Fly Fishing Report Skykomish
River – 01/08/24
(Bottom Of Page)
Fly and Gear ordering and delivery: We can get flies to you within two to three business days from the time you place your order via Priority Mail. If you provide a budget for flies, we will select them to match the budget and get them to you on time for your trip. Please see the bottom of this column for ordering options.
We also have custom Perfect Fly selections in 3 different price ranges for this stream that come with or without fly boxes. They make excellent gifts. Click Here To Order or Call us at 800 594 4726 or email us at sales@perfectflystore.com.
Type of Stream
Freestone
Species
Steelhead (native and hatchery)
Chum Salmon
Coho Salmon
Pink Salmon
Size
Medium to Large
Location
Northwest Washington
Nearest Towns
Seattle
Season
Fishing season open June 1 through
February 28
Access:
Good
USGS Stream Flow Data:
Near Gold Bar
Non-Resident License
State of Washington
Weather
National Weather Service Link
Seasons:
Spring:
Fly fishing the Skykomish River is closed during March, April and May.
Summer:
There’s a Summer steelhead run.
Fall:
Fall fishing is great for Silver Salmon and Pink salmon when they are in the river.
Winter:
Chum Salmon peaks in November. January through February is prime winter steelhead time
Recommended Tackle & Gear
For Steelhead and Salmon
Fly Line:
7, 8 , 9 or 10 weight for appropriate typerod, sinking, sinking tip and floating
Leaders:
10#, 12# in 9 to 15 feet lengths
Tippets:
10# and 12#
Best Fly Rods:
Perfect Fly 7, 8, 9 and 10 ft. single hand rods
Fly Reels:
For 7 to 10 weight lines
Fly Floatants and Misc Items:
KISS Strike Indicators, Lanyards, etc.
Tools & Accessories:
Nippers, forceps, retractors, etc.
Fly and Gear ordering and delivery:
Email us at (sales@perfectflystore.com) with the dates you will be fishing and we will send you a list of our fly recommendations. We can get flies and gear to you within two to three business days from the time you place your order via Priority Mail. If you provide a budget for flies, we will select them to match the budget and get them to you on time for your trip. Your can also call us at 800-594-4726 and we will help you decide what flies and gear to use. All orders are shipped free in the U.S. If under a $100 order requiring Priority mail is a charge of only $8.10. Orders over a $100 are shipped free via Priority Mail.
Fly Fishing On The Skykomish River In Washington
The Skyomish River is very popular steelhead and salmon river because it’s close to Seattle. Its north and south forks flow out of the Central Cascades to join the Snoqualmie River at Monroe. It has both a Winter and Summer run of steelhead and four species of salmon. There’s also a Fall run of cutthroat from the sea. Fly fishing the Skykomish River, called the Sky by local anglers, varies greatly depending on the time of year and the water levels.
From Sultan downstream the Skykomish River is wide, fairly shallow and moderate in flow most of the time. It has some good riffles and runs that’s perfect for swinging a fly. Many anglers prefer a Spey Rod in the lower section. Upstream of Sultan, the river is narrower, swifter and is filled with rocks and boulders.
The season opens the first day of June with a few wild steelhead still in the river and the beginning of hatchery run steelhead. Summer steelhead fishing continues to late Fall.
Silver Salmon show up in early Fall along with the Pink Salmon that appear every other year. In late Fall, the rainy season begins and the water begins to rise. Chum salmon show up in November.
Hatchery Winter steelhead enter the river to peak in December. In early January the main attraction of the Sky, the wild steelhead begin to appear. They continue to increase in numbers until the season closes the last day of February. The river is closed to fishing March through May to protect the spawning fish.
Skykomish River Fishing Report:
02/25/2020 The river is closed to all fishing
due to low steelhead returns.
07/22/20 We are getting reports of summer
steelhead being caught. Conditions are
good at this time.
11/29/20 Sorry for the missed reports. Our
customers are sending in good reports of
silver salmon. Steelhead should start
showing up any time. Send us an email and
let us help you plan that next trip.
sales@perfectflystore.com
12/18/20 We are getting reports of steelhead
beginning to show up.
12/28/20 We received a couple of good
reports from customers of steelhead being
caught. Stream levels are good.
01/11/21 We are continuing to receive
some good reports from customers fishing
for winter steelhead.
04/26/21 The river is closed to fishing through the month of May. Get ready for the upcoming season. Give us a call or send us an email and let us help you plan that next trip.
06/01/21 The season is now open. Summer runs should start coming in. Here are our steelhead flies: https://perfectflystore.com/product-category/flies/perfect-generic-steelhead-salmon-flies/pacific-steelhead/
07/28/21 The river is low but we are getting some good reports from customers fishing for summer steelhead.
08/27/21 The stream levels are still low. Now is the time to get prepared for coho and steelhead. Send us an email for a list of flies and gear.
09/30/21 Stream levels are up high thanks to the rain. This should start moving some salmon into the stream. Now is the time to get your flies and gear ready.
10/14/21 There are some sea run cutthroats and Silver or Coho salmon in the river. We received two catch reports from customers.
10/27/21 Reports coming in on sea-run cutts, pink salmon, and a few on coho. Water levels are up a lot bringing more fish in.
11/03/21 More reports on cutts, pink salmon and more coho being caught. Water levels are a little better shape.
11/11/21 The stream is in okay condition and we continue to get a few good reports.
11/21/21 More good reports from customers have come in. Lots of Coho are being caught.
11/29/21 The recent rain has the stream levels very high. Fish when it drops. Good numbers of coho were being caught by our customers when the levels were okay.
12/14/21 Salmon are being caught again. Stream levels are down to just a little above normal levels.
12/23/21 There should be winter steelhead starting to come into the river. Now is the time to get your gear and flies in order.
12/31/21 The stream is down to a normal level in good shape. We didn’t receive any fishing reports from anyone likely because of the Xmas holiday.
01/08/22 Conditions are okay. Stream levels are a little above normal. We still didn’t receive any reports from anyone fishing this past week.
01/24/22 We received one good report from a customer catching steelhead. Conditions are fairly good.
02/14/22 Closed to all fishing below Wallace River confluence due to low returns.
06/22/22 Summer run steelhead are in and being caught. Give us a call for a recommended fly list.
07/06/22 We didn’t get any reports from anyone but summer steelhead are in the river and should be fairly easy to catch. Let us hear from you. There are good hatches taking place.
09/10/22 Summer streelhead continue to be caught in decent numbers.
11/01/22 Coho are being caught in good numbers and more should be coming in with the heavy rain currently falling.
11/17/22 Coho fishing continues to be good. Swinging and nymphing methods using our Salmon Flies works. It could use some more rain soon.
01/01/23 Stream levels have been falling, but are still above normal. Good winter hatches are taking place and fish are being caught. Streamer patterns are working.
02/09/23 Sorry for the missed reports. The large winter steelhead are in the river and some are being caught by our customers swinging our steelhead streamers and on our egg flies. The season closed at the end of this month.
05/14/23 Now is the time to get your flies and gear ready for the new season usually starting June 1st.
06/12/23 Summer runs are coming into the river. Let us hear from you.
06/29/23 We received a good report from a customer fishing for Summer run steelhead.
07/10/23 We received another good summer run steelhead report.
07/31/23 The stream is closed to fishing due to low water levels.
10/05/23 The stream is still closed to fishing due to low water levels.
10/14/23 The stream is now open to fishing thanks to some rain.
10/27/23 Coho are being caught in good numbers.
11/12/23 Both Coho and Chum salmon are being caught in good numbers when the water levels are not too high.
11/19/23 We received a good report on Coho catches this past week.
01/08/24 The river is still closed to fishing.
Click Here to see our Steelhead Flies: Click Here to see our Salmon Flies.
Email us at (sales@perfectflystore.com) with the dates you will be fishing and we will send you a list of our fly recommendations.
Copyright 2013 James Marsh