We decided to take a break from driving and visit this little salmon hatchery on our way. They were about to close when we arrived and the two nice women working in their visitor center let us buy fish food even though it was outside of their feeding time. It was not salmon season so they only have rainbow trout but we had fun feeding the fish anyways. We were told to come back during the salmon season to see them coming up the river. The women working there were really helpful and told us more about the salmon hatchery. They stayed past their closing time too. Also gave us tokens for our return visits. read more

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Came by on a random weekday morning in May and it was so fun to casually walk around and explore the area (the downtown is adorable too!). It's easy to do a self-guided tour, although they do have group tours if you book ahead of time, a gift shop, clean bathrooms, and friendly staff (one of them sacrificed part of his lunch break to open the gift shop for us)! Very educational but not oppressively so, beautiful greenery - great for kiddos and adults alike. Definitely want to come back during Salmon Days - first weekend of October! read more

The salmon hatchery is a fantastic addition to Issaquah and really ties in with the Salmon Days festival. There's a very nice viewing area where you can sit down and watch the salmon go through the system. There's also viewing areas from the bridge. The education center has super friendly people that are clearly passionate about what they do, which is always awesome to see! The hatchery also has several holding tanks with different stages of salmon and trout where you can see them jump out of the water here and there. During Salmon Days you're allowed to feed them. Helping the salmon out helps everyone else living in the water and I'm all for it! Definitely best during Salmon Days, it's really not a bad place to hang around in general. read more

I come to the Issaquah Salmon Hatchery once a year, during the Issaquah Salmon Festival. It is very likely the absolute worst time to come. But I enjoy it every year. Because it's festival time, there are extra booths to share everything about the environment - from rainwater run-off to toxic weeds, wildlife in the area, responsible living, and of course, about salmon. There are information boards everywhere for self-education. A small museum-like structure is one of the viewing points to see the hatchery. Watching the salmon jump at the entry way into the fish ladder is always a must. The "go-home" instincts are just amazing. Ponds that are labeled "Fish Fry" is not to fry the fish. These contain the small fishes growing up till they reach a big enough size to be released into the wild. Hosted by an army of volunteers, they are available to answer questions. Some are standing at key locations carrying a sign called "F.I.S.H. DOCENT, ASK ME!" FISH = Friends of Issaquah Salmon Hatchery. During this busy festival weekend, they also lay out different salmon types with signs for people to see and touch. These are educational and very slimy-looking. It is funny to see the kids and adults squealing gross, gross, gross, as they continue to touch the fish. For those who don't want to deal with the crowds, come on a weekend that is not the salmon festival. Weekdays have school groups that also can get crowded. read more

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If you have kids or even if you don't this is a fun place to explore watching the salmon spawn, learn a bit about keeping their habitat safe and how the lifecycle of a salmon happens. It's pretty fascinating. Issaquah creek is beautiful in fall so the photo op's are awesome! And the gift shop has some fun tshirts and other cool finds. read more

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A small hatchery in heart of Issaquah downtown. Had a good time seeing the salmon in the wild in the stream flowing through the hatchery and jumping in the fish ladder. They also had rainbow trout breeding in the hatchery. It was Salmon Festival so had food trucks in the campus. Parking can be a nightmare but there are plenty of parking spots in downtown within a mile. read more

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This is a really neat place for kids and adults. I think I liked it more than my kids or the kids from the field trip. We've been here multiple times. If you come around October/November, you will see tons of salmon in the water. Some of the fish can look a little gruesome because they are dying. The school field trip was really cool and our guide was great! The kids loved that they got to feed the trout! read more

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Not much to see here at least the few times I have come here. They have some tanks but usually it's empty. Just a lot of water tanks with nothing to see. They have a nice education session inside which shows some baby salmons. Prob spend max 10 min here. Just went to the nearby park across the street to kill more time. read more

This place is one of Washington's finest wildlife places in the middle of Issaquah. We came here just because we had to go to target and I ended up loving every minuite. The salmon ladders go right trough the place. You can see all of the fish and the places where they go to spawn. There are lots of learning activities for the kids. You can see the development of the fish as they are. If you are in this place driving, stop for a few minutes you may Learn a few things... now I get why Kokane the hip hop artist spells his name in the way he does! read more

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Note that Yelp says that this is closed, but really you just have to book in advance on the https://www.issaquahfish.org/ website, and it's only open for tours on limited days and times. And I tried to book it, oh, I did, but it was full every single time. So on Saturday in the pouring rain I dragged a friend to visit Issaquah Creek to see the salmon (PNW newbie here, altogether too enthusiastic about local wildlife, had always wanted to see the salmon run, and tolerant friend.) In my fish-enthusiasm I went over to the doors of the hatchery (ok, I had some questions) and it turns out there were a bunch of no-shows for the day. The volunteer docents were kind enough to let us join an existing tour. Note that tours are $5/person and that this is a nonprofit where donations support a healthy salmon population in our region, so please consider giving more. (We gave $20). It was spectacular - the creek was full of salmon, salmon attempting to jump the weir, salmon leaping up the fish ladder (mostly Coho, occasional Chinook), holding tanks full of salmon. Guide was excellent. Highly recommended! read more

As far as fish hatcheries go - this is probably the best one I have ever been to. And others must agree, because the Issaquah hatchery is the most visited of Washington's hatcheries. Well, maybe that doesn't sound like a ringing endorsement so let me explain why if you find yourself out in Issaquah it is worth a stop. It is easy to get to, easy to find, and been kept up well over it's many years in existence and also improved and expanded over the years. It has a great history and is really the pride of Issaquah so a focus of the town (i.e. Issaquah Salmon Days Festival) and a great place to learn about our state's Salmon run, how the life-cycle of the Salmon works, and watershed stewardship. There are different displays and exhibits, a nice viewing fish ladder, and always many volunteers around to answer your questions. Because of that, it is a great educational experience for both young and old. If you are going to visit you really must do so when the salmon run is at it's fullest which is September-October. Even in that timeframe you will want to make to sure wait until there have been a few good rains because even though the salmon only need a tiny bit of a creek to get up they do need some. When I went today there was plenty of Coho and Sockeye in the creek. In a few more weeks Chinook should be joining. And that is really the best part of the hatchery - seeing all the huge salmon in the little Issaquah Creek itself. read more

See the life cycle of the salmon up close and personal. Located at 125 W Sunset Way, the Issaquah Salmon Hatchery has more than 300,000 visitors each year. The best time to visit is September and October, when the salmon return to the hatchery up Issaquah Creek and when the Friends of the Issaquah Salmon Hatchery (F.I.S.H.) offers public tours. Great educational fun for kids and adults... From their website: "This site was once part of "City Park", which was connected to downtown Issaquah with a wooden bridge over Issaquah Creek. During the 1920's, the park was well used with a bandstand and speaking platform for large holiday celebrations; and there was much picnicking along the creek. The hatchery was constructed as a Works Project Administration project during 1936-1937. Plans included: Hatchery Building (increased in size during late design phase from 90 feet long to 176 feet!), hatching troughs, deep tray troughs, hatchery baskets, egg trays, overseer's residence, feed house, garage, rearing ponds, water system, and racks and traps. In the early 1990's, the State Department of Fish and Wildlife announced plans to close the hatchery due to budget constrains. But the City of Issaquah, Friends of the Issaquah Salmon Hatchery (F.I.S.H.), the Muckleshoot Tribe, and King County all urged the state to keep the hatchery open. With a new focus on education, watershed stewardship, and bolstering native and threatened salmon such as the Lake Washington steelhead, the hatchery was significantly renovated and expanded in 1997 and 1998 with a new viewing pond, viewing shelter, four raceways, plumbing, stormwater systems, and a fish ladder. As of 1999, more significant improvements are still in the works! The lands on which the hatchery sit are owned by the City of Issaquah which is leasing them to the State of Washington on a 99 year lease." http://www.issaquahhistory.org/sites/salmonhatchery.htm http://www.issaquahfish.org/ http://wdfw.wa.gov/wildwatch/salmoncam/index.html read more

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Very impressive if you're into natural science. Cost: free. Bag of fish food, $2. The place is worth a stop if your an out of towner and haven't seen a live salmon. They're HUGE! I'm sure timing is everything, and the time of season you go may determine the type of experience you have here. It's all very complicated to us Californians, thus, the "nice friendly eager to answer your questions" naturalists standing on the bridge. They will come to you and ask you if you have any for them. They live for this, so ask away. There is literally nothing they don't know about salmon, the hatchery, and salmon, and spawning. From the bridge, watch as these meter long poor bastards of the fish world flip and flop on their swim of inevitable death. You can see the ones that made it by walking down under the storage tanks. They are thrashed man! There are a bunch of displays that although probably were built to help kids understand salmon, helped a city dope like me understand. It was really entertaining! I knew nothing about salmon except how good they taste. I have a deeper appreciation for these guys. It's a miracle they've survived this long. I could've spent about an hour here but we had to go. Bye salmon! read more

I came towards the end of the season while it was raining so I didn't see much action going on, but I'm sure when the season is popping, this place is a gem. read more

This place is a great place to see and learn about the life of salmon! Different displays with great info! My daughter loved watching them try to jump! It's free, easy to find and depending on the day lots of salmon! read more

Wonderful history. Wonderful staff. Excellent service. Necessary. I'm glad they exist still in Issaquah. Beautiful place to wander and spend time! read more

Just visited during the Issaquah Salmon Days Festival. Knowledgeable "salmon docents" were around every corner to provide info and answer questions. I don't recommend going during the festival because it was very crowded and difficult to get a good view of the salmon in the tanks. Great place to take kids, they have interactive info stations about the salmon's journey. read more

Issaquah Salmon Hatchery - Tours Near Me - Issaquah, Washington

Been here two times during the Salmon day even. But pretty much you can come anytime. It's pretty cool how you can see all the salmon from the brdige, and they usually have a table with different kind of salmon during the salmon day. It's a great education for the kids. No bad comment about this place, because it's FREE!!!! read more

Ive always been really big into salmon. I had an incident with a couple of aggressive salmon when I was 7 but I was able to move past it. I wanted to learn all about these amazing creatures. Ive read many books on salmon and have had a pretty successful life aside from that. This Hatchery completed me. It was so educational and I saw salmon spawning everywhere! I learned more about salmon just being able to watch them and video tape them than I had reading hundreds of books. I was truly moved and I will visit this salmon farm again. read more

An amazing Salmon hatchery facility located in a small, historic town. Come watching the mature salmons swimming, jumping in the Issaquah Creek and man made water ways. The fish ladder is another interesting place to observe salmons swimming by. After observation, do stop by the cute Railway Depot and take some photos. read more

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I love bringing my son here. He is 21 months old and it's perfect for a free toddler activity to go on a walk and get him out of the house. He loves to run around checking out all of the different tanks, the fish ladder, bridge, and outdoor displays. It's really fun to go right now because it's right in the middle of the salmon returning so there is a lot to see. The volunteers have been helpful, but are a little strange. One lady went into detail about how the salmon get clubbed on the head and sliced open and killed for their eggs. I think that could potentially freak some kids out even though it's reality. Luckily I'm a weirdo too so my son is probably exposed to that type of storytelling without me realizing it. read more

Excellent place to bring your kids for an educational experience. Our guided tour docent Lawrence was knowledgeable and clearly passionate about the salmon hatchery. The tour was 45 mins long but well worth it. The kids had a wonderful time and we'll be back to see the salmon spawn. Tons of salmon now for viewing! read more

We visited the salmon hatchery today and had a great time. (beautiful day but COLD...BRRR...) The guide was wonderful and helpful and the kids had a good time. Best for older children though. My 3 year old said she wanted to go home and take a bubble bath. Hmmmm....maybe a few more years. read more

Stopped by here after lunch at XXX burgers. No fish that I can find here right now. The bays are all empty, so I'm not sure what I'll comment on. Oh yeah, the bathrooms are very nice!! :) More next visit! read more

This place is an amazing Pokemon Stop! Lures galore! We had guests in town and we came here over and over again! The can watch the REAL SALMON while catching MAGIKARP! The place is always lite up with at least 3 lures. Great people watching. read more

One of the most amazing places in north west. I have been here so many times and brought everyone who came to visit in the fall. Be sure to visit anytime between beginning of September to end of November. read more

This place is very cool. If you can make it here when the salmon are spawning and around the Salmon fest it's even better!

So nicely set up. If you go during salmon season sept/oct, you really get to see alot of salmon and watch them jump. There's also fun interactive posters. great place to walk through read more

First went there few years ago with my son's class on a field trip. This year went with my daughter's. Great place to see the life cycle of salmon. Its a nice free fun with lots to learn for kids. read more

My daughter had an outing there a few weeks ago with her Girl Scout troop and it was horrible! WAY TO MANY kids to too few staff, one staff member told our troop to break into smaller groups to make things go faster for us then I get chewed out by a different staff member because she 'doesn't care what she said out front and we're just using extra resources' - VERY RUDE about the whole thing, did not learn a thing about salmon!!! Kinda learned a little about how to keep the river healthy but ALL SELF GUIDED SELF TAUGHT!!! All in all, if you're expecting to learn or be treated with respect from these people, save yourself the frustration. DON'T GO HERE! If I could rate this place a zero, I would do it a heartbeat!! read more

Great site to visit, open every day 7/24/365. Best in Sept/Oct when the fish are coming home and filling the creek. Docents on site during the Fall season but visitor friendly and there's always something to see. The Staff are friendly and happy to proudly explain the site., We really enjoyed our December visit, plenty of parking and it's free.. Easy to get to off Newport Blvd or by the Sunset exit off I-90 read more

impressive. real educational experience for adults and children. feel honoured to be able to observe the fish's developpement. jump salmon, jump! Thank you Friends of Issaquah State Salmon Hatchery (F.I.S.H) read more