Waterlands

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Striped bassRetention open

Channel · California

San Pablo Strait

37.98°N · 122.44°W · Channel · 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 · 8 PM · Striped bass

81/100Great
Now
769 AM PDT
Best window
7-11 PMFlood tide
Tide now
Flooding3.2 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 AM · now

Time9ANOW
Score76Great
Tide3.2 ft ▲Flooding
CurrentFlood1.7 kn · toward NNE
Wind1 kn NNWgusts 5 · steady
Sea stateLight chop1.6 ft · 8 s
Air temp57°Mild
WeatherOvercast85% cloud
Water64°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 Pablo Strait

Depth
60-80 ftSlope
Structure
Channel · Inner · Semi-exposedChannel · 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 San Pablo Strait

San Pablo Strait 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 60-80 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads channel, inner water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 11 species here; the best right now are striped bass, white seabass and Chinook salmon. It is peak season now for striped bass, surfperch, rockfish and cabezon, and shoulder season for white seabass, Chinook salmon, California halibut and lingcod. Striped bass peak from June through July and from September through October. Chinook salmon peak from June 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.
White seabass
White seabass hold along kelp bed edges and over nearby sand where market squid gather, usually in 20 to 80 feet of water and shallower as the water warms. Fish a live squid on a dropper loop or fly-line a sardine near the kelp at dawn, dusk and after dark, especially around the spring full moon. Tagged fish spend most of their time in 52 to 66 degree water.
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.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Point San Pedro

    Cape · 0.7 mi

    78
    Top: Striped bassPeak season
    • Striped bass 78
    • White seabass 72
    • Surfperch 68

    1 kt NNWH 11:51 AM · 5.0 ftL 5:13 PM · 2.0 ft

  • Point San Pablo

    Cape · 1.0 mi

    78
    Top: Striped bassPeak season
    • Striped bass 78
    • White seabass 72
    • Surfperch 68

    1 kt NNWH 11:39 AM · 5.1 ftL 4:58 PM · 2.1 ft

  • Whiting Rock

    Bar · 1.2 mi

    73
    Top: RockfishPeak season
    • Rockfish 73
    • White seabass 73
    • Striped bass 71

    1 kt NNWH 11:39 AM · 5.1 ftL 4:58 PM · 2.1 ft

  • Invincible Rock

    Bar · 1.5 mi

    73
    Top: RockfishPeak season
    • Rockfish 73
    • White seabass 73
    • Striped bass 71

    1 kt NNWH 11:39 AM · 5.1 ftL 4:58 PM · 2.1 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.