San Francisco Bay fishing conditions and tides
California · Pacific coast · 5.8 ft mean tide range · 25 ppt
Enormous tidal exchange, striped bass, halibut and sturgeon under the bridges
Current conditions
Excellent
Fishing score 83/100
How this score is calculated
58°F against a 55–68°F band for striped bass.
Outgoing (ebb) at 2.1 ft, moving 1.1 ft/hr. Strong water movement is positioning bait on structure.
19 mph out of the SE. Workable wind with useful chop.
3.9 ft at 7 seconds. Building surf; watch the bar and jetty conditions.
Good working clarity with some colour for cover.
30.03 inHg and falling.
56% illumination — neap tides with a smaller exchange.
Fall pattern is fully established for this zone.
What should I do today?
The highest-percentage pattern for this tide and this wind.
Backup pattern
California Halibut — live bait on a sliding sinker in 12–55 ft. Drift the sand between Crissy Field and the Berkeley Flats in 15–50 ft during the spring run.
Right now
Current conditions
Tide
Outgoing (ebb)
2.1 ft, -1.1 ft/hr
Next high
8:36 AM
5.2 ft
Next low
2:23 AM
0.9 ft
Mean range
5.8 ft
Typical high-to-low swing
Water temp
58°F
+0.1°F / 3 days
Water clarity
Stained
Salinity about 25 ppt
Swell
3.9 ft
7 second period
Wind
19 mph
Out of the SE
Pressure
30.03"
Falling pressure — a change is moving in
Air temp
69°F
47% cloud cover
Moon
56%
First Quarter · solunar 12/100
Daylight
6:29 AM
Sunset 5:19 PM
Timing
Today's tides and fishing windows
- Low tide (0.9 ft) — tide change window1:23 AM – 3:23 AM
- Solunar major 25:51 AM – 7:51 AM
- Morning prime window6:04 AM – 8:49 AM
- Sunrise6:29 AM
- High tide (5.2 ft) — tide change window7:36 AM – 9:36 AM
- Low tide (0.6 ft) — tide change window1:48 PM – 3:48 PM
- Evening window3:19 PM – 5:54 PM
- Sunset5:19 PM
- Solunar major 15:51 PM – 7:51 PM
- High tide (4.9 ft) — tide change window8:01 PM – 10:01 PM
Targets
Target species in this zone
| Species | Activity | Depth | Best tide | Technique | Bait | Active temp | Season |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Striped Bass | ★★★★★ | 10–70 ft | Strongest hour of the ebb around structure | Live bait drifting, jigging deep swimbaits | Live anchovies, shiner perch | 55–68°F | April through November |
| California Halibut | ★★★★☆ | 12–55 ft | Drifting on a moderate current | Live bait on a sliding sinker | Live anchovy, shiner | 56–66°F | May through August |
| White Sturgeon | ★★★★☆ | 8–40 ft | Big tide swing after a storm | Anchored bottom rig with a sliding sinker | Grass shrimp, ghost shrimp, salmon roe | 48–60°F | December through March |
| Leopard Shark | ★★★☆☆ | 5–30 ft | Incoming over a flat | Bottom rig with a small bait | Squid, midshipman | 54–66°F | April through September |
- Striped Bass: Sit behind Alcatraz and Harding Rock on the ebb; move to the shallow flats and shorelines at dawn.
- California Halibut: Drift the sand between Crissy Field and the Berkeley Flats in 15–50 ft during the spring run.
- White Sturgeon: Feed on the shallow mud flats of San Pablo Bay after heavy rain pushes muddy water in.
- Leopard Shark: Cruise the shallow flats and are a reliable target when everything else is slow.
Structure
Habitat and structure that holds fish
- Rock reef
- Bridge piling
- Deep channel
- Mud flat
- Shoal
- Alcatraz Island reef
- Harding Rock
- Bay Bridge pilings
- Berkeley Flats
- Raccoon Strait
Surf and beach notes
Ocean Beach is dangerous surf water with rip currents; most fishing here happens inside the bay.
Bait in the zone
Live anchovies and shiner perch for stripers and halibut; grass shrimp for sturgeon.
Patterns
Season-by-season patterns
Spring
55–60°FHalibut push in with the anchovy schools and stripers return from the delta.
Summer
60–66°FStrong afternoon wind funnels through the Gate; fish the morning ebb and get off the water early.
Fall
58–64°FThe best striper fishing of the year, with fish blitzing anchovies on the shallow shorelines.
Winter
50–54°FSturgeon season on the mud flats of San Pablo Bay, keyed to rain events and muddy inflow.
Outlook
7-day fishing forecast
| Day | Score | Water | Wind | Swell | First high tide | Best species | Morning window |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Today | 70Very Good | 58°F | 19 mph SE | 3.9 ft | 8:36 AM (5.2 ft) | Striped Bass | 6:04 AM – 8:49 AM |
| Tue | 82Excellent | 57°F | 5 mph SW | 2.1 ft | 9:26 AM (5.5 ft) | Striped Bass | 6:05 AM – 8:50 AM |
| Wed | 91Excellent | 58°F | 19 mph NE | 3.1 ft | 10:17 AM (5.8 ft) | Striped Bass | 6:06 AM – 8:51 AM |
| Thu | 95Excellent | 58°F | 13 mph W | 3.4 ft | 11:07 AM (6.1 ft) | Striped Bass | 6:07 AM – 8:52 AM |
| Fri | 85Excellent | 57°F | 15 mph E | 3.8 ft | 11:58 AM (6.3 ft) | Striped Bass | 6:08 AM – 8:53 AM |
| Sat | 83Excellent | 56°F | 18 mph SW | 3.8 ft | 12:23 AM (6.4 ft) | Striped Bass | 6:09 AM – 8:54 AM |
| Sun | 87Excellent | 59°F | 20 mph S | 4.6 ft | 1:13 AM (6.5 ft) | Striped Bass | 6:10 AM – 8:55 AM |
Trends
Last 7 days
Water temperature
58°F → 58°F
Wind
17 mph → 19 mph
Swell
2.8 ft → 3.9 ft
Daily score
87 → 70
Water temperature has been stable within 0°F all week, so the established fall pattern should hold.
The water
About San Francisco Bay
San Francisco Bay drains 40 percent of California through the Golden Gate, and the resulting tidal current can exceed 5 knots. Striped bass and halibut position on the rock reefs, bridge pilings and channel edges where that current creates ambush points, and sturgeon feed on the mud flats after winter rain stirs up grass shrimp.
Local knowledge
Expert notes
- The Gate runs like a river. Fish the down-current side of Alcatraz or Harding Rock during the strongest part of the ebb and let your bait swing into the pressure break.
- Halibut drifts should cover sand next to structure, not structure itself. A drift that crosses from 20 ft of sand up onto a shoal edge gets bit far more often than a flat-bottom drift.
- For sturgeon, fish the first big tide after a storm. The muddy inflow triggers a feeding window that closes once the bay clears again.
Logistics
Access, ramps and launches
boat ramp
Berkeley Marina ramp
Central launch to the flats, the bridges and Alcatraz.
boat ramp
Fort Baker / Horseshoe Cove
Right at the Golden Gate — short run to the best striper structure.
pier
Pacifica Pier
Ocean-side pier known for salmon and crab in season.
shore
Point Pinole shoreline
Bank access to San Pablo Bay for sturgeon and stripers.
Rules
Regulations
- California fishing license required; report card required for sturgeon.
- Sturgeon regulations changed recently and include closed periods and a slot size — verify current rules.
- Striped bass minimum size and bag limits apply bay-wide.
Always verify current regulations with the relevant state wildlife agency before fishing. California Department of Fish and Wildlife
Transparency
Data sources
Where this data comes from
Conditions are modelled from each water's documented climate, structure and seasonal patterns. Modules marked “Live data integration pending” are not yet pulling from their API, so those values are clearly labelled as sample data rather than presented as real-time readings.
Weather API
PendingNOAA / National Weather Service — Air temperature, wind, cloud cover, rainfall and barometric pressure with a 7-day forecast.
Water Level & Flow API
PendingUSGS Water Services — Reservoir stage, discharge and 7-day level trend from the nearest gauge.
Water Temperature
PendingUSGS / NOAA buoys — Surface water temperature and its multi-day trend.
Tide & Current API
PendingNOAA CO-OPS — Tide predictions, current direction and speed for coastal zones.
Moon & Solunar
LiveComputed on-site — Moon phase, illumination and solunar major/minor periods are calculated from date and coordinates.
Water Clarity
PendingSatellite imagery + angler reports — Visibility estimates by lake arm, refined by submitted fishing reports.
Fishing Regulations
PendingState wildlife agencies — License, size and creel rules, linked to the official agency page for verification.
Map Data
PendingBathymetry + access point database — Depth zones, structure locations and boat ramps for the lake infographic.
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