Where to Salmon Fish Off the North Shore

If you keep your boat on the North Shore, you're already in one of the most productive salmon fisheries in southern British Columbia. Five minutes from the dock and you're trolling waters that hold chinook through the winter, coho through the summer, and trophy fish in August. But salmon are migratory - the spot that's lit up in May goes dead in October, and the winter chinook ground that fed you in February is empty by June. This guide walks you through where to go month-by-month, what you're targeting at each spot, and the gear that gets it done.

We've focused on spots within roughly 30 minutes of Cates Park, Sunset Marina, and the rest of the North Shore launches. Pin the map at the top of the page or print it out - and check the latest DFO regulations before every trip, since closures and limits change throughout the year.

The Salmon Year, at a Glance

There are five species of Pacific salmon in BC waters, but two run the show in our local fishery: chinook ("springs" or "kings") and coho. Pinks come through in odd-numbered years, sockeye occasionally pass through on their way to the Fraser, and chum show up in late fall - but if you're heading out from the North Shore, you're almost always trolling for chinook or coho.

The local salmon calendar breaks into four clear chapters:

• Winter (Dec – Feb): Feeder chinook hold deep in Howe Sound. Cold mornings, glow gear, fish close to the bottom.

• Spring (Mar – Jun): Migratory chinook push through Howe Sound and across the QA Marker. The first coho of the year start showing at the Capilano in late May.

• Summer (Jul – Aug): Peak season. Coho stack up off West Vancouver, and trophy chinook show at the Bell Buoy and through the mid-harbour.

• Fall (Sep – Nov): Coho hold off Point Atkinson and the Capilano mouth, staging before they enter the rivers. A dry fall can mean weeks of phenomenal shoreline fishing.

Month-by-Month Hot Spots

May – June: Early Coho at the Capilano

The Capilano River runs a unique early-coho stock, and from mid-May through June the fish stage just off the river mouth before pushing in. These are smaller fish - usually 1 to 6 pounds - but they fight hard on light tackle and they're absolutely keyed in on small presentations.

Troll in close, in 20 to 80 feet of water, with bucktails, small spoons, or a needlefish hootchie behind a small flasher. Anchovy under a chartreuse teaser is another reliable bet. Time your trips around tide changes - the bite tends to fire at slack and through the first hour of the flood.

July – August: Coho Off the West Van Shoreline

By the first week of July, the main coho run is showing along the West Vancouver shoreline. Fish move in along the kelp lines from Point Atkinson east toward the Capilano, and you can do well in 30 to 80 feet of water with small spoons (Coho Killers, G-Force, Skinny G in 3" sizes) and hootchies behind a 11" flasher.

This is also when the Bell Buoy comes alive for trophy chinook. August is the month large chinook are a trademark of Vancouver - mid-harbour, the Bell Buoy, and the QA Marker all produce fish into the high 20s and 30s. Down to 100 to 150 feet with anchovy and a glow flasher, or a 3.5" spoon, and run your gear right above structure.

September – October: Staging Coho at Point Atkinson

If the fall stays dry and the river levels stay low, thousands of coho hold along the West Vancouver shoreline waiting for the rains to push them up the Capilano and Seymour. By mid-September there can be acres of fish stacked between Point Atkinson and the Capilano mouth, with the action concentrated in 20 to 60 feet of water.

Small spoons, bucktails, and twitched jigs all work. This is some of the most accessible salmon fishing of the year - a short run from any North Shore launch, often in flat-calm conditions, with fish close to the surface and chasing aggressively.

November – April: Winter Chinook in Howe Sound

When the coho fishery winds down, Howe Sound winter chinook take over. These are feeder chinook - immature fish that aren't yet on a spawning migration - and they hold in Howe Sound through the winter following bait. The fish run smaller (5 to 15 pounds, with the occasional bigger one), but they're aggressive and they're available within an hour's run of North Vancouver.

The classic Howe Sound winter milk run hits Hole in the Wall, Hutt Island, Tunstall Bay, the Defence Islands, and Cowan Point / Roger Curtis. Depths range from 80 to 200 feet, and the play is to fish close to the bottom - flat sandy or eelgrass bottoms hold bait, and where there's bait, there are chinook.

Winter gear leans heavily on glow: glow hootchies, glow 3 to 3.5" spoons, glow flashers. Shorten your leader to about 36" on hootchies and 40" on spoons, and bump trolling speed up a touch - 2.5 to 3.5 mph is the sweet spot. On overcast days, run darker colours; on bright bluebird days, run lighter.

The Hot Spot Table

A quick reference for the 10 spots on the map. Numbers correspond to the markers in the illustration above.

Before You Head Out

Check the rules every trip

DFO opens, closes, and adjusts salmon limits constantly - sometimes mid-season. The daily salmon limit is generally four (with species sub-limits), and possession is twice your daily limit, but check the current Area 28 (Howe Sound) and Area 29 (Burrard Inlet / Strait of Georgia) regulations before every trip. All salmon must be caught on a barbless hook - pinched flat against the shank, not just partially crimped.

Licence + tagging

Every angler over 16 needs a Tidal Waters Sport Fishing Licence. If you keep a chinook, it has to be recorded on your licence immediately - pen-and-paper or in the DFO mobile app. If you're catching and releasing, keep fish in the water and use rubber-meshed nets.

Safety gear 

Transport Canada minimums: a Canadian-approved PFD for every person on board, a 15 m buoyant heaving line, a sound-signalling device, a watertight flashlight, navigation lights if you're out before sunrise or after sunset (winter chinook anglers - that's you), and the right fire extinguisher for your vessel. If you've ever wondered whether the rules apply on Burrard Inlet - yes. The Pleasure Craft Operator Card (PCOC) is mandatory.

Gear Primer: Setting Up for North Shore Salmon

If you're new to the local fishery, here's the short version of a setup that works year-round.

Rods + reels

• Medium-heavy 10' to 10' 6" mooching or downrigger rod with a soft tip

• Level-wind reel (Shimano Tekota, Daiwa Sealine, or similar) spooled with 25–30 lb monofilament or 65 lb braid with a mono topshot

Downriggers

• Electric downriggers are worth the money if you fish more than a few times a year - Scotty 1106 / 2106 are the local standard

• Run 10–15 lb cannonballs; mark your line with footage tape

Terminal tackle

• 11" flashers in chrome, green, glow, and "Bon Chovy"

• Anchovy + teaser head (chartreuse, green, UV) - the most consistent bait year-round

• Small 3" spoons for coho; 3.5" to 4" spoons for chinook

• Hootchies in white, green, and glow - especially through the winter

Electronics that pay for themselves

• Sonar / fish finder with a quality transducer - you're hunting bait balls as much as fish

• Chartplotter with marked waypoints for each hot spot

• VHF radio (mandatory for safety; also how local boats share intel)

Where to Launch From the North Shore

Most of these spots are within a 30-minute run from any of the following:

• Cates Park / Whey-ah-Wichen (North Vancouver) - easiest access to Indian Arm and Burrard Inlet east; great for Bell Buoy and Capilano mouth

• Sunset Marina (West Vancouver / Howe Sound) - closest launch to Hole in the Wall, Hutt Island, and the Bowen Island winter fishery

• Horseshoe Bay - convenient for Howe Sound and Bowen Island runs

• Reed Point / Rocky Point (Port Moody) - better for Indian Arm than the main fishery, but a backup if North Shore launches are busy

Bring the Right Boat - and Keep It Running

The North Shore salmon fishery rewards a boat that can handle a quick chop in Burrard Inlet, run efficiently across to Howe Sound, and stay on station all day at trolling speeds. Outboards that are dialed in for slow-trolling - like the bigger Yamaha and Suzuki four-strokes - make a real difference, both for fuel economy and for the precise speed control you need to keep your gear in the strike zone.

If you're thinking about a new boat or a repower before next season, drop by the shop - we're 30 minutes from Cates Park and we know these waters. And if you need a spring tune-up, fresh impellers, or a fuel-system service before the chinook run picks up in April, book your service slot early - our calendar fills up fast from March through July.

See you out there.