Skeena River

The Skeena is the river every famous steelhead stream in the northwest of the province drains into. It comes down from the north past the Babine and the Kispiox, takes in the Bulkley at Hazelton, swings west past Kitwanga and Cedarvale, cuts through Kitselas Canyon near Usk, and runs past Terrace to the sea near Prince Rupert. It is a big, braided, cold river, too large to wade across and dangerous to boat without local knowledge. Anglers fish it from gravel bars, often where a tributary comes in.

Summer steelhead enter from the sea in July and move up through August and September, and the fish hold in the mainstem into November. The bars near Terrace see fish first, and the water near Hazelton and the Kispiox fishes later. Coho come from late July into the fall, and pinks run in August. Read the Usk gauge: the bars fish well between about 400 and 1,100 m³/s, and over about 2,000 the river is high, brown and full of debris. Snowmelt keeps it big into July, so the best bar fishing usually starts as it drops in August. The Usk gauge sends no water temperature, so the temperature on this page comes from the station above the Babine, far upriver and often colder than the water near Terrace. Swing a heavy sink-tip and a big fly, and wade carefully: the bars drop off fast into strong current.

The Skeena has two Class II classified waters. Skeena River 2, from the Exchamsiks River up to 1.5 km above the Kitsumkalum, is classified July 1 to September 30. Skeena River Section 4, upstream from 1.5 km above the Zymoetz, is classified July 1 to December 31 and needs a Steelhead Stamp then. Unguided non-resident aliens may not fish two zones of Section 4 on Saturdays and Sundays. Above Cedarvale the mainstem is closed January 1 to May 31. Chinook are closed in 2026, and DFO sets the coho, pink and sockeye openings, which change through the season. The river above Kitwanga runs through Gitxsan territory, where the Gitxsan First Nation announced a fishing ban in May 2026. The province says provincial licences stay valid and asks anglers to get permission before crossing reserve land. Skeena steelhead returns swing from year to year, so check the in-season changes before you book.