San Francisco Bay & Ocean Fishing Report

Report Updated July 15, 2010

BUTTS IN THE BAY; STRIPERS ON THE BEACHES

There’s been plenty to do in and around the Bay lately. From on man on the inside, Jonah Li at Hi’s Tackle Box in San Francisco:

The halibut seem to be moving towards the main bay…Angel Island and Crissy Field have been good in 15+ feet of water for anglers catching their own jacksmelt and drifting those around. And some nice flatties to 30 pounds have been showing lately.

The stripers are showing on the beaches now as day and night smelt are spawning in spurts. What you’re looking for in a beach: loose-packed sand that you sink a little into as you walk. That’s the kind of beach the smelt prefer for spawning…and thus the stripers like for eating said smelt. Avoid the hard-packed stuff…Guys have been using smelt-looking baits like Hair Raisers, Luckycraft 130’s and Diawa SP Minnows. And the poppers are just getting going…

The salmon bite was okay at Bird Rock and 10-Mile Beach last week, but that bite dried up. Now, the fish appear to be making their way down towards Pt Reyes and Duxbury. Overall, it’s a scratch bite.

One boat ventured out for tuna last week and had to nearly get to the edge of the earth — 100 miles out — before they found fish and water.

About San Francisco Bay

With the amount of urbanization that surrounds San Francisco Bay, it’s a wonder there are any fish here at all. But fish there are! Stripers, halibut and sturgeon make up the Bay’s Big 3 and Chinook salmon pass through here en route to their spawning rivers every fall, too. You’ve also got hard-pulling sharks like leopards, soupfins and sevengills, not to mention rockfish and lingcod. For the light tackle enthusiast, there’s also plenty of perch and jacksemlt and a few starry flounder.

Trolling for Halibut Tips
The Not-so-secret Sturgeon Bait
Shallow Water Rockfishing