My Favorite Lures for Puget Sound Pink Salmon Fishing

Like many regions of the Pacific Northwest, Washington’s Puget Sound is home to a large return of Pink Salmon. Washington State’s Pink Salmon return every other year (2023, 2025, 2027) by the millions, and are one of the most popular fisheries of the year! To help you catch Pink Salmon in Washington as well as British Columbia and Alaska, here is my list of the best Pink Salmon lures for saltwater fishing. Some of these lures are great for trolling, others will help you catch them casting from a pier or beach.

Best Trolling Hoochies for Puget Sound Pink Salmon Fishing

Gold Star Octopus Squid Lures

Gold Star’s Yamashita Hoochies are the most versatile lure for salmon, and Seattle Fishing Company’s Salmon Trolling Rigs. The Hot Pink O15 Octopus Salmon trolling rig is one of my top producers. Using abour 26″ to 36″ of leader behind an 11″ Flasher, troll this lure 20′ to 40′ down in the early morning, and up to 100′ down later in the day for some great Puget Sound Pink Salmon trolling.

Gold Star Needlefish Squid Rig

Gold Star’s Hot Pink Needlefish Hoochie with tandem Octopus Hooks offers a great profile in that classic Hot Pink color that Puget Sound Pink Salmon seems to love.

Best Pink Salmon Flies for Trolling in Puget Sound

Silver Horde Ace Hi Fly

Silver Horde’s Ace Hi Fly and Ace Hi Needlefish Fly in UV Pink Splatterback is one of the best Pink Salmon lures on the market. It offers mega flash and has caught me plenty of Pink Salmon in Puget Sound.

Grand Slam Bucktail

Grand Slam Bucktail is one of the flashiest salmon trolling flies around, and this local Puget Sound favorite in Pink seems to do really well for Pink Salmon. I also need to mention their newer pattern, Barbie, which looks like another big producer.

Best Trolling Flashers for Puget Sound Coho Fishing

The traditional “Humpy Flasher” is an 8″ or 11″ flat white plastic board. While this is a very effective flasher, in all my years of chartering, I’ve never had a problem with my standard selection of salmon flasher, and I am a big fan of being able to use your flashers for all salmon species. So, I have put here my top salmon flashers that will definitely produce a great catch of Pink Salmon for you. Don’t go out and buy a flasher that only works for Pinks!

Pro-Troll ProFlash 11″ Flasher

The Pro-Troll “Blinky Flasher” has become one of my absolute favorite salmon flashers. Its water-activated light sends off some major attraction during low-light hours or if the Pinks decide to decend to 100′ or more of water.

Pro-Troll Hot Chip 11″ Flasher

Pro-Troll’s HotChip Flasher is one of my most used flasher series. They come in a bunch of great colors and are super affordable.

Pro-Troll Hot Chip 8″ Flasher

A smaller 8″ flasher is often the key to catching Pink Salmon when that first light bite dies down. I like the HotChip 8″ and ProChip Fin 8″ flashers from Pro-Troll.

Gibbs Highliner Flasher

I need to give honorable mention to one of the greatest flasher series of all time… the Highliner Flasher! Gibbs produced a great series with some of the most innovated color patterns on the market.

Best Trolling Spoons for Puget Sound Pink Salmon Fishing

McOmie’s Custom Glow Spoons

McOmie’s Custom Glow Spoons in Pink Dawn, Bubblegum Shrimp and Cotton Candy are an effective trolling lure in Puget Sound, Sekiu and the Strait. Troll these behind an 8″ or 11″ Flasher.

Silver Horde Coho Killer Spoons

Silver Horde’s Coho Killer Spoon in Strawberries & Cream definitely makes the list! It’s a great trolling spoon that has a UV Pink face and a Glow back.

Best Metal Jigs for Beach Casting or Boat Jigging for Puget Sound Pink Salmon

P-Line Kokanator Jigs for Pink Salmon

P-Line came out with this series for deepwater Kokanee jigging, but here in Washington, we are always experimenting with lures for salmon. It turns out that in some places where Pink Salmon run close to shore, the lighter 1/2 Ounce and 3/4 Ounce Kokanator will be your ticket to success.

P-Line Laser Minnow

P-Line Laser Minnow’s flashy finish makes this one of the most visible lures under the surface. Their 1 Ounce size is best for Puget Sound, but their 2 Ounce will be the ticket if you are casting into Depeption Pass, Tacoma Narrows, Point No Point, casting from a pier or jigging from a boat. Anything with a hint of pink on it is a winner, but the patterns with blue, green and chartruese will also greatly appeal to Coho Salmon.

Buzz Bomb Jigs

The Buzz Bomb is the most iconic salmon beach casting lure in the Puget Sound. In the Hot Pink, Holographic Pink and Pearl Pink, you have some of the most effective Pink Salmon casting lures available. The size 2 and 2.5 are most universal here, but in some instances the larger and heavier 3L is going to get you to the strike zone.

Beach Casting for Puget Sound Pink Salmon

Puget Sound’s beaches become a popular place in late summer and early fall, when big schools of Pink and Coho Salmon migrate back to their home waters. They both prefer to hug the shoreline in places, finding themselves within casting distance from many beaches on the Westside of Whidbey Island, Fort Worden State Park in Port Townsend, Point No Point in Hansville, and many beaches and piers in the greater Seattle Area.

My preferred lures of choice are all metal jigs. Fishing with a Buzz Bomb, P-Line Laser Minnow or Kokanator are the best option, and are super easy. A medium action rod that can handle casting an ounce or two, and 12 to 15 pound test line is all you need!

Puget Sound Pink Salmon Fishing without Downriggers

Downriggers are a key piece of equipment for most salmon fishers, but you don’t need them to catch a few Pink Salmon. Below are two rigs that I use often and they are both effective for catching Pink Salmon and Coho Salmon, which can be found near the surface at times.