Baker Lake Sockeye Salmon Kayak Fishing
by: SeaWolf FishingPosted on:

Baker Lake Sockeye Salmon Fishing

Sockeye are one of my favorite salmon to catch and eat. The sockeye at Baker Lake in Washington State are usually pretty nice and decent size too. They haven’t had to travel nearly as far as say the Wenatchee sockeye so they have a lot more fat and better taste, I think. It’s one of the most beautiful spots to fish too with Mount Baker towering over the lake. Even if you don’t catch anything, it’s a great place to fish and camp. Most years, the limit is 2 fish per person per day, but in good years the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) has raised the limit to 3 or even 5 fish per person.

We go camping up at Baker Lake every July and usually come home with a dozen or two salmon. If you like getting up at 3:30am, trolling the lake for hours, hanging out with friends at a gorgeous campsite, eating a lot of great food, and drinking margaritas in the evening (yes, we bring a Jimmy Buffett Margaritaville machine and hook it up to a battery)…well, we should be friends 🙂

Baker Lake Sockeye Kayak Fishing

How To Fish for Sockeye Salmon at Baker Lake

The main factors that dictate the sockeye fishery on Baker Lake is whether the run timing and run size meet the threshold for WDFW to open fishing in the lake on July 5 or July 15, and how many fish have been transported to the lake above the dam. If there aren’t many fresh fish, the fishing sucks.

You won’t know until possibly days before the opener is decided. Some years WDFW even opens it on a random day between July 5-15 if the in-season numbers are better than pre-season predictions or early season numbers. So it can be frustrating to plan ahead since it’s such a far location and most people fishing it camp at one of the campgrounds that you have to reserve 6 months in advance. But you can make it work and it’s totally worth it. You just need to come into it with an attitude of flexibility, do your best to plan for ideal scenarios, and have plan B for a good enough scenario. Some years you’ll get ideal, some years not. That’s okay. It’s a beautiful location to fish no matter what.

More details on all of this below, but for those who only want the short version, here’s how to fish for sockeye salmon in Baker Lake: 1) get a medium-action rod with a 6-8″ dodger attached with a short leader (6-14″) and a 1/0 hook lure setup (barbs and bait ok in Baker), 2) get up before dawn to have lines in the water by 4:45am, 3) hit the northern end of the lake near Noisy Creek, 4) troll at a speed of 0.7-1.1 mph at 25-50 foot depth (you might be trolling for hours), 5) look for schools, and 6) don’t be too heavy-handed.

Baker Lake Sockeye Salmon Fishing 2021 – Kayak Salmon Fishing

Sockeye Fishing Gear

Gear for sockeye fishing at Baker is pretty straight forward.

You’ll want a long-ish, medium-action rod. The sockeye at Baker are usually about 4-8 lbs and can get pretty feisty as you reel them in. Seriously, these fish are crazy. Lots of jumping and running, your gear will likely get tangled at least once and many people lose fish just before they get to the boat. We lose fewer fish than most though I think because we try to keep a light hand (remember, this gear isn’t real heavy) and maybe we’re just lucky 🙂

Larger dodgers tend to work better here with short leaders (6-14″) to a hoochie with a smile blade. We usually start with a 12″ leader on one rod and an 8″ leader on a second rod. You can always shorten the 12″ if needed as you get the feel for the fishing that day.

At Baker, we always put a piece of coon stripe shrimp on the lower hook. In some sockeye fisheries, people use bare red hooks (no hoochies, smile blades, bait, etc.), but we (and others we know) have not had much luck with the Baker sockeye biting bare hooks. So your mileage may vary.

We’ve had much better success over the years with the hammered chrome dodgers, but the basic sticker ones work fine too and are easier to find.

Sometimes you can catch fish on the surface, but the vast majority of sockeye caught at Baker are caught on downriggers or drop-weights.

Do you need a fish finder? No. Is it nice? Yes. Especially since Baker is a reservoir and you’ll get snagged up on old trees on the bottom in spots where the depth changes rapidly. It’s also nice to see schools of fish. We’ve often gotten our limits in 10-minute periods of time where 3 rods go off and we immediately get them back in the water after reeling in fish. Then you might troll for another 3 hours without a single bite or take down. That’s Baker.

Here is the gear we use:

* Barbed hooks are allowed in this fishery. We’ve used pinched barbs before when re-using gear rigged up for other fisheries and had success catching sockeye at Baker so don’t worry if you show up and realize that your back-up gear is pinched, but barbless is not required so best use barbed if you have it.

Time of Day

Sockeye at Baker Lake are mostly a first light bite. You best be on the fishing grounds well before the sun comes up. We try to have lines in the water by 4:45am. Most years for us, the peak bite is from 5am-7am. Some days, there is a second bite around 9am but it’s not nearly as good as the early morning bite and really each day is different.

If you get there on the opener, you’ll pretty much limit out no matter what you do. But if you’re there a few days or weeks after, you’ll likely have to work for your fish. Each year and each day are different.

Trolling Speed and Depth

Baker Sockeye like it slow. Forget what you know about Wenatchee sockeye or other salmon. Aim for a speed of 0.8 to 1.1 mph. Most sockeye here are caught in the 25-50′ depth range. It can be really hit or miss with the bite. You’ll be running the same gear at the same depth and speed and not get a bite for hours while the boat next to you does. Then maybe you’re the lucky one next time. If you run through a school, you’ll likely have all of your rods going off. If no one is catching anything, try bumping your speed up to 1.2 mph, you might get a hit. Sockeye are fickle.

To hit that 25-50′ depth, almost everyone at Baker uses either downriggers or lead dropper rigs. If you’re using lead sinker weights to fish at depth without downriggers, check out this video by Spilt Milt where he explains (and shares graphs) how to get to the ling depth you want based on how much line you have out with varying amounts of weight. He’s demonstrating with 1.2 and 1.5 mph speeds, but it should give you a good starting point. When I’ve fished without a fish finder, on a kayak, without a downrigger, 40-70 feet of line out, at a speed of about 0.8-1.0 mph, I’ve used a 4 oz weight to put my gear in the general depth the fish are at here at Baker. I’d love to see a chart for slower trolling speeds (maybe a 0.9 mph) similar to what Tyler created for the 1.2 and 1.5 mph speeds.

What part of the lake has the best fishing?

The best spot in the lake to catch sockeye is the north end between Noisy Creek, Swift Creek and Shannon Creek. This isn’t a secret. Everyone fishes here. Just follow all the boats heading north in the morning. The fish get trucked to the south end of the lake from the fish trap collection facility at the lower dam (which you should definitely tour if you have time!), but they move north very quickly, following the flow upstream to the head of the lake (inlet) where they naturally spawn in the springs, seeps, river, and lakeshore. This is by far the most popular and productive spot in the lake for fishing for sockeye. Some years, almost all of the fish are in front of Noisy Creek. Other years, they’re in the middle or evenly distributed along the shorelines. If it’s your first time out though, head to Noisy and adjust from there.

The etiquette here is to run east-west/west-east along the northern (Shannon/Swift side) shore, middle, or southern (Noisy) shore. The fish school around up here, often found around the 25-50 foot mark in water depths around 100 feet. Some days the fishing is better on one side or the other, but really the fish use this whole end of the lake pretty heavily so just check your fish finder, move around, and have a little patience.

Baker Lake Sockeye Salmon Fishing Map - Where to Fish
Baker Lake Sockeye Salmon Fishing Map – Where to Fish

Kayak vs Boat

You do need a boat or kayak to fish for sockeye at Baker Lake. There really aren’t any good shore fishing opportunities here. Try the Skagit River for that. There are boat launches at all of the campgrounds on the lake.

I’ve caught sockeye salmon at Baker Lake both from a kayak and from boats. Boats require less physical effort and can allow inexperienced fishing buddies/family members to join you but you have to deal with the launches and maneuvering through other boats on the water with operators who may or may not be paying much attention. Overall it’s easier though and you get to have someone help with netting the fish. Boats allow you to be out there for much longer and mean you don’t have to get up as early as a 45 minute paddle would only take less than 10 minutes in a boat.

That said, kayak fishing at Baker is a lot of fun and the morning trek in the dark is a mix of calm and excitement. Just put some glow sticks/headlamps on yourself and your kayak for early morning safety and hug the shoreline as you make your way to the fishing grounds so the motor boats don’t hit you. We’ve never had any close calls but we also try not to be stupid. You will get knocked around a little with wakes from the boats but nothing terrible. Kayaks are cheaper, less work, and more maneuverable. The slow troll speed of Baker sockeye is ideal for kayaks and very easy to keep the pace.

If you do go the kayak route, foot peddle kayaks are 100% the way to go if you want to kayak fish. Hand paddle kayaks and trolling is a tough way to go and largely unsuccessful for most I’ve seen try. Just try to stay in the lanes of travel and don’t cut off boats. They have less maneuverability than you in your kayak. Is it awkward to net a salmon from a kayak? Yes. Is it doable? Heck yeah.

If you haven’t tried salmon fishing from your kayak before, Baker Lake is a great introduction since there’s no current, the pace is slow, and there are typically a lot of fish. Plan to be out on the water for several hours though with no access to shore. The main fishing ground is flanked by steep cliffs. If you need to get off the water to use the bathroom, you’re likely done for the day since you have to go a good distance for this. If you’ve got a stable kayak, like an Old Town, you’ll have more options for peeing without leaving the fishing area lol.

Camping

Baker Lake has several campgrounds on the lake (plus a few more on the other side of the road that I won’t cover here):

  • Shannon Creek: closest to the fishing grounds, but the sites and launch are a little rough and the road up gets pretty rough too. The boat launch at Shannon is only open for those camping there. Shannon has 13 standard sites, 5 tent only sites (Sites 016-020), and 1 double site (Site 018). It takes about 10 minutes to kayak from Panorama to the fishing grounds.
  • Swift Creek: second closest to the fishing grounds. Lots of nice sites but some don’t have much privacy/are close to the road or other sites. Boat launch and day use area open to non-campers. Swift has 35 standard sites, 3 double sites (Sites 027, 033, 035), 2 yurts, and 2 group sites (Sites GP1-5 and GP6-10) both with a max of 30 people. It takes about 25-30 minutes to kayak from Panorama to the fishing grounds.
  • Panorama Point: third closest to the fishing grounds and the smallest campground of all the Baker campgrounds. A few of the sites have good lake access (you could launch your kayak/leave your boat in the water right at your site), but this is the hardest campground to get reservations for. Boat launch and (small) day-use area open to non-campers. Panorama has 12 standard sites and 3 double sites(Sites 012, 015, 006). Some of the sites offer more space/privacy than others here. It takes about 40-45 minutes to kayak from Panorama to the fishing grounds.
  • Bayview: 21 standard sites, 1 double site (Site 003), and 1 group with max 50 people. No potable water or boat launch at this campground, but it is very close to Horseshoe.
  • Horseshoe Cove: biggest campground, furthest from the fishing grounds (extreme southern end of the lake), but has the best swimming beach if you’re trying to combine fishing with a family camping trip. Horseshoe has 37 standard sites, 2 double sites (Sites 017 and 035), and 3 group sites (Group Sites A, B, and C) all with a max of 25 people. Boat launch and day use area open to non-campers. If you have a boat, the distance from the fishing isn’t an issue, but for kayak fishermen I would advise choosing Horseshoe. We have camped here with kayaks before and it took about 2 hours of intense pedaling to make it up to the fishing grounds. Probably should have just cartopped the kayak, driven up to Swift and launched there lol.

A standard site includes a reservation for up to 6 people and 1 car and can usually accommodate small RVs, but you need to check each site description. Double sites includes up to 12 people and 2 cars. If you have more vehicles than the number your site reservation comes with, you can pay $8/day (please check with USFS to see if this $ is still accurate) in cash to the USFS drop-box when you arrive for each extra vehicle (they still need to fit in your area though).

None of these campgrounds have hookups of any kind and the restroom facilities are all pit/vault toilets. Most have a communal water spigot, but they don’t always work so plan to bring your own drinking water in with you. All of the campgrounds are plagued with a huge population of mosquitoes in the summer, come prepared.

If you’re bringing non-fishing camping companions, they may want to wear earplugs. The sound of 2-strokes whining is pretty much non-stop from 3:30-7:00am as everyone makes their way up to the top of the lake. It quiets down though after that as people fish with only occasional noise as boats return. Our group’s favorite thing to do on early morning fishing days is to set up the walkie talkies and radio back to camp to let everyone know when we’re on our way back and then we have an amazing breakfast waiting for us 🙂

When to Fish Baker Lake for Sockeye

Dates

The Baker River, and therefore Baker Lake, is a tributary of the Skagit River. WDFW and tribal co-managers (Upper Skagit and Swinomish tribes) monitor this fishery to put out annual run-size estimates and decide whether the sockeye salmon fishery will open in Baker Lake on July 5 or July 15 (or some random day between these in weird years where the run size is either early or exceptionally large). Puget Sound Energy (PSE) operates the Lower Baker Dam where fish are captured in the trap and either spawned at the PSE hatchery or trucked up to the lake where they are released to spawn naturally and provide recreational fishing opportunities.

So the season starts either July 5 or 15 and runs through August 31 each year. Typically, the fishing is best earlier in the season rather than later. If fresh fish aren’t being transported to the lake, the fishing will not be good. Once each week’s broodstock goals are met, fish get trucked to the lake.

Check out the WDFW Baker Lake Sockeye page for the most up to date fish counts and regulations. Under the “Sockeye Returns” tab, there is an excellent graph showing the run timing and size for the past 10 years as well as a 5-year average. This tab also shows the daily counts for the current season so you can see how many fish were taken for broodstock and how many were put in the lake for fishing. In 2023, the trap counted over 65,000 fish and 31,726 fish were transferred to Baker Lake. This was a record return year. The average trap count from 2010-2022 is about 21,000 fish with under 10,000 fish transferred to the lake typically.

Regulations

Visit the WDFW Baker Lake Sockeye page for this season’s regulations. Baker often has in-season updates (e.g. raising the limit to 5 fish).

You can get licenses from WDFW online, WDFW headquarters in Olympia, Walmart, or the many other local license dealers.

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.

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