SF Bay Fishing Report: Limits of Crab, Rockfish, and More Waiting

Artificial Lure here with your San Francisco Bay fishing report for Tuesday, November 25, 2025. Clear your lines and grab your coffee, because these are the conditions and catches straight from the docks, tide logs, and today’s local anglers.

The tides are running average this morning: we saw a high tide at 4:05 AM at about 4.43 feet, dropping to a low at 8:06 AM at 3.69 feet. There’s a bigger high rolling in at 1:46 PM peaking at 5.21 feet, and it’ll bottom out just after sunset at 8:55 PM, basically flat at -0.11 feet, according to Tide-Forecast. Sun rose at 7:01 AM, and sunset’s early at 4:52 PM—keep your time on the water tight, because dusk bite is short this late in the season.

Weather’s mild, with lingering high clouds and light winds; no storms on the horizon per NOAA. That means solid conditions for both bay and coastal rock hopping. Water temps are holding steady in the mid-50s, so most predators are still feeding hard trying to fatten up before it cools even more later in winter.

Let’s talk action. NorCalFishReports shows the boats running out of Emeryville and San Francisco hit the marks yesterday: C Gull II and Lady K both banged out limits of Dungeness crab (230 and 100 per trip) and easy limits of rockfish too. Over on the Lovely Martha out of San Francisco, the tally was an impressive 280 for 28 anglers on both crabs and rockfish. The party boat crews are calling this November “as good as it gets” for rockfish and crab combos.

Species mix on the reefs—steady numbers of brown, black, and blue rockfish, with a handful of vermilions and coppers mixed in. A few lingcod have come over the rail, but most lings seem to be in deeper or structure-rich waters right now.

Locals are pulling surfperch from Crissy Field to Oyster Point—use shrimp bits, bloodworms, or a good old FlipFlop N’ Socks paddle tail swimbait, which is catching pretty much everything that’ll hit a lure in the back bays, including the occasional striper. Out at the piers, mackerel and jacksmelt are in the mix, and you might snag a bonus halibut if you’re lucky and use a live anchovy or smelt. According to Hook2Cook, those 2-inch paddle tails are tight for perch and even smaller stripers.

Best baits in the Bay right now—fresh squid or anchovy for the bottom biters, and for Dungeness try raw chicken or fish carcasses in your traps. If you’re after lings or rockfish, nothing beats a chartreuse or root beer curly tail plastic on a 3-6 ounce leadhead jig bounced near the bottom or along structure. On the slow tides, cast the bait right into the holes and work slow—these fish are hugging the rock piles.

Hot spots—Alcatraz Island’s western drop-offs are firing for rockfish and keeper lings, while the Marin coastline, especially around Tennessee Cove, is an easy shot for both crab pots and rockfish. On the city side, the SF Pier 7 after high tide is seeing steady perch, a few stripers, and lots of smiling locals.

Before you go, swing by the Marina Store (open 7 to 5 daily) to stock up on bait, licenses, or a quick ramp pass, according to East Bay Parks.

Thanks for tuning in to today’s San Francisco Bay fishing report. Don’t forget to subscribe for your daily fix, and may your lines stay tight and your nets come up full. This has been a Quiet Please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai.

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This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI