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CabezonRetention openChannel · California
Airport Channel
37.74°N · 122.22°W · Channel · San Francisco Bay South of the Bay Bridge
Species here · tap to switch
Best score today · 7 PM · Cabezon
- Now
- 5911 PM PDT
- Best window
- 11 PM-12 AMEbb tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing5.8 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Airport Channel scores 75+
Checked every morning against the 14-day forecast. Free by push and email.
14-day forecast
Best days to fish
24-hour conditions · rolling from now
Conditions · 11 PM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
100Tide: EbbingCurrent: 0.7 kn ebbWind & pressure
ECMWF
98Wind: 5 kt SPressure: FallingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
42Water temp: 66°F, hotLight: NightSolunar: Near a majorSeas: 1.8 ftSeason & habitat · Cabezon
Species seasonality
69Season: PeakHabitat: Poor fitDepth: In rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
San Francisco Groundfish Management Area
Cabezon
Retention open- Daily limit
- 10 per day (10 rockfish, cabezon and greenlings combined)
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- No minimum size limit.
- Season
- Apr 1 to Dec 31, 2026
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Other
- Shore-based anglers and spear divers are exempt from groundfish seasons and depth limits. All groundfish fishing is prohibited at Cordell Bank. RCG complex: all rockfish, cabezon, and kelp and rock greenlings combined. A descending device must be aboard when fishing from a boat.
From CDFW Summary of Recreational Groundfish Fishing Regulations (updated June 23, 2026), read Sep 13
Other species here
- Albacore tuna Retention open (25 per day)
- Barred sand bass Retention open (4 per day (5 kelp bass, barred sand bass and spotted sand bass combined))
- California halibut Retention open (2 per day)
- Chinook salmon Retention open (2 per day (2 salmon combined))
- Coho salmon Closed (No retention)
- Kelp bass Retention open (5 per day (5 kelp bass, barred sand bass and spotted sand bass combined))
- Kelp greenling Retention open (10 per day (10 rockfish, cabezon and greenlings combined))
- Leopard shark Retention open (3 per day)
- Lingcod Retention open (2 per day)
- Mahi-mahi Retention open (10 per day)
- Pacific bluefin tuna Retention open (2 per day)
- Pacific halibut Retention open (1 per day)
- Rockfish Retention open (10 per day (10 rockfish, cabezon and greenlings combined))
- Sablefish Retention open (10 per day)
- Striped bass Retention open (2 per day)
- Surfperch Retention open (20 per day)
- White seabass Retention open (3 per day)
- Yellowfin tuna Retention open (10 per day)
- Yellowtail Retention open (10 per day)
Source: CDFW · synced today
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Cabezon is best here
Peak season for Cabezon · 1 more week at peak
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Airport Channel
- Depth
- 2-4 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Channel · Inner · ProtectedChannel · flat bottom
- Season
- Peak seasonCabezon
NOAA NCEI DEM, sampled Sep 14 on a 3.4 m grid. Depths are feet below NAVD 88, not chart datum (MLLW), so they can differ from a chart by a few feet. Not for navigation.
About this spot
Fishing Airport Channel
Airport Channel is a channel in San Francisco Bay South of the Bay Bridge, California. Depth is 2-4 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads channel, inner water and protected.
Waterlands scores 11 species here; the best right now are striped bass, leopard shark and California halibut. It is peak season now for striped bass, surfperch, cabezon and rockfish, and shoulder season for leopard shark, California halibut, white seabass and lingcod. Striped bass peak from June through July and from September through October. Leopard shark peak from May through August. California halibut peak from May through August.
Tackle & technique
- Cabezon
- Cabezon sit in rock crevices, kelp beds and jetty boulders from the intertidal zone to about 100 feet and feed mostly on crabs and small fish. Fish a fish-finder rig with sand shrimp, squid or crab right on the bottom in the rocks, or drag a lead-head grub slowly through the kelp. Expect snags, and do not eat the roe, which is toxic.
- Striped bass
- Striped bass feed where moving tide pushes bait past structure: inlets, points, jetties, bridge pilings and rips in the surf, usually in 2 to 40 feet of water. Fish dawn, dusk and night hardest, casting plugs, bucktails and soft plastics or drifting live bunker and eels, and chunk bait on the bottom in current. In midsummer the larger fish drop deeper or feed mostly after dark.
- Leopard shark
- Leopard sharks cruise shallow mudflats, sloughs and channel edges in bays, most often in less than 15 feet of water, and follow the flooding tide onto the flats to feed on crabs, worms, clams and small fish. Anchor or fish from shore or a pier with a sliding sinker rig and a chunk of squid, mackerel or ghost shrimp on the bottom. The bite is often better into the evening and at night.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- San Leandro Bay79
Bay · 0.7 mi
Top: Striped bassPeak season- Striped bass 79
- Surfperch 70
- Leopard shark 67
5 kt SL 4:46 AM · 0.3 ftH 11:31 AM · 5.7 ft
- Alameda Harbor78
Channel · 3.2 mi
Top: Striped bassPeak season- Striped bass 78
- Surfperch 67
- Cabezon 66
5 kt SL 4:32 AM · 0.3 ftH 11:01 AM · 5.6 ft
- Brooklyn Basin77
Channel · 3.4 mi
Top: Striped bassPeak season- Striped bass 77
- California halibut 63
- Surfperch 61
5 kt SL 4:32 AM · 0.3 ftH 11:01 AM · 5.6 ft
- Mulford Point75
Cape · 3.5 mi
Top: Striped bassPeak season- Striped bass 75
- Cabezon 65
- White seabass 62
5 kt SL 5:07 AM · 0.4 ftH 11:37 AM · 6.5 ft
Scores and forecasts are for planning only and can be wrong. Conditions on the water change fast; check the marine forecast before you go. Regulations change during the season, so confirm limits and closures with CDFW before you keep a fish.