Waterlands

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Striped bassRetention open

Bay · California

San Leandro Bay

37.75°N · 122.22°W · Bay · San Francisco Bay South of the Bay Bridge

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Best score today · 7 AM · Striped bass

79/100Great
Now
759 PM PDT
Best window
9 PM-12 AMEbb tide
Tide now
Ebbing5.8 ft ▼

Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 9 PM · now

Time9PNOW
Score75Great
Tide5.8 ft ▼Ebbing
CurrentEbb0.6 kn · toward N
Wind6 kn WSWgusts 11 · steady
Sea stateLight chop1.2 ft · 6 s
Air temp59°Mild
WeatherOvercast88% cloud
Water67°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

San Francisco Groundfish Management Area

IN EFFECT NOW

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)

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Striped bass is best here

Peak season for Striped bass · 5 more weeks at peak

Striped bass season by week of the year. Peak season for Striped bass · 5 more weeks at peak.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Striped bass in California

Spot profile

San Leandro Bay

Depth
Up to 4 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Bay · Inner · ProtectedBay · 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 San Leandro Bay

San Leandro Bay is a bay in San Francisco Bay South of the Bay Bridge, California. Depth is up to 4 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bay, inner water and protected.

Waterlands scores 11 species here; the best right now are striped bass, surfperch and leopard shark. It is peak season now for striped bass, surfperch, cabezon and rockfish, and shoulder season for leopard shark, California halibut, kelp greenling and white seabass. Striped bass peak from June through July and from September through October. Surfperch peak in May and from July through September. Leopard shark 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.
Surfperch
Surfperch feed in the troughs and holes within about 30 feet of the waterline, just outside the first set of breakers. Cast a two-hook high-low or Carolina rig with size 4 to 2 hooks and a 1 to 6 ounce pyramid sinker and let the surge work it through the trough. Fish the incoming tide on beaches with a steep drop, and switch to jetties, pilings and bays when the surf is too big.
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

  • Airport Channel

    Channel · 0.7 mi

    76
    Top: Striped bassPeak season
    • Striped bass 76
    • California halibut 71
    • Leopard shark 71

    6 kt WSWL 3:21 AM · 0.5 ftH 10:40 AM · 5.3 ft

  • Alameda Harbor

    Channel · 2.5 mi

    74
    Top: Striped bassPeak season
    • Striped bass 74
    • Cabezon 69
    • California halibut 69

    6 kt WSWL 3:12 AM · 0.7 ftH 9:56 AM · 4.9 ft

  • Brooklyn Basin

    Channel · 2.8 mi

    73
    Top: Striped bassPeak season
    • Striped bass 73
    • California halibut 68
    • Leopard shark 65

    6 kt WSWL 3:12 AM · 0.7 ftH 9:56 AM · 4.9 ft

  • Mulford Point

    Cape · 4.2 mi

    73
    Top: Striped bassPeak season
    • Striped bass 73
    • Cabezon 67
    • Surfperch 63

    6 kt WSWL 3:47 AM · 0.8 ftH 10:28 AM · 5.9 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.