacore

It's that time of year when we are seeing albacore tuna off the Oregon coast! Anglers generally want to focus their effort on areas where the chlorophyll level is approximately 0.25mg. and sea surface temperatures are 58^oF or higher. Chlorophyll and sea surface temperature data is available from the Oregon Coastal Ocean Observing System (OrCOOS).

Port by port reports for the week beginning August 31:

Garibaldi: 1.35 albacore per angler

Pacific City: 0.33 albacore per angler

Depoe Bay: 2.85 albacore per angler

Newport: 4.58 albacore per angler

Charleston: 7 albacore per angler

Brookings: 5.2 albacore per angler

Learn more about Tuna Fishing in Oregon. 

Bottomfish

A few reminders

• Visit the sport bottomfish seasons page to see what's new for 2026.
• Retention of quillback rockfish and yelloweye rockfish remains prohibited.
• Cabezon is prohibited from January 1 through June 30.

Port by port reports:

Garibaldi: Anglers landed 2.6 rockfish on average, mostly black, canary, and yellowtail rockfishes. Lingcod landings were slow at 0.25 fish per angler.

Depoe Bay: Mostly black rockfish were landed, with about 2.9 rockfish per angler. Lingcod catches were slow at 0.33 fish per angler.

Newport: Anglers landed 2.8 rockfish per person. Mostly black, deacon, canary and yellowtail rockfishes were observed. Lingcod was slow.

Charleston: Anglers landed around 3.3 rockfish, consisting of mainly black, canary, copper, yellowtail, and deacon rockfishes. Lingcod was slow at 0.33 fish per angler.

Brookings: Anglers caught just over 2.5 rockfish on average, mainly black, deacon, canary, and copper rockfishes. Lingcod was slow at 0.5 fish per angler.

The offshore long-leader fishery gives anglers an opportunity to catch more fish and to distribute effort away from nearshore species. Learn more about gear and the fishery. 

Bottomfish fishing resources:

• What can I keep and how many? Keep up with in-season regulation changes.
• Know what you've caught with some helpful rockfish identification tips (including online quizzes and video).
• Waypoints for fathom lines and other restricted areas.

Ocean salmon

Reminder: Ocean salmon anglers are reminded that they are limited to one rod, and no more than two single point, single shank, barbless hooks (no treble hooks) and that retention of jack salmon is not allowed in the ocean.

Ocean salmon fishing is closed in the recreational fishery in the area from Leadbetter Point, Washington to Cape Falcon, Oregon. Possession of salmon on board a vessel is prohibited in the Columbia River Subarea. 

In the area from Cape Falcon to Humbug Mountain, the non-mark selective coho season opened September 1 and will remain open through September 12, 2026 at 11:59PM. Open for all salmon, the daily bag limit is 2 salmon per day and both Chinook and coho can be either fin clipped or non-fin clipped. Effective Saturday, September 12, 2026, at 11:59PM, the recreational fishery from Cape Falcon to Humbug Mountain is closed to the retention of coho salmon. The season remains open for all salmon except coho (Chinook salmon, 24" minimum length) with a daily bag limit of two salmon.

The area from Humbug Mountain to the Oregon/California border is closed to ocean salmon fishing beginning September 1 for the remainder of the year.

Port by port reports for the week beginning August 31:

Garibaldi: 1.29 salmon per angler

Pacific City: 1.54 salmon per angler

Depoe Bay: 1.08 salmon per angler

Newport: 0.98 salmon per angler

Florence: 1.71 salmon per angler

Winchester Bay: 1.23 salmon per angler

Charleston: 1.01 salmon per angler

Bandon: 0.80 salmon per angler

Brookings: 0.35 salmon per angler

Ocean salmon fishing resources:

• Keep track of where salmon quotas are at north of Cape Falcon and south of Cape Falcon
• See the ocean salmon regulations in either a time and area graphic view or as a map

Pacific halibut

See Pacific halibut season dates or visit the sport halibut page for more information.

Port by port reports:

Garibaldi: No halibut trips were observed.

Depoe Bay: No halibut trips were observed.

Newport: 0.25 halibut per angler.

Charleston: 0.55 fish per angler.

Brookings: No halibut were observed dockside.

Shore and estuary fishing

Daily bag limits, seasons and licensing requirements for shore-based anglers are the same as for boat-based anglers.

There are plenty of rocky or sandy fishing sites up and down the coast where shore anglers can drop a line for saltwater fish. Read about how and where

Lingcod and many other bottomfish species are available year-round to shore anglers fishing in rocky areas. A common setup for lingcod is a jig head with a rubber swim bait – it's simple but effective. Also pack a measuring device for lingcod: the minimum legal size is 22 inches.

Surfperch are available in the surf year-round along sandy beaches and rocky shores, with the best fishing (and safest fishing) occurring when swells are small. Find surfperch and other learn to fish workshops and events here.

Want more opportunities that don't include a boat? Check out the crabbing and clamming recreation report for updates on crabs, clams, mussels and more!

When fishing from shore or inside estuaries and bays, it is important to check the tide. Many fish that swim into estuaries and bays, including salmon, surfperch, and Pacific herring, tend to come in with the tide. Catch of these species is more likely to occur closer to slack tide. Additionally, the accessibility of some areas can be completely dependent on the tide. Do not allow the incoming tide to become a safety issue.