Download the mobile app!
Hooking Up Anglers Since 2011.
Check out our new Android or iOS app for Fishing Status.
The long awaited return of our mobie app is back on Apple App Store and Google Play
Coho Salmon
Species Information
| Scientific Name: | Oncorhynchus kisutch |
| Common Names: | coho, silver salmon, Coho Salmon |
| Environment: | Lake, River, Stream, Inshore, Nearshore |
| Ideal Temp: | 53-58°F (12-14°C) |
About Coho Salmon
The coho salmon is a species of anadromous fish in the salmon family. Coho salmon are also known as silver salmon or "silvers".
Coho spend approximately the first half of their life cycle rearing and feeding in streams and small freshwater tributaries. Spawning habitat is small streams with stable gravel substrates. The remainder of the life cycle is spent foraging in estuarine and marine waters of the Pacific Ocean. Some stocks of coho salmon migrate more than 1,000 miles in the ocean, while other stocks remain in marine areas relatively close to the streams where they were born.
During their ocean phase, coho salmon have silver sides and dark-blue backs. During their spawning phase, their jaws and teeth become hooked. After entering fresh water, they develop bright-red sides, bluish-green heads and backs, dark bellies and dark spots on their backs. Sexually maturing fish develop a light-pink or rose shading along the belly, and the males may show a slight arching of the back. Mature adults have a pronounced red skin color with darker backs and average 28 inches (71 cm) and 7 to 11 pounds (3.2 to 5.0 kg), occasionally reaching up to 36 pounds (16 kg). Mature females may be darker than males, with both showing a pronounced hook on the nose.
The traditional range of the coho salmon runs along both sides of the North Pacific Ocean, from Hokkaidō, Japan and eastern Russian, around the Bering Sea to mainland Alaska, and south to Monterey Bay, California. Coho salmon have also been introduced in all the Great Lakes, as well as many landlocked reservoirs throughout the United States.
Coho Salmon Fishing
| World Record: | 15.08 kg (33 lb 4 oz) Salmon River, Pulaski, New York, USA |
| # Fish Caught: | 157831 documented in database. |
| Earliest Record: | 1/1/1800 12:00:00 AM and located at 55.61037, -159.21618. |
| Latest Record: | 12/9/2024 10:19:20 AM and located at 45.52345, -122.67621. |
| Common Techniques: | Casting, Fly, Trolling |
| Popular Lure Types: | Flies, Plugs, Spoons, Topwater, Trolling |
| Fishing Spots: | 7718 Coho Salmon fishing spots. |
Latest Coho Salmon Fishing Reports and Spots
With the prospect of excellent runs taking shape the Buoy 10 season for 2025 should offer plenty of opportunities to bring home both chinook an (
View)
Fishing is definitely picking up–We have been bringing in some mixed bag catches of kings coho and rainbows. (
View)
If you want numbers now is time to go charter fishing out of Port Washington. As of this week there are definitely more coho salmon around which (
View)
Charter fishing out of Port Washington has become a little more challenging this past week however we are still bringing in some good mixed bag (
View)
With July coming to an end Port Washington Charter fishing has remained fairly consistent. Coho salmon have surprisingly stuck around in good nu (
View)
The colder spring lead to a slower than normal start to the Port Washington Charter fishing season. In May we were targeting lake trout due to t (
View)
Coho salmon seem to be here in full force on Lake Michigan out of Port Washington. If you want to fill a cooler up with fish now is a good time (
View)
The Outcast is in the water and fishing has been good. We have been catching mostly coho salmon with some kings and steelhead mixed in. If your (
View)
Fishing has been good. Now is a great time to go if you want coho salmon. (
View)
Coho fishing out of Port Washington was a breeze this morning. (
View)