Species here · tap to switch

LOADING MAP

Best score today · 7 PM · Chinook salmon

76/100Great

Now: 5311 AM PDT
Best window: 6-9 PMFlood tide
Tide now: High4.7 ft

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

Notify me when Harding Rock scores 75+

Checked every morning against the 14-day forecast. Free by push and email.

Sign in to set an alert

14-day forecast

Best days to fish

Best: Wed · 80

24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 11 AM · now

DRAG OR TAP AN HOUR

Time11ANOW

Score53Good

Tide4.7 ftHigh

CurrentFlood1.2 kn · toward E

Wind3 kn Wgusts 6 · building

Sea stateModerate2.5 ft · 9 s

Air temp64°Mild

WeatherClear5% cloud

Water63°FObserved

WED · SEP 23

THU · SEP 24

8A

9A

10A

NOW

12P

1P

2P

3P

4P

5P

6P

7P

8P

9P

10P

11P

12A

1A

2A

3A

4A

5A

6A

7A

57

55

54

53

48

44

51

47

43

51

52

55

57

50

49

50

44

48

47

42

37

46

51

1.6

2.3

2.1

1.2

0.3

○0.0

1.0

2.1

1.8

0.7

○0.0

0.3

1.2

1.8

1.4

0.6

○0.0

0.3

1.4

2.3

2.2

1.2

○0.2

○0.1

31

41

52

63

95

117

138

148

158

137

104

73

52

42

32

31

32

31

2.6

2.5

2.4

2.3

2.2

63°

Hour

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

San Francisco Groundfish Management Area

IN EFFECT NOW

Chinook salmon

Retention open

Daily limit: 2 per day (2 salmon combined)
Possession: Not published
Size: Minimum 20 in, total length
Season: Sep 1 to Oct 31, 2026
Annual quota: Not published
Changes: Closed from Nov 1
Other: Coho may not be kept. Salmon may not be filleted on a boat. No more than two daily bag limits on land, and one daily bag limit on a vessel. NOAA Fisheries can close open days early when the harvest guideline is near. Any salmon except coho. North of Point Conception: no more than two single-point, single-shank barbless hooks and one rod. Between 40°10' N. lat. and Point Conception, when bait fishing by any means other than trolling, use no more than two barbless circle hooks, hard tied no more than 5 inches apart. The 20,000 Chinook fall harvest guideline is shared with the area south of Pigeon Point.

From CDFW 2026 Ocean Salmon Sport Regulations (updated August 19, 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)

Always check with CDFW ↗Fishing license ↗

Source: CDFW · synced today

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Chinook salmon is best here

Shoulder season for Chinook salmon · 1 more week at shoulder

Peak
Shoulder
Off
Not here
This week

Chinook salmon in California →

Spot profile

Harding Rock

Depth: 70-90 ftDrop-off
Structure: Ledge · Inner · Semi-exposedLedge · drop-off
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 Harding Rock

Harding Rock is a bar in San Pablo Bay, Suisun Bay, the West Delta and the San Francisco Bay north of the Bay Bridge, California. Depth is 70-90 ft, with a drop-off. Its profile reads ledge, inner water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 11 species here; the best right now are cabezon, kelp greenling and rockfish. It is peak season now for cabezon, rockfish, surfperch and striped bass, and shoulder season for kelp greenling, California halibut, lingcod and Pacific halibut. Cabezon peak from May through September. Kelp greenling peak 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.
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.
Kelp greenling: Kelp greenling are solitary bottom fish of rocky shores, jetties and kelp beds, usually in water shallower than 60 feet. Use a small number 4 to 6 hook with sand shrimp or marine worms, or a small lead-head grub, dropped to the bottom and reeled up slightly. Larger fish show in October and November when they spawn close to shore, and mornings tend to fish best.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

View all on map →

Shag Rocks
Bar · 0.3 mi
69
Top: CabezonPeak season
- Cabezon 69
- Kelp greenling 62
- Rockfish 62
3 kt WL 4:24 PM · 2.2 ftH 10:15 PM · 5.5 ft
Arch Rock
Bar · 0.6 mi
69
Top: CabezonPeak season
- Cabezon 69
- Kelp greenling 62
- Rockfish 62
3 kt WL 4:24 PM · 2.2 ftH 10:15 PM · 5.5 ft
Alcatraz Shoal
Bar · 1.0 mi
63
Top: CabezonPeak season
- Cabezon 63
- California halibut 62
- Surfperch 62
3 kt WL 4:24 PM · 2.2 ftH 10:15 PM · 5.5 ft
Point Knox Shoal
Bar · 0.9 mi
60
Top: Pacific halibutShoulder season
- Pacific halibut 60
- Cabezon 57
- Surfperch 53
3 kt WL 4:27 PM · 2.2 ftH 10:14 PM · 5.3 ft