Waterlands

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Striped bassRetention open

Channel · California

Suisun Cutoff

38.09°N · 122.01°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 · 11 PM · Striped bass

80/100Great
Now
726 AM PDT
Best window
9 PM-12 AMFlood tide
Tide now
Ebbing0.5 ft ▼

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 6 AM · now

Time6ANOW
Score72Great
Tide0.5 ft ▼Ebbing
CurrentEbb0.9 kn · toward WNW
Wind3 kn WSWgusts 5 · steady
Air temp56°Mild
WeatherClear10% cloud
Water66°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)

Source: CDFW · synced yesterday

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

Suisun Cutoff

Depth
20-30 ftSlope
Structure
Channel · Inner · ProtectedChannel · 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 Suisun Cutoff

Suisun Cutoff 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 20-30 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads channel, inner water and protected.

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

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.
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.
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.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Garnet Point

    Cape · 1.6 mi

    73
    Top: Striped bassPeak season
    • Striped bass 73
    • White seabass 65
    • Rockfish 63

    3 kt WSWL 7:21 AM · 0.1 ftH 1:25 PM · 4.6 ft

  • Gillespie Point

    Cape · 1.4 mi

    72
    Top: Striped bassPeak season
    • Striped bass 72
    • White seabass 63
    • Rockfish 57

    3 kt WSWL 6:59 AM · 0.1 ftH 1:12 PM · 4.1 ft

  • Fishermans Cut

    Channel · 1.8 mi

    70
    Top: Striped bassPeak season
    • Striped bass 70
    • White seabass 56
    • Leopard shark 55

    3 kt WSWL 6:59 AM · 0.1 ftH 1:12 PM · 4.1 ft

  • Grizzly Bay

    Bay · 2.0 mi

    64
    Top: Striped bassPeak season
    • Striped bass 64
    • Rockfish 58
    • California halibut 56

    3 kt WSWL 7:21 AM · 0.1 ftH 1:25 PM · 4.6 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.