Originally published January 2013, this post was updated in September 2026 with new information and advice.
Tides are one of the first things I look at when planning a day of fishing. They influence current speed, where and how I fish, when I move between fishing grounds, and sometimes whether a particular area is practical or safe to fish at all.
As a general rule, I like to concentrate much of my fishing effort around the change of the tide, often from about one hour before slack through the first couple of hours after it. This is not a rule that applies to every fishery or location, but it is a good starting point. Over time, anglers usually learn that particular spots fish better during certain stages of the tide.
A tide table also helps organize the rest of the fishing day. If I know when I want to be trolling for salmon or fishing halibut, I can plan runs between fishing grounds, shore lunches, or setting and pulling prawn and crab traps for periods when I am less concerned about missing a prime fishing window.
Understanding Tides and Slack Water
One important distinction for anglers is that tide height and tidal current are related, but they are not the same thing.
A tide prediction tells us when high and low water will occur and the predicted height of the water. Tidal current describes the horizontal movement of that water. Slack water is the period when the tidal current becomes very weak or temporarily stops before changing direction.
It is tempting to assume that high tide or low tide automatically means slack current, but this is not always the case. In some locations, particularly around channels, passes and complicated coastal geography, the timing of slack current can differ from the time of high or low water. Where current is important to the fishing or navigation plan, check current predictions as well as the tide table.
Incoming or Outgoing Tide?
Anglers often ask whether an incoming or outgoing tide is better for fishing. I don’t think there is one answer that applies everywhere. What matters more is how the current created by that tide interacts with the geography of a particular fishing spot.
Underwater points, reefs, ledges, islands, channels and other features can redirect or concentrate moving water. Depending on the direction of the current, water may wash up against or over a feature and concentrate bait and feeding fish in particular areas. When the tide changes direction, that concentration may shift to another part of the structure or disappear altogether.
This is why the same location can fish very differently on an incoming versus an outgoing tide. Over time, I pay attention not only to when we catch fish, but also to the direction and strength of the current and where the fish are holding in relation to the structure.
The tide table is therefore a starting point. The real advantage comes from combining the predicted tide and current with an understanding of the underwater geography and what you have learned from repeatedly fishing the same location.
Tide Ranges and Spring Tides
The tidal range is the difference in water level between high and low tide. For anglers, the size of this change can be just as important as the timing of the tide because a larger tidal exchange can produce much stronger currents in some locations.
The largest regular tidal ranges occur around the new moon and full moon. These are known as spring tides. Despite the name, spring tides have nothing to do with the season. They occur when the Sun, Moon and Earth are approximately aligned, combining their tidal influences and generally producing higher high tides and lower low tides.
About a week after a spring tide, near the first- and third-quarter moon, the tidal range is generally smaller. These are called neap tides.
The size of individual tides is also affected by other astronomical and local factors, so not every new or full moon produces exactly the same tidal range. The important thing for fishing is to look at the actual predicted highs and lows rather than relying on the moon phase alone.
How Tides Affect Currents and Fishing
On much of the B.C. coast, a large tidal exchange means a tremendous amount of water has to move through channels, around points and between islands. Depending on the location, that can produce very strong currents.
This becomes particularly noticeable in northern B.C. and southeast Alaska, where tidal ranges can be large. A moderate tide might have an 11-foot difference between high and low water, while a much larger exchange can approach 20 feet or more in some locations. That does not mean that twice the tidal range will automatically produce twice the current speed, but large exchanges can create dramatically different fishing conditions.
Strong current can make salmon trolling difficult. Gear may sweep sideways, and lines fishing opposite sides of the boat can cross during turns. With downriggers, I pay particular attention to how far the cables are blowing back and where they are in relation to the boat and motor. For more information on salmon fishing, see the FishinBC.COM Complete Guide to Salmon Fishing.
Current is equally important when fishing halibut, lingcod and other bottomfish. As the current increases, it becomes harder to keep bait or jigs near the bottom and much more difficult to fish deep water effectively. This is one reason I often plan bottomfishing around periods of reduced current. For more information on these fisheries, see the FishinBC.COM Complete Guide to Halibut Fishing and Complete Guide to Lingcod Fishing.
The tide can also influence where I fish during the day. Instead of fighting an unfavourable current, it can make more sense to move to another fishing area, pull traps, have lunch, or make the run to the next fishing ground and return when conditions improve.
Kelp and Floating Debris
Large tidal exchanges can also move a lot of kelp and floating debris. This can become particularly noticeable after strong winds or storms have broken material loose from kelp beds and shorelines.
For salmon anglers, floating kelp can be a constant frustration. A small piece of weed caught on a line, lure or flasher can ruin the presentation without being obvious from the boat. When there is a lot of debris in the water, I check the gear more frequently rather than assuming it is still fishing properly.
Tides and Navigation Safety
Tidal current is not only a fishing consideration. It can also have a major effect on sea conditions and should be considered when planning a boat trip.
One situation I pay particular attention to is strong wind opposing a strong tidal current. When wind and waves are travelling against the current, the seas can become steeper and closer together. Conditions in channels, passes and around points can be considerably rougher than they were at a different stage of the tide. For more on evaluating wind, waves and marine conditions, see the FishinBC.COM article How to Understand Marine Weather for Fishing and Boating in BC.
If I have a long run back to port, I consider both the weather forecast and what the tide and current will be doing during the trip. Sometimes waiting for the current to ease can make a substantial difference in conditions. Local geography, river outflow and larger ocean currents can complicate the situation further.
Tide height matters for navigation as well. An extreme low can expose rocks and shoals that are covered at higher stages of the tide, while very low water can make some boat launches difficult or unusable. Always use appropriate charts and current navigation information rather than relying on tide height alone.
First Light, Moon Phase and Solunar Data
When planning a fishing day, I also look at sunrise and moon phase. First light can be an excellent time to fish, particularly for Chinook salmon, and I especially like days when the morning bite lines up with a favourable stage of the tide.
Some fishing websites and apps combine the positions of the Sun and Moon with tide information to produce solunar fishing forecasts, often identifying predicted major and minor feeding periods. I treat these as another piece of information rather than a guarantee of good fishing.
For me, the practical value is in seeing several pieces of information together: sunrise, tide height, tidal exchange and, where available, current predictions. When first light overlaps with a stage of the tide that has historically produced fish at a particular spot, that is a window I want to be fishing.
Where to Find Tide and Current Predictions
I use several different sources for tide information. Each presents the information a little differently, and I find graphical tide displays particularly useful because they make it easy to visualize the entire fishing day.
Canadian Hydrographic Service
For fishing in British Columbia, the Canadian Hydrographic Service (CHS) provides the official Canadian tide, water-level and tidal-current predictions. Tide stations provide predicted times and heights of high and low water, while current stations can provide information such as the timing of slack water and maximum currents.
This is an important distinction for anglers because high or low tide does not necessarily occur at exactly the same time as slack current. Where current strength or the timing of slack water is important to the fishing or navigation plan, I recommend checking the available current predictions as well as the tide predictions.
WXTide32
Another tide program I have used is WXTide32. One of the things I like about it is the graphical display. Rather than simply looking at a traditional table of high and low tides, you can see the rise and fall of the tide plotted across the day.
WXTide32 can also display information such as sunrise, sunset, moonrise and moonset. Having the tide and daylight information together makes it easy to see how first light lines up with the stage of the tide and to plan the fishing day around those windows.
Tides4Fishing
I also use Tides4Fishing.com, a web-based resource that combines tide information with sunrise, sunset, moon information and solunar fishing predictions. It provides a convenient graphical view of the tide and allows anglers to look up locations in British Columbia as well as fishing destinations around the world.
Tides4Fishing also provides predicted major and minor fishing periods and a fish-based activity rating. I treat these solunar ratings as another piece of information rather than a guarantee of good fishing. I am more interested in seeing how first light, the tide and the expected current conditions line up with what I already know about a particular fishing spot.
Whichever tide software or website you prefer, check the source of its predictions and read its disclaimers. For boating and navigation in Canadian waters, I use the official Canadian Hydrographic Service information as the authoritative reference.
Plan the Fishing Day Around the Tide
The biggest advantage of studying tides is not finding one magic tide that always produces fish. It is learning how the tide affects each fishing area.
Keep track of which stage of the tide produces fish at your favourite salmon spots, when the current becomes too strong to effectively fish a halibut hole, and which areas remain fishable during a large exchange. Those observations become increasingly useful over time.
Before long, a tide table becomes more than a list of highs and lows. It becomes one of the main tools for deciding where to fish, when to move, and how to make the most of the fishing day.
Your Turn: How Do You Fish the Tides?
Every fishing area is a little different, and over time most anglers develop their own favourite stages of the tide to fish.
Do you have a favourite tide for salmon, halibut, bottomfish, prawning or crabbing? Share what works for you and where you fish in the comments below.