Squid fishing, squid jigging, squidding…whatever you call it, it’s one of the most fun and accessible fisheries in Washington State. You can fish right off piers or if you have a kayak or boat you can fish a little deeper water, but you’re best bet is still to stick nearby the piers usually. The type of squid in Puget Sound is the Pacific coast (California market) squid (Loligo opalescens). They average about 8″ long (mantle + tentacles).
How To Fish for Squid
Squid fishing is usually done using a simple jigging technique. You cast your jigs (pier fishing) or simply lower your jigs (boat/kayak fishing) to the ocean bottom, reel in a few feet so you’re just off the bottom and quickly flick the rod up. When you feel a squid hit (it can be quick and light) you must reel up quickly and consistently, never allowing any slack to develop in your line or there is a good chance your squid will fall off. Many times, the squid are not full hooked if you’re using a weighted jig and they’re more kept on to the top of the hook with the pressure from the water as you reel up. With the floating lures though, that squid is not getting off no matter what basically because they get quite tangled/hooked. Once you reel your squid up, you just dump them off the hook by holding it upside down over your bucket.
Squid move in schools. If you have a fish finder, you’ll be able to see them as a giant ball close to the bottom of the water. We usually fish in 40-90 feet deep water, with a lot of the squid found in schools around 60 feet, but it really depends on the area and tide, so try a few different depths to see what works.
Sometimes when the schools are active and the squid get in a feeding frenzy, you won’t even be jigging. You’ll just drop your lures into a school and reel up and you’ve got 3 squid hooked on there. Just keep dropping the lures and reeling in as quick as you can before the bite dies off again.
Note: If the squid aren’t kept cold/wet, they’ll lose their color and turn white but don’t worry, they’re still good to eat.
KAYAK SQUID FISHING
The Gear You Need to Catch Squid
You can really use any rod/reel setup you like for squid fishing. My only recommendation would be something not too heavy as your wrists may get tired after repetitive jigging.
If you’re squid fishing off a pier, you might start by trying weighted squid jigs. They’re easier to cast out away from the piers. There is a lot of garbage on the ocean floor waiting to snag your gear at the piers.
If you’re fishing off a kayak or a boat, I HIGHLY recommend using floating squid lures over weighted squid jigs. They are vastly more effective due to their spinning action and the way the squid attack them. My absolute favorite floating squid lure to use for Puget Sound market squid fishing is the Yo Zuri Floating Squid Jig.
WEIGHTED VS FLOATING SQUID JIGS: UNDERWATER SQUID FISHING FOOTAGE
Squid Fishing Setup Gear List:
- Yo Zuri Floating Squid Jigs
- Otori Squid Jigs
- Shimano Curado 200XG Reel
- Rod: Kistler Helium LTA Heavy Fast 7’11” 17-30 lb line ⅜ – 1 2 oz lure (model: HE711THC) (I don’t think they make this rod any more but they have similar ones available and this one is a bit overkill anyway, something a little lighter might be better, 7-8’ range, I like them on the stiffer side as opposed to the lighter rods but to each their own in being able to feel the squid hit) https://kistlerrods.com/products/helium-fishing-rod?variant=29630927896624
My favorite gear setup for squid fishing is three floating lures on dropper loops set about 14-18″ apart with a 1-ounce weight at the bottom of my main line. Check out my video on how to rig floating squid jigs with dropper loops.
One last note on gear: ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS rinse all of your gear in freshwater after every trip. Saltwater will destroy your gear if you let it.
HOW TO RIG FLOATING SQUID JIGS
The Best Spots to Fish for Squid in Washington
The best locations to fish for squid during the main fishing season (fall/winter) in Puget Sound are at or around pubic fishing piers. If you don’t have a boat, you’ll be standing shoulder to shoulder with other fishermen squid jigging off the piers. If you have a boat or kayak, fishing around the piers is still your best bet. Just don’t fish within the casting range of the pier fishermen–some of them will try to hit you with jigs, plus you have plenty more water to fish…no need to be a jerk and squeeze in on the pier fishermen with their limited fishing zone. These public fishing piers have all been good spots for squid jigging:
- Clallam County:
- Port Angeles City Pier
- Island County:
- Coupeville Pier
- Jefferson County:
- Port Townsend – Union Wharf
- King County:
- Dash Point Park Pier
- Des Moines Marina Pier
- Redondo Pier
- Seacrest Park Pier
- Shilshole Marina (A-Dock)
- Shilshole Marina Pier (Golden Gardens)
- Kitsap County:
- Annapolis Dock (Retsil Pier)
- Blake Island State Park Pier
- Bremerton Marina Public Dock
- Brownsville Dock
- Coal Dock (Lion’s Community Park)
- Harper Pier
- Illahee City Pier
- Illahee State Park Pier
- Kingston Public Pier
- Silverdale Pier
- Suquamish Dock
- Waterman Point Pier (Sinclair Inlet)
- Pierce County:
- Clyde Davidson Pier (Steilacoom)
- Les Davis Pier
- Point Defiance Marina Boathouse
- Snohomish County:
- Edmonds Pier
- Everett – 10th Street Marine Park Pier
- Kayak Point County Park Pier
SQUID FISHING IN PUGET SOUND
The Best Time to Go Squidding
Season
Squid are in Puget Sound year-round. However, they do migrate throughout the sound more in the fall/winter. This migration is most likely a mix of adults moving in to breed and a few resident squid as well. From October-January, you’ll find them in much shallower water as they move throughout Puget Sound. This brings them in closer to piers, making them more accessible to anglers. November is often my best month for squidding.
Time of Day
If you’ve got a kayak or boat, you can fish any time of day for squid. A lot of people only fish for squid at night, but you absolutely can fish for them during the daytime! There’s some evidence that squid feed more at night, but I’ve always caught my limit pretty quickly fishing during the day.
The night fishermen use lights to attract squid closer to the docks where the fishermen can catch them. Squid are very attracted to light. If you head out to any pier in the late fall-early winter, you’re likely to encounter many a squid fisherman with a generator and light setup. Don’t be a mooch. Bring your own light if you’re night fishing off the piers.
We usually go +/- 2 hours of high tide and the squid have been pretty consistently active around those times. The bite seems to die down around high tide, but picks up before and after. I’m sure people have success other tides/times of day as well.
UNDERWATER SQUID FISHING FOOTAGE
Regulations
Always check your state’s websites for regulations and health warnings before crabbing. These sites are where you will find the most up to date information on fishing seasons and areas, emergency closures, allowed gear, and regulations for keeping crab including size limits and whether you can keep males and/or females. Regulations regularly change, so don’t take what is written here (or anywhere other than your state’s official webpages) as the most up-to-date information. Interpretation of the regulations is up to each angler and relying entirely on what you hear or read is not an excuse if you end up fishing illegally. Just read your pamphlets please.
- Washington
- Up to 4 lures (jigs) per line.
- Limit is 10 lbs or 5 quarts of squid per person per day.
- page 139 of WDFW recreational fishing regulations: https://www.eregulations.com/assets/docs/resources/WA/21WAFW-LR.pdf
The Best Squid Recipes
Be sure to check out my YouTube channel to watch these Catch and Cook Squid Recipes being made.
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