Washington Fishing Blog
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Rigging, How to and Gear Guide
Rigging, How to and Gear Guide
What you need to catch Pink Salmon in Washington's Rivers
Our Best Lures and Gear for Pink Salmon fishing in rivers Many of the rivers in the Puget Sound region of Washington State will see a huge migration of Pink Salmon every two years, and they instantly become the most popular fish to catch in the area. It's 2025 and we are seeing the beginning of a great return, so if you are interested in catching a few, we have some great recommendations for lures, tackle and gear! You'll notice that we have several different techniques featured here, but for the most part, the number one lure color is Pink! These salmon usually bite pink lures better than anything. We hope you get out and catch a few yourself this season! Must Have Casting Lures for Pink Salmon Here are a few of our favorite casting lures. Twitching jigs are the most universal. Make sure to carry an assortment of 1/4 to 1/2 ounce jigs to cover the bases. If you're posted up in the tidal stretches of our rivers where the pools are deep and slow, a metal jig like a small Buzz Bomb or Kokanator can work as well in-river as they do out on the beaches of Puget Sound. Make sure to switch out your hooks to single-point! Humpy Death Jigs This plastic hoochie jig is really durable and one of our top suggestions for river fishing. SHOP NOW Humpy Death Jigs A little heavier than the Humpy Death Jigs at 1/2 ounce, this one is a great lure to use in deeper pools. SHOP NOW Aerojig Rabbit Twitching Jigs This twitching jig is one of our best sellers for river fishing, and very effective. Comes in 3/8 to 1/2 ounce. SHOP NOW Buzz Bombs In some of the deepest lower river pools, a 2" Buzz Bomb can be a Humpy catching machine! Single point hooks in most areas. SHOP NOW P-Line Kokanator Jigs These 1/2 to 3/4 ounce metal jigs are effective in those deep tidewater pools of the lower river, switch out the hook for a siwash to stay legal. SHOP NOW Downtown Snohomish has ample bank access, a great place to cast jigs or float fish. Drift Fishing for Humpies Drift fishing is a technique that sets you up to work your presentation just above the river bottom. As your lead sinker taps the gravel, your drift fishing rig is positioned just above in the strike zone. Very popular on the Puyallup, Nisqually, Green, Snohomish and Skagit Rivers to name a few. Lil' Corkies Corkies are buoyant drift bobbers that add color and float the hook of your drift fishing setup, size 12 to 10 are most popular for Pink Salmon fishing. SHOP NOW Glo Bugs Yarn Tie a tuft of pink yarn onto the hook snell of your leader for added color! Any hue of pink is a good choice for Humpies. SHOP NOW Gamakatsu Salmon/Steelhead Leader These pre-tied leaders come in a 3 pack and make tying up the drift fishing rig and easy deal. SHOP NOW Rolling Drop Swivels with Safety Snap Perfect swivels to get your drift fishing setup dialed in. Tie off your leader and mainline to the ends and snap in a cut and punched piece of pencil lead. SHOP NOW Pencil Lead Spools Pencil lead has been a standby for river fishing, as you can create the exact size that allows your gear to tumble along the river bottom. SHOP NOW Lead Posting Pliers These pliers are a river fisher's best friend. Cut and punch pencil lead, line, pinch hooks, everything you need! SHOP NOW Pink Salmon have large oblong black spots on their tail, tiny scales and a white gumline, almost all of them are wild in Washington State. Bobber & Jig Fishing for Pink Salmon You'll often find Pink Salmon concentrated in those deep and slow moving stretches of river where a float and jig becomes a great tactic. We like to carry a variety of jig sizes and colors, sometimes a hot pink works really well, sometimes a pink/white or chartreuse becomes the heavy hitter! Clear Torpedo Floats Clear Torpedo Floats in 3/8 to 1/2 ounce work well in all water conditions! SHOP NOW Bobber Weights Use a torpedo inline weight to get that bobber to bottom out and get the casting distance you need on the river. SHOP NOW Aerojig Rabbit Fur Jigs This is a really solid Humpy Jig for float fishing. The rabbit fur is really durable but still gives off a great undulating action. SHOP NOW Aerojig Hackle Jigs This low-profile jig is perfect when Pink Salmon are pressured and not biting well, tip the hook with a sand shrimp tail for added attraction. SHOP NOW Lower Skagit including the North Fork and South Fork are popular places to plunk for Pink Salmon. Plunking Gear for Pink Salmon Plunking is a popular technique on many of our larger rivers, especially in areas lower down near tidewater. The lower reaches of the Skagit, Snohomish and Green are popular plunking areas, the trick is to cast your plunking gear in the travelling lane of migrating Pinks and wait for the fish to come to you! Spin-N-Glo's Plunkers usually stick with the Size 6 Spin-N-Glo's and use a piece of prawn or sand shrimp for the winning combo. SHOP NOW Plastic Beads Thread a couple small beads on the leader before your Spin-N-Glo to keep line twist to a minimum. SHOP NOW Pyramid Sinkers The pyramid sinker is the perfect weight for plunking in our rivers, usually 1 to 4 ounces is used during the Humpy Season. SHOP NOW We have a really good selection of river fishing gear, check out our Salmon Page for even more great lures for Pink Salmon fishing.
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What you need to catch Pink Salmon in Puget Sound
When Pink Salmon make their migration back to Puget Sound, fishing at local salmon spots, whether they be from boat or beach can be red-hot. These are also called Humpy Salmon, and they return to spawn in the rivers of Puget Sound on odd-numbered years. The peak saltwater fishing season is August to early September and when fishing is good it is some of the fastest action you can find on the water.
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Salmon Rigging: Buzz Bomb, Hoochie & Siwash Hook
Rigging a Buzz Bomb with a small plastic hoochie skirt makes this epic salmon lure even more enticing. Use a Gamakatsu Siwash Hook to stay street-legal in all Washington marine areas. This setup is one of our top choices for Pink Salmon fishing in Puget Sound. You can jig this from a boat or cast from shore... either way Humpy Salmon absolutely love it! Typically we use a 2" or 2.5" Buzz Bomb, either in Hot Pink, Pearl Pink or Holographic Pink. Pair your Buzz Bomb with a small plastic hoochie skirt and the action will drive those salmon wild. Rigging the Buzz Bomb, Hoochie & Siwash Hook Setup Buzz Bomb Gear List Gamakatsu Open Eye Siwash Hook Rosco Barrel Swivel Size 7 Beau Mac 5mm Plastic Bead Yamashita Micro Squid or P-Line 1.5" Sunrise Squid Buzz Bomb P-Line CX Premium 12 to 20 pound mainline We put this post together as a basic guide on how to rig a Buzz Bomb with a Gamakatsu Big River Bait Hook and Hoochie including all the tackle needed to do it right. If you want to view our full selection of Saltwater Salmon rods, reels and gear, please check out our Salmon Page. Buzz Bombs The go-to beach fishing lure for salmon. If you're fishing the Puget Sound region, you've got to grab a few of these for your next trip! SHOP NOW
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Salmon Rigging: Buzz Bomb, Hoochie & Big River Bait Hook
When shore fishing for Salmon on Puget Sound, this setup is the top-dog, pairing the best beach fishing lure with a great hook setup. Buzz Bombs are a very popular lure for catching salmon, they cast a country-mile and have a fluttering action that attracts the attention of nearby salmon. Cast it as far as you can, let it sink a little and give the rod a jigging motion to get the lure to lift and fall. This setup is one of our favorites for beach fishing Coho Salmon on the shores of Puget Sound. Whether you venture onto one of the many beachs of Whidbey Island or are fishing closer to Seattle, this setup flat out catches. Rigging the Buzz Bomb, Hoochie & Big River Bait Hook Setup Buzz Bomb Gear List Gamakatsu Big River Open Eye Hook Rolling Barrel Swivel Size 3 Beau Mac 5mm Bead for the Hoochie to rest on Yamashita Micro Squid, Mini Sardine or P-Line Sunrise 1.5" Hoochie or 2.5" Hoochie Buzz Bomb P-Line CX Premium mainline 12 to 20 pound We put this post together as a basic guide on how to rig a Buzz Bomb with a Gamakatsu Big River Bait Hook and Hoochie including all the tackle needed to do it right. If you want to view our full selection of Saltwater Salmon rods, reels and gear, please check out our Salmon Page. Buzz Bombs The go-to beach fishing lure for salmon. If you're fishing the Puget Sound region, you've got to grab a few of these for your next trip! SHOP NOW
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Salmon Rigging: Buzz Bomb, Hoochie & Single Octopus Hook
This simple Buzz Bomb rigging method has been used on Puget Sound beaches for generations, with an easy to tie setup and additional action from the plastic hoochie skirt. Casting Buzz Bombs is a great way to catch Coho and Pink Salmon from the beaches of Puget Sound. If you are looking for a great fishing experience, plan a trip to any of Puget Sound's many beaches during the salmon season. This setup is an easy one to tie with minimal components, one of the reasons I like to recommend the Buzz Bomb and hoochie setup is the active motion that the plastic skirt provides as it's jigged up-and-down in the water column. Rigging the Buzz Bomb, Hoochie & Single Octopus Hook Setup Buzz Bomb Gear List Gamakatsu Octopus Hook Fluorescent Pink, snelled to the leader Beau Mac 4mm Bead for the hoochie to rest on P-Line Sunrise Squid 1.5" or Yamashita Micro Squid Buzz Bomb P-Line CX Premium 12 to 20 pound mainline We put this post together as a basic guide on how to rig a Buzz Bomb with a Gamakatsu Big River Bait Hook and Hoochie including all the tackle needed to do it right. If you want to view our full selection of Saltwater Salmon rods, reels and gear, please check out our Salmon Page. Buzz Bombs The go-to beach fishing lure for salmon. If you're fishing the Puget Sound region, you've got to grab a few of these for your next trip! SHOP NOW
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Salmon Rigging: Buzz Bomb & Double Snelled Octopus Hooks
The Buzz Bomb is a classic lure for local beach and pier fishing. Snelling the leader with tandem octopus hooks gives you a great hook-to-landing ratio! When casting Buzz Bombs for salmon, you've got alot of hook rigging options to choose from, one great way to set up is to snell two Gamakatsu Octopus Hooks on a leader and thread on yoru Buzz Bomb. In saltwater fisheries across Washington State and elsewhere, single point barbless hooks are required for salmon. This setup requires you to learn the snell knot, but once you get that down, you'll have a great hook-to-landing ratio with those twin hooks. Rigging the Buzz Bomb & Tandem Octopus Hook setup Buzz Bomb Gear List Gamakatsu Barbless Octopus Hooks, tandem-snell Beau Mac 4mm Beads Buzz Bomb P-Line CX Premium mainline 12 to 20 pound We put this post together as a basic guide on how to rig a Buzz Bomb with a Gamakatsu Big River Bait Hook and Hoochie including all the tackle needed to do it right. If you want to view our full selection of Saltwater Salmon rods, reels and gear, please check out our Salmon Page. Buzz Bombs The go-to beach fishing lure for salmon. If you're fishing the Puget Sound region, you've got to grab a few of these for your next trip! SHOP NOW
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Lingcod Rigging: Live Bait Setup
Puget Sound Lingcod love to gobble up live Sand Dabs, and Lingcod elsewhere along the Pacific Coast also can't resist live bait. We have tested multiple setups for live bait and found this to be the most effective, with the best hookup ratio and fewer tangles.
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Trout Rigging: Powerbait & Sliding Egg Sinker Setup
Washington is scattered with hundreds of great trout fishing lakes, many of which are stocked with Rainbow Trout from local hatcheries. Throughout our travels across the state, this has been the most popular trout fishing rig we've come across.
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Trout Rigging: Powerbait Egg & Sliding Sinker Setup
If you're fishing in a lake that holds Rainbow Trout anywhere in the Pacific Northwest, this setup is as good as it gets. Berkley Powerbait & Gulp Eggs are durable on the hook and flavored to specifically drive stocker trout wild. They are also buoyant, so a light-wire hook will allow it to float just above the lakebed where cruising trout are looking for their next meal.
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Steelhead Rigging: Float Fishing Setup
Steelhead love to hold in sections of the river where larger boulders create current breaks and resting spots. These areas are often very snaggy and you can lose gear trying to drift fish along the bottom. Float fishing is a perfect technique for most of the best waters, as the Steelhead jig is suspended below a float. This vertical setup can perfectly present your offering to holding Steelhead, and these slip floats are easily adjustable as you move along the river bank fishing various spots.
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Our Favorite Halibut Fishing Rigs & Setups
We've spent plenty of time fishing for Halibut in Washington, Alaska, British Columbia and Oregon and found a few setups that work really well. Use this post as a general guideline, and feel free to use it as motivation to create your own setups!
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Halibut Rigging: Spin-N-Glo Hoochie & Weight Slider Setup
This setup is deadly effective, and we love the simplicity of the slider rig which is a great option if you're fishing with a buoyant setup like the Spin-N-Glo & Hoochie combination. The hoochies we usually rig are anywhere from 7.5" to 9" in a variety of colors including white, glow, orange, hot pink, green, purple. Make sure you slide a small corky on the leader before your hoochie, so that the hoochie skirt has something to rest on above the hooks.
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