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RockfishRetention open

Channel · California

South Channel (historical)

37.76°N · 122.53°W · Channel · San Pablo Bay, Suisun Bay, the West Delta and the San Francisco Bay north of the Bay Bridge

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Species here · tap to switch

LOADING MAP

Best score today · 7 PM · Rockfish

78/100Great

Now: 515 AM PDT
Best window: 6-9 PMFlood tide
Tide now: Flooding1.0 ft ▲

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

Notify me when South Channel (historical) scores 75+

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

14-day forecast

Best days to fish

Best: Fri · 82

24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 5 AM · now

DRAG OR TAP AN HOUR

Time5ANOW

Score51Good

Tide1.0 ft ▲Flooding

CurrentSlack0.0 kn

Wind2 kn SSEgusts 5 · steady

Sea stateRough5.2 ft · 9 s

Air temp56°Mild

WeatherPartly cloudy34% cloud

Water64°FObserved

WED · SEP 23

THU · SEP 24

NOW

10A

11A

12P

10P

11P

12A

1.2

1.0

0.3

○0.0

0.3

0.9

1.3

1.1

0.8

0.3

○0.0

○0.1

0.7

1.0

0.4

○0.0

0.2

0.7

0.8

0.6

0.3

○0.0

○0.1

0.6

116

138

148

159

158

136

104

5.6

5.4

5.3

5.2

5.1

5.0

4.9

4.8

4.7

4.6

4.5

4.4

4.5

64°

63°

Hour

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

San Francisco Groundfish Management Area

IN EFFECT NOW

Rockfish

Retention open

Daily limit: 10 per day (10 rockfish, cabezon and greenlings combined)
Possession: Not published
Size: No minimum size limit.
Season: Apr 1 to Dec 31, 2026
Annual quota: Not published
Other: Shore-based anglers and spear divers are exempt from groundfish seasons and depth limits. All groundfish fishing is prohibited at Cordell Bank. Within the 10-fish RCG limit: no more than 1 copper rockfish, 2 canary rockfish, and 2 vermilion/sunset rockfish. RCG complex: all rockfish, cabezon, and kelp and rock greenlings combined. A descending device must be aboard when fishing from a boat. Yelloweye, cowcod, bronzespotted and quillback rockfish may not be kept.

From CDFW Summary of Recreational Groundfish Fishing Regulations (updated June 23, 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)
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 yesterday

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Rockfish is best here

Peak season for Rockfish · 1 more week at peak

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Rockfish in California →

Spot profile

South Channel (historical)

Depth: 35-45 ftFlat bottom
Structure: Channel · Outer · ExposedChannel · flat bottom
Season: Peak seasonRockfish

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 South Channel (historical)

South Channel (historical) 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 35-45 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads channel, outer water and exposed.

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, white seabass, Pacific halibut and Chinook salmon. 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

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.
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

View all on map →

Point Lobos
Cape · 1.6 mi
65
Top: Striped bassPeak season
- Striped bass 65
- Rockfish 59
- White seabass 59
2 kt SSEH 10:00 AM · 5.0 ftL 3:31 PM · 2.2 ft
Lands End
Cape · 2.3 mi
65
Top: Striped bassPeak season
- Striped bass 65
- Rockfish 60
- White seabass 59
2 kt SSEH 10:00 AM · 5.0 ftL 3:31 PM · 2.2 ft
South Bay
Bay · 3.1 mi
62
Top: Striped bassPeak season
- Striped bass 62
- Surfperch 59
- White seabass 55
2 kt SSEH 10:49 AM · 4.9 ftL 4:06 PM · 2.2 ft
Bonita Cove
Bay · 4.1 mi
60
Top: SurfperchPeak season
- Surfperch 60
- Striped bass 59
- Rockfish 58
2 kt SSEH 10:32 AM · 5.2 ftL 3:56 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.