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Striped bassRetention 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 · Striped bass
- Now
- 674 AM PDT
- Best window
- 6-10 PMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing0.4 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 · 4 AM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
53Tide: EbbingCurrent: 0.3 kn ebbWind & pressure
ECMWF
66Wind: 3 kt SSEPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
83Water temp: 66°F, primeLight: NightSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 1.6 ftSeason & habitat · Striped bass
Species seasonality
90Season: PeakHabitat: Usable structureDepth: In rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
San Francisco Groundfish Management Area
Striped bass
Retention open- Daily limit
- 2 per day
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Minimum 18 in, total length
- Season
- No closed season on file
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Other
- Angling, spearfishing or bow and arrow only. No sinker over 4 pounds, no power-driven gurdy or winch, no snagging. The CDFW San Francisco Bay District page states the same limits for the bay: two fish, 18 inches total length.
From CDFW 2026 California Ocean Sport Fishing Regulations booklet (last updated July 17, 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))
- Cabezon Retention open (10 per day (10 rockfish, cabezon and greenlings 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)
- 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 yesterday
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Striped bass is best here
Peak season for Striped bass · 5 more weeks at peak
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Airport Channel
- Depth
- 2-4 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Channel · Inner · ProtectedChannel · flat bottom
- Season
- Peak seasonStriped bass
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, Pacific halibut and California halibut. It is peak season now for striped bass, rockfish, surfperch and cabezon, and shoulder season for Pacific halibut, California halibut, lingcod and white seabass. Striped bass peak from June through July and from September through October. Pacific halibut peak from May through July. California halibut peak from May through August.
Tackle & technique
- 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.
- Pacific halibut
- Halibut sit on sand and gravel bottoms near drop-offs, bars and pinnacles, most often in 90 to 500 feet in Alaska and on the shelf off Washington, Oregon and far northern California. Anchor up-current of a likely edge and fish herring, squid, octopus or a salmon head on a circle hook with 24 to 32 ounces of weight, or bounce a large jig on the bottom. The best bite usually comes in the hour around slack tide.
- California halibut
- California halibut are ambush feeders that lie on sand or mud bottom, mostly in water shallower than 100 feet and often inside bays, harbors and estuaries. Drift or slow-troll a live anchovy or sardine on a sliding sinker rig, or bounce a swimbait along the bottom over flats, channel edges and sandy areas near structure. Keep the bait within a foot or two of the bottom and give a fish time to turn the bait before setting the hook.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Mulford Point70
Cape · 3.5 mi
Top: Striped bassPeak season- Striped bass 70
- White seabass 61
- Rockfish 58
3 kt SSEL 5:07 AM · 0.4 ftH 11:37 AM · 6.5 ft
- San Leandro Bay67
Bay · 0.7 mi
Top: Striped bassPeak season- Striped bass 67
- White seabass 57
- Pacific halibut 53
3 kt SSEH 11:31 AM · 5.7 ftL 4:58 PM · 2.1 ft
- Alameda Harbor66
Channel · 3.2 mi
Top: Striped bassPeak season- Striped bass 66
- Pacific halibut 55
- Rockfish 55
3 kt SSEH 11:01 AM · 5.6 ftL 4:42 PM · 2.2 ft
- Brooklyn Basin65
Channel · 3.4 mi
Top: Striped bassPeak season- Striped bass 65
- Pacific halibut 55
- Lingcod 50
3 kt SSEH 11:01 AM · 5.6 ftL 4:42 PM · 2.2 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.