Troutline

Fly fishing

Washington

Live flows, weather, hatch charts, snowpack, and stocking for 15 rivers and creeks across 8 regions.

Rivers
15
Regions
8
Fly shops
17
Snowpack basins
7

Washington is really two fishing states split by the Cascade crest. The dry east slope holds the trout water — the Yakima, the state's only blue-ribbon stream, plus the Wenatchee, Methow, Naches, and the wild redband rivers around Spokane, where the rivers run clear out of the high country and the weather cooperates far more often than it does on the rainforest side. The wet west side and the Columbia Gorge are steelhead and salmon country: the Klickitat and Wind swing summer fish on the Gorge's Washington bank, and the Puget Sound and Olympic Peninsula rivers — Skykomish, Skagit, Sauk, Hoh, Cowlitz — draw swung-fly steelheaders when they're open and in shape.

The season is snowmelt- and rain-driven. Heavy Cascade runoff blows the east-slope trout rivers out through May and June before the Yakima settles into a long, reliable dry-fly summer — March browns and caddis early, PMDs and the famous October caddis late, and a salmonfly and golden stone show in spring. West-side and Peninsula rivers live and die by rain and glacial melt; the Hoh and Skagit blow out fast and clear slowly. Steelhead seasons open and close on short notice statewide, and several marquee wild-steelhead fisheries — the Skagit and Sauk among them — are closed for 2026, so always check the WDFW emergency rules before you go.

Snowpack & runoff — basin snow-water equivalent and the seasonal runoff outlookFull Washington snowpack report →

Central Washington

2 rivers

The Yakima — Washington's only blue-ribbon trout stream — and its freestone tributary the Naches: catch-and-release redband and westslope cutthroat water on the dry east slope of the Cascades below Cle Elum.

Slow

WA

Naches River

Good

WA

Yakima River

Columbia River Gorge

2 rivers

The Klickitat and Wind on the Washington bank of the Gorge — iconic summer and fall steelhead swing water, glacial-fed and canyon-bound, best in late summer as the flows drop and clear.

Fair

WA

Klickitat River

Good

WA

Wind River

Eastern Washington

2 rivers

The Spokane and Little Spokane in and around the city — wild redband rainbow on catch-and-release rules, a rare year-round trout fishery a short drive from a metro area.

Good

WA

Little Spokane River

Fair

WA

Spokane River

North Central Washington

3 rivers

The Wenatchee, Methow, and Icicle Creek draining the Cascades near Leavenworth and Winthrop — summer steelhead and native bull trout in the big cold water, wild redband and trophy cutthroat dry-fly fishing up the high valleys.

Fair

WA

Icicle Creek

Slow

WA

Methow River

Slow

WA

Wenatchee River

Olympic Peninsula

1 river

The Hoh, a glacial rainforest river off the west side of the Olympics — wild winter steelhead and salmon in a temperate jungle. It blows out fast in the rain and closes often; timing and a river gauge are everything.

Fair

WA

Hoh River

Puget Sound

3 rivers

The west-slope Cascade rivers draining to the Sound — the Skykomish, Skagit, and Sauk: swung-fly steelhead, sea-run cutthroat, and salmon. Closure-sensitive; the Skagit and Sauk are closed for 2026, so check WDFW rules before planning a trip.

Slow

WA

Sauk River

Good

WA

Skagit River

Slow

WA

Skykomish River

Southeast Washington

1 river

The Tucannon, tumbling out of the Blue Mountains — a small stocked-and-wild trout stream with a summer steelhead run, the anchor of a lightly fished corner of the state.

Good

WA

Tucannon River

Southwest Washington

1 river

The Cowlitz below Mayfield and Mossyrock dams — a big, dam-controlled steelhead and salmon river. Gear-dominated, but the swing water below the hatchery and the sea-run cutthroat give fly anglers a foothold.

Good

WA

Cowlitz River