San Francisco Bay Fishing Report: Stripers, Lings, and Crab Combo Trips

This is Artificial Lure coming to you with your Saturday, October 25th, San Francisco Bay fishing report. Today’s a classic fall Bay morning—low fog at dawn, air temps in the upper 50s warming to the mid-60s, light west winds coming in after noon, and the water’s glassy early with a mild onshore push building as the sun climbs. According to Tides4Fishing, we’re seeing a strong tidal coefficient today, with a morning high tide right around 6:30 AM and a decent outgoing pull peaking late morning, then another incoming tide pushing in by late afternoon. Sunrise was 7:27 AM, sunset will be 6:18 PM—plenty of daylight for both early risers and late casters.

Fish activity is hot in the Bay right now. The latest fish counts from NorCal Fish Reports and local party boats show striped bass are banging—just yesterday the Lovely Martha returned from a half-day with 16 stripers and a California halibut for 8 anglers. The Oakland Anglers II out of Emeryville scored 28 striped bass, a halibut, and even a leopard shark for their morning run. Over in Berkeley, boats like the California Dawn II are bringing home big numbers of lingcod and rockfish—23 lings, up to 20 pounds, and 210 rockfish for 21 anglers on a full day. Emeryville boats report similar tallies, so if you want limits, rockcod and lings outside the Gate are dialed in right now.

Surf and pier anglers are still reporting good catches of stripers from Crissy Field down to the Oyster Point piers. A few decent halibut have been landed along the Mission Creek and Candlestick shorelines, mostly on the turn of the tide or during early morning slack.

For gear, local knowledge says tie on a Battlestar 115 Jerkbait in sardine or anchovy pattern—these jerkbaits are winning for stripers, halibut, and even the odd jacksmelt, especially with that slow-float action. Paddle tail swimbaits on half-ounce jigheads are killer when bounced near pilings, rocky ledges, or channel edges. If you’re drifting, try a three-way rig with live anchovy or sardine—anchovies are in the Bay, and stripers are on them. For bait folks, cut anchovies or herring work great for sturgeon and sharks out towards the Carquinez Strait, but in tight, stick with live anchovy, sardines, or even ghost shrimp for halibut and bass.

Hot spots this weekend:
- **Alameda Rockwall:** Lots of striped bass being caught at the tide change. Try casting from the marina out towards the rock piles early, and then work the flats once the tide starts moving.
- **Yellow Bluff/Sausalito:** Perfect for live-bait drifting or tossing jerkbaits on those outgoing tides; regular scores on both big stripers and the occasional keepable halibut.
- **Berkeley Flats:** Party boats cleaning up on rockfish and lingcod just outside the Gate, with steady action for those willing to make the trip.

If you’re thinking about heading offshore, the crab combo trips are about to kick off, so get your rockfish and lings while you can—October is prime time before the gear switches over.

That’ll do it for today’s Bay report. Big thanks for tuning in! Don’t forget to subscribe so you never miss a bite, and keep those lines tight. This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai.

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