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Fish City

Tackle Shops Across Washington

8 shops — hours, live bait, and directions.

Updated

Bait and tackle near you in Washington

8 open shops, 1 with live bait, live bait first.

Washington's saltwater fishing splits into three very different worlds, and its tackle shops stock accordingly. On the outer coast, Westport and Ilwaco are the big charter ports — bottomfish and lingcod over the reefs, Buoy 10 and ocean salmon at the Columbia mouth, and an August albacore tuna run that pulls the fleet offshore. Inside, Puget Sound and the South Sound are a year-round salmon, lingcod, and crab fishery worked from Everett, Tacoma, and the marinas in between. Out west, the Strait of Juan de Fuca and the Sekiu and Neah Bay ports are the state's premier salmon and halibut grounds. White sturgeon add a heavy-tackle fishery on the lower Columbia.

What that means for gear: most of these shops are full-line sporting-goods stores or marine-supply houses that cover salmon trolling (downriggers, flashers, spoons), bottomfish, and the heavy crab-and-shrimp-pot side of Puget Sound fishing. Live bait is uncommon here: one shop in this directory confirms it on its own source, and most of the coast and Sound runs on frozen and cured bait, so call ahead if you need live. Several of the larger stores also run reel-repair counters.

Select a region or scroll the map to find the shop closest to where you'll fish.

Shops in Washington

Washington on the map

Species to target here

Related regions

Frequently asked questions

  • Do Washington tackle shops sell live bait?

    It is uncommon. Of the 8 Washington shops in this directory, only Holiday Sports up in Burlington confirms live bait on its own source, advertising live, freshly frozen, and pre-packaged bait. Most of the coast and Sound runs on frozen and cured bait, so call ahead if you specifically need live.

  • What can you catch in Washington's salt water?

    On the outer coast (Westport, Ilwaco) it's bottomfish and lingcod over the reefs, ocean and Buoy 10 salmon at the Columbia mouth, and offshore albacore tuna in warm summers. In Puget Sound and the South Sound it's salmon, lingcod, and Dungeness crab much of the year. The Strait of Juan de Fuca and Neah Bay are top salmon and Pacific halibut grounds, and the lower Columbia holds white sturgeon.

  • Where are Washington's main saltwater fishing ports?

    Westport, on Grays Harbor, is the state's biggest sportfishing port; Ilwaco sits at the mouth of the Columbia for Buoy 10 salmon and albacore. In Puget Sound, Everett and Tacoma anchor the fishery, with Bellingham serving the North Sound. Port Angeles, Sekiu, and Neah Bay work the Strait of Juan de Fuca to the west.

  • Are Englund Marine stores tackle shops?

    Englund Marine is a regional Pacific-Northwest marine-supply house (operating since 1944) with stores on the Westport and Ilwaco charter docks. They are not mom-and-pop bait shops, but each store carries a full sport-fishing tackle department — rods, reels, terminal tackle, and salmon and tuna gear — alongside commercial marine supplies, which is why they are listed here.