Waterlands

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Striped bassRetention open

Cape · California

Middle Point

38.05°N · 121.99°W · Cape · San Pablo Bay, Suisun Bay, the West Delta and the San Francisco Bay north of the Bay Bridge

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Best score today · 11 PM · Striped bass

84/100Great
Now
581 PM PDT
Best window
10 PM-12 AMFlood tide
Tide now
High4.1 ft

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 1 PM · now

Time1PNOW
Score58Good
Tide4.1 ftHigh
CurrentFlood1.4 kn · toward E
Wind2 kn NNEgusts 11 · steady
Air temp81°Warm
WeatherClear0% cloud
Water68°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 Closed (No retention)
  • 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

Middle Point

Depth
4-45 ftSlope
Structure
Point · Inner · ProtectedPoint · slope
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 Middle Point

Middle Point is a cape in San Pablo Bay, Suisun Bay, the West Delta and the San Francisco Bay north of the Bay Bridge, California. Depth is 4-45 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads point, inner water and protected.

Waterlands scores 11 species here; the best right now are surfperch, cabezon and leopard shark. It is peak season now for surfperch, cabezon, striped bass and rockfish, and shoulder season for leopard shark, Chinook salmon, kelp greenling and California halibut. Surfperch peak in May and from July through September. Cabezon peak from May 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.
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.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Suisun Bay

    Bay · 0.6 mi

    67
    Top: Leopard sharkShoulder season
    • Leopard shark 67
    • Surfperch 67
    • California halibut 62

    2 kt NNEL 6:46 PM · 1.4 ftH 12:30 AM · 4.4 ft

  • West Reach

    Channel · 0.3 mi

    64
    Top: Leopard sharkShoulder season
    • Leopard shark 64
    • Surfperch 62
    • California halibut 60

    2 kt NNEL 6:46 PM · 1.4 ftH 12:30 AM · 4.4 ft

  • Port Chicago Reach

    Channel · 0.7 mi

    64
    Top: Leopard sharkShoulder season
    • Leopard shark 64
    • Surfperch 62
    • California halibut 60

    2 kt NNEL 6:46 PM · 1.4 ftH 12:30 AM · 4.4 ft

  • East Reach

    Channel · 1.0 mi

    64
    Top: Leopard sharkShoulder season
    • Leopard shark 64
    • Striped bass 63
    • Surfperch 62

    2 kt NNEH 1:52 PM · 3.8 ftL 7:26 PM · 1.4 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.