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Chinook salmonRetention openChannel · California
Bulls Head Channel
38.04°N · 122.11°W · Channel · San Pablo Bay, Suisun Bay, the West Delta and the San Francisco Bay north of the Bay Bridge
Species here · tap to switch
Best score today · 10 PM · Chinook salmon
- Now
- 595 PM PDT
- Best window
- 8 PM-12 AMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing2.1 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Bulls Head 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 · 5 PM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
88Tide: EbbingCurrent: 1.1 kn ebbWind & pressure
ECMWF
92Wind: 3 kt NWPressure: FallingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
55Water temp: 70°F, hotLight: Late afternoonSolunar: Between periodsSeason & habitat · Chinook salmon
Species seasonality
58Season: ShoulderHabitat: Usable structureDepth: In rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
San Francisco Groundfish Management Area
Chinook salmon
Closed- Daily limit
- No retention
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Not published
- Season
- Sep 1 to Oct 31, 2026
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Other
- Closed from Point Arena south to 38°02' N. lat. The fall season is open only from 38°02' N. lat. south to Pigeon Point.
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)
- 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 Chinook salmon is best here
Last week of shoulder season for Chinook salmon · the off season next
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- Not here
- This week
Spot profile
Bulls Head Channel
- Depth
- 25-40 ftSlope
- Structure
- Channel · Inner · ProtectedChannel · slope
- Season
- Shoulder seasonChinook salmon
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 Bulls Head Channel
Bulls Head Channel is a channel in San Pablo Bay, Suisun Bay, the West Delta and the San Francisco Bay north of the Bay Bridge, California. Depth is 25-40 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads channel, inner water and protected.
Waterlands scores 11 species here; the best right now are striped bass, lingcod and rockfish. It is peak season now for striped bass, rockfish, surfperch and cabezon, and shoulder season for lingcod, Chinook salmon, leopard shark and California halibut. Striped bass peak from June through July and from September through October. Lingcod peak from April through May and from October through November. Rockfish peak from May through September.
Tackle & technique
- Chinook salmon
- Chinook hold near bait off points, kelp edges and tide rips, usually suspended 20 to 120 feet down and deeper as the sun gets higher. Troll slowly, under 2 mph, with a flasher and herring, hoochie or spoon on a downrigger, or mooch a plug-cut herring at the depth where the sounder shows bait. Winter blackmouth and feeder kings sit within 10 feet of the bottom in 60 to 200 feet.
- 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.
- Lingcod
- Lingcod ambush prey from rock outcrops, reef edges and kelp where current runs, most often in 30 to 300 feet, and males move shallow to guard nests in winter. Drift over the reef bouncing a lead-head swimbait or metal jig on the bottom, or fish herring or squid on a heavy leader, since their teeth cut light line. From jetties and rocky shore, work bait or jigs along the rocks on the incoming tide.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Suisun Point Channel79
Channel · 1.0 mi
Top: Striped bassPeak season- Striped bass 79
- Rockfish 67
- Lingcod 64
4 kt WNWL 6:25 PM · 1.7 ftH 12:04 AM · 4.9 ft
- Point Edith78
Cape · 2.4 mi
Top: Striped bassPeak season- Striped bass 78
- Rockfish 69
- Lingcod 65
3 kt NWL 6:46 PM · 1.4 ftH 12:30 AM · 4.4 ft
- East Bulls Head Channel77
Channel · 1.3 mi
Top: Striped bassPeak season- Striped bass 77
- Rockfish 67
- Lingcod 64
3 kt NWL 6:25 PM · 1.7 ftH 12:04 AM · 4.9 ft
- Point Edith Crossing Range76
Channel · 2.7 mi
Top: Striped bassPeak season- Striped bass 76
- Lingcod 65
- Rockfish 64
3 kt NWL 6:46 PM · 1.4 ftH 12:30 AM · 4.4 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.