FISHING GUIDE · OREGON COAST

The Oregon Coast Fishing Guide

The Oregon coast offers salmon, rockfish and lingcod, Pacific halibut, and summer albacore tuna, plus Dungeness crabbing in the bays and ocean. Charters run from ports such as Astoria, Garibaldi, Depoe Bay, Newport and Charleston, and the bar crossings and offshore weather call for care. Bag limits are tight and change in-season, so check ODFW before every trip.

📍 Oregon's Pacific coast from the Columbia River at Astoria south to the California line. Main ocean ports include Astoria and the Columbia River mouth (Buoy 10), Garibaldi, Depoe Bay, Newport, and Charleston on Coos Bay. Key landmarks for the rules are Cape Falcon (near Manzanita) and Humbug Mountain on the south coast.

Map: spots, ramps and marinas

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

Open the full Oregon & Washington map →

Quick facts

Starting January 1, 2026, most anglers fishing the Oregon ocean need an Ocean Endorsement ($9 a year or $4 a day); it is not needed for salmon, steelhead or shellfish only.
Oregon has five marine reserves: Cape Falcon, Cascade Head, Otter Rock, Cape Perpetua and Redfish Rocks; all removal of marine life is prohibited in them.
The Stonewall Bank Yelloweye Rockfish Conservation Area, about 15 miles west of Newport, is closed to halibut and bottomfish fishing.
Most sport albacore off Oregon are caught 20 to 50 nautical miles from shore, usually from late June or early July through late September; fish average 15-18 pounds.
Oregon averaged about 215,000 ocean recreational angler trips a year over the ten years before 2025.

What you can catch

Chinook salmon
South of Cape Falcon: 24-inch minimum; 22 inches north of Cape Falcon.
Coho salmon
Mark-selective (fin-clipped only) seasons in summer; 16-inch minimum.
Black rockfish
Main bottomfish; part of a 4-fish general marine bag in 2026.
Lingcod
3 per day, 22-inch minimum in 2026.
Pacific halibut
Mostly May-October by subarea; 2 per day on the central and south coast, 1 in the Columbia River subarea; 6 per year.
Albacore tuna
Offshore summer fishery, mostly trolling jigs or plugs, also live bait and jigging.
Cabezon
1 fish (16-inch minimum) from Jul 1; no retention Jan 1 - Jun 30, 2026.
Dungeness crab
12 males, 5 3/4 inches; shellfish license for ages 12 and up.

Month by month

January	Bottomfish open at all depths (4 general marine fish, 3 lingcod). Cabezon closed. Bay crabbing.
February	Bottomfish open all depths. Bay and ocean crabbing.
March	Chinook (all salmon except coho) opens Mar 15 from Cape Falcon south.
April	Columbia River subarea halibut opened Apr 30, 2026 (Thu, Fri, Sun).
May	Central coast and south coast halibut open May 1 (spring all-depth May 1 - Jul 31 on the central coast).
June	Fin-clipped coho season opened Jun 6, 2026 south of Cape Falcon; Columbia River area salmon opened Jun 20. Albacore can arrive late June.
July	Cabezon opens Jul 1 (1 fish). Albacore season; salmon and halibut.
August	Central coast summer all-depth halibut from Aug 1; Columbia subarea halibut reopened Aug 8. Chinook season south of Cape Falcon through Aug 31.
September	Fall salmon Sep 1 - Oct 31 from Cape Falcon to Humbug Mountain; albacore usually through late September.
October	Fall salmon and halibut through Oct 31. Ocean crabbing closed from Oct 16.
November	Ocean crabbing closed through Nov 30; bay crabbing open. Bottomfish open.
December	Ocean crabbing reopens Dec 1. Bottomfish open all depths.

Tips

Buy the Ocean Endorsement with your license unless you are fishing only for salmon, steelhead or shellfish.
Carry a descending device; you must use it to release rockfish outside the 30-fathom line, and it is required on board when halibut fishing.
Yelloweye and quillback rockfish may never be kept; learn to tell them apart before you go.
Do not mix trip types: you cannot keep a species that is closed in the area where you are fishing, and long-leader and regular bottomfish trips cannot be combined.
Check the Oregon Department of Agriculture biotoxin hotline (800-448-2474) before crabbing or clamming.

Rules and license

Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW); NOAA Fisheries / Pacific Fishery Management Council; International Pacific Halibut Commission quotas · Official rules page ↗

Oregon fishing license plus the new Ocean Endorsement (from Jan 1, 2026) for most ocean fishing; shellfish license for ages 12+. Washington-licensed anglers fishing from a boat north of Cape Falcon do not need Oregon licenses.
2026 bottomfish: open all depths year-round; 4 general marine fish (2 canary max), lingcod 3 at 22 inches, cabezon 1 at 16 inches from Jul 1 only; yelloweye and quillback rockfish prohibited.
Offshore long-leader fishery: outside the 40-fathom line only, 10 fish of listed midwater rockfish; no lingcod.
2026 salmon: Cape Falcon to Humbug Mountain open for all salmon except coho through Oct 31, 2 per day; Leadbetter Point-Cape Falcon (Columbia) area is closed and salmon may not be possessed there. Chinook south of Cape Falcon reopens Mar 15, 2027 unless changed.
2026 halibut: central coast spring all-depth May 1 - Jul 31 and summer all-depth Aug 1 - Oct 31 (2/day); Columbia subarea Apr 30 - Jun 28 on set days and Aug 8 - Sep 30 (1/day); all subject to quotas.
Closed areas: the five marine reserves (Cape Falcon, Cascade Head, Otter Rock, Cape Perpetua, Redfish Rocks); Stonewall Bank YRCA closed to halibut and bottomfish; salmon closed in the Columbia Control Zone.
Dungeness crab: 12 males, 5 3/4 inches, up to 3 rings/lines/pots per person; ocean closed Oct 16 - Nov 30.

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

Boat ramps and marinas

The map above shows 24 boat ramps and 2 marinas from OpenStreetMap. Tap any dot for directions.

Alsea Bay Boat Launch
Alsea River RV Park & Marina boat launch
Beaver Creek Boat Launch
Boat ramp near Depoe Bay
Boat ramp near Siletz Bay
Boat ramp near Yaquina Bay
Depoe Bay Harbor
Drift Creek Landing RV Park & Marina boat launch
East Woahink Boat Ramp
Embarcadero Marina
Holmes Road Boat Ramp
King Silver RV Park & Marina boat launch
McKinley's RV Park & Marina boat launch

Sources

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