Olympic Peninsula Steelhead Fishing Guide

These rain-forest rivers are known for wild winter steelhead, and most of that fishing is now catch-and-release with hatchery fish the only keepers. The lower rivers are under WDFW rules, while the upper rivers inside Olympic National Park follow park rules. Coastal steelhead seasons have been cut back or closed early in recent years because of low wild returns, so always check current rules before you go.

📍 Western Olympic Peninsula, Washington. The Sol Duc, Bogachiel and Calawah meet near Forks to form the short Quillayute River, which reaches the Pacific at La Push. The Hoh and Queets run west out of Olympic National Park to the coast south of there.

Map: spots, ramps and marinas

★ Fishing hot spot · ● Boat ramp · ● Marina · ▭ Protected area (solid red = no fishing, dashed = fishing with rules)

Open the full Pacific Northwest Rivers & Lakes map →

Quick facts

The Quillayute River forms where the Bogachiel, Calawah and Sol Duc meet near Forks and is only about 4 miles long before it reaches the Pacific at La Push.
The Sol Duc is about 78 miles long and has the largest watershed (219 square miles) of the Quillayute tributaries.
Olympic National Park has 10 major rivers and 37 species of native fish.
Inside Olympic National Park no Washington fishing license is needed (except fishing the ocean from shore), but a free catch record card is required for salmon and steelhead.
On the park section of the Hoh, it is fly fishing only from 1/4 mile below Hoh Campground to the park boundary.

What you can catch

Wild winter steelhead
Main draw; must be released and kept in the water under current WDFW rules.
Hatchery steelhead
Daily limit of 2 hatchery (adipose-clipped) steelhead where open.
Coho salmon
The Sol Duc has summer coho and large fall coho runs.
Chinook salmon
The Sol Duc has spring chinook and large fall chinook runs.
Sockeye salmon
Found in the Sol Duc system.
Coastal cutthroat trout
Spawn in the Sol Duc; wild trout must be released.

Month by month

January	2025-26 season: bait banned Jan 1 - Mar 31 on the lower Hoh, Sol Duc, Bogachiel, Calawah and Quillayute; 2 hatchery steelhead limit.
February	Peak wild winter steelhead time; some upper sections (Hoh above Morgan's Crossing, South Fork Hoh) closed after Feb 28 in 2025-26.
March	2025-26: Hoh above Morgan's Crossing and South Fork Hoh closed Mar 1 - Apr 15. Lower rivers open with no bait.
April	2025-26: Sol Duc, Bogachiel, Calawah and Quillayute closed Apr 1-30; Hoh mainstem closed Apr 1-15.
May	Rivers outside the park mostly closed to steelhead after winter season; check WDFW rules.
June	Olympic National Park river season opens June 1, 2026 (barbless artificial lures; release all but 2 hatchery steelhead).
July	Park rivers open under 2026 park rules; Queets and Salmon rivers catch-and-release except 2 hatchery steelhead.
August	Park rivers open; check WDFW rules for lower rivers.
September	Queets (park) Sept 1-30, 2026: 2 hatchery steelhead may be kept.
October	Queets in the park closed Oct 1 - Nov 30, 2026. Zone 1 park rivers (incl. Sol Duc) close after Oct 31.
November	Park season on the Hoh and Bogachiel ends Nov 15, 2026. Park winter steelhead rules are issued in November - check current rules.
December	Winter steelhead season normally opens in early December (Dec 1 in 2025). 2026-27 rules not yet confirmed - check current rules.

Tips

Check WDFW emergency rules and the Olympic National Park fishing page right before every trip; coastal steelhead rules change in season.
Do not lift a wild steelhead out of the water; release it in the water.
Know where you can fish from a boat: in 2024-25, boat fishing was banned above Morgan's Crossing on the Hoh, above the Sol Duc Hatchery pump station, and above Mill Creek on the Bogachiel.
Use a single-point barbless hook; park rivers require barbless artificial lures in most zones.
Pick up a free catch record card before fishing for steelhead, even in the park, and record any kept fish right away.

Rules and license

Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW); Olympic National Park (NPS) for park waters · Official rules page ↗

Washington fishing license required outside the park; inside Olympic National Park no state license is needed (except Pacific shore fishing).
A catch record card is required to fish for steelhead; record a kept fish before you keep fishing. Return the card by April 30.
WDFW 2025-26 coastal rules: release all wild steelhead and wild rainbow trout; do not remove wild steelhead from the water; 2 hatchery steelhead daily.
2025-26: bait banned Jan 1 - Mar 31 on the lower Hoh, Sol Duc, Bogachiel, Calawah and Quillayute.
2025-26 closures: Sol Duc, Bogachiel, Calawah, Quillayute Apr 1-30; Hoh mainstem Apr 1-15.
Park rivers (2026): most zones barbless artificial lures only, release all but 2 hatchery steelhead; Elwha River closed.
Park: at the Hoh, Dickey and Quillayute mouths, release all wild steelhead, salmon and trout.
Queets: check WDFW emergency rules and park rules; it has closed early in past seasons to protect wild steelhead.

Rules change. Always check the official page before you fish.

Boat ramps and marinas

The map above shows 13 boat ramps and 0 marinas from OpenStreetMap. Tap any dot for directions.

Boat ramp near Devil’s Punchbowl
Dickey Boat Ramp
Swan Bay Boat Launch
Three Rivers Boat Launch

Sources

Checked October 2026. BigJoe does not invent facts: every number on this page comes from the sources listed above.