Waterlands

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Chinook salmonRetention open

Bar · California

Shag Rocks

37.83°N · 122.44°W · Bar · 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 · 7 PM · Chinook salmon

76/100Great
Now
5410 AM PDT
Best window
6-10 PMFlood tide
Tide now
Flooding4.7 ft ▲

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

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14-day forecast

Best days to fish

Best: Wed · 81

24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 10 AM · now

Time10ANOW
Score54Good
Tide4.7 ft ▲Flooding
CurrentFlood2.1 kn · toward E
Wind2 kn WSWgusts 5 · building
Sea stateModerate2.6 ft · 9 s
Air temp61°Mild
WeatherPartly cloudy33% cloud
Water63°FObserved

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

Chinook salmon season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Chinook salmon · 1 more week at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • Not here
  • This week

Chinook salmon in California →

Spot profile

Shag Rocks

Depth
60-90 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 Shag Rocks

Shag Rocks 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 60-90 ft, with a drop-off. Its profile reads ledge, inner water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 11 species here; the best right now are white seabass, rockfish and striped bass. It is peak season now for rockfish, striped bass, cabezon and surfperch, and shoulder season for white seabass, lingcod, Chinook salmon and kelp greenling. Rockfish peak from May through September. Striped bass peak from June through July and from September through October.

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.
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.
Rockfish
Rockfish live on rocky reefs, pinnacles and kelp from the shoreline out past 300 feet, with black and blue rockfish schooling mid-water over shallow reefs and copper, quillback, yelloweye and vermilion sitting tight to deeper bottom. Drift over the structure with a shrimp fly above a lead-head grub or metal jig, or a squid strip, and reel up a few cranks after touching bottom to cut snags. Use a descending device to release any fish brought up from deep water.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

View all on map →
  • Harding Rock

    Bar · 0.3 mi

    64
    Top: White seabassShoulder season
    • White seabass 64
    • Rockfish 62
    • Cabezon 61

    2 kt WSWH 11:02 AM · 4.7 ftL 4:27 PM · 2.2 ft

  • Arch Rock

    Bar · 0.4 mi

    64
    Top: White seabassShoulder season
    • White seabass 64
    • Rockfish 62
    • Striped bass 62

    2 kt WSWH 11:03 AM · 4.9 ftL 4:24 PM · 2.2 ft

  • Alcatraz Shoal

    Bar · 0.8 mi

    63
    Top: Striped bassPeak season
    • Striped bass 63
    • Surfperch 61
    • White seabass 57

    2 kt WSWH 11:03 AM · 4.9 ftL 4:24 PM · 2.2 ft

  • Point Knox Shoal

    Bar · 1.1 mi

    57
    Top: RockfishPeak season
    • Rockfish 57
    • Striped bass 57
    • Surfperch 56

    2 kt WSWH 11:02 AM · 4.7 ftL 4:27 PM · 2.2 ft

Open in the tide map

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.