"Daybreak Bite: San Francisco Bay Fishing Report for September"

San Francisco Bay lit up for anglers this morning—skies are partly cloudy with just a gentle breeze, and the temperature is holding steady in the upper 50s, heading into the 60s by late morning. Sunrise crested at 6:48 a.m., and sunset will close the day at 7:20 p.m. Tidal movements are prime for fishing—with a high tidal coefficient of 88 at dawn, tapering off through the day, so currents and water movement are stronger than usual. Expect big pushes and plenty of stirring baitfish activity; always check Tides4Fishing for any last-second weather shifts.

The bite in the central bay has been classic September. On Thursday, the Lovely Martha out of San Francisco put 15 anglers onto a nice haul on their half-day AM: 3 solid California halibut and 30 striped bass—an impressive showing considering the short trip window, and right in line with what we expect seasonally according to NorCal Fish Reports. Meanwhile, salmon chasers up the coast from Sausalito are still hitting, with the Salty Lady bringing in 35 king salmon (some near 30 pounds!) for 20 anglers, proving that the ocean kings are still close and on the chew.

Rockfish and lingcod action is strong just outside the Golden Gate, with boats out of Berkeley and Bodega Bay reporting limits for small parties—one highlight from the California Dawn II sported 46 lingcod, topping 25 pounds, and an impressive 230 rockfish for 23 anglers. Sanddab and sandab are filling the coolers as well, making this a prime window for mixed-bag bottom fishing.

Locally, striped bass are pushing in tidal flats and along piers—Berkeley, Pier 7, and Fort Point are hot right now, especially with the stronger morning tide. The outgoing tide has moved some halibut into shallow margins, so drifting live anchovy or herring is still king on those sandy shelves, but jigging with 1–2 oz. hair jigs or paddle-tail swimbaits in white/chartreuse is deadly around piers at slack tide. Trollers are getting salmon and bass on green-and-white or copper Apex lures.

If you're heading to the Marin side, try Paradise Park or the flats off Crissy Field at sunrise—schoolies are breaking bait, and last tide swing saw several 8–14 lb stripers landed on topwater pencil poppers at first light. The Richmond shoreline from the Ferry Point pier has also produced halibut for anglers casting live shiners and silver spoons.

Baits that produced best this week:
- Live anchovy, shiner, or herring (halibut, striped bass)
- Chartreuse or pearl swimbaits, 4–6 inch (striped bass near structure)
- Hair jigs or bucktails, 1–2 oz (surf and pier)
- Troll deep-diving lures or rigged frozen anchovy (outside Gate for salmon)
- Squid or cut anchovy dropper looped on reefs (lingcod and rockfish)

Pro tip: Cycle through colors as the morning haze burns off—dark to light, especially when the water clouds up with the strong tidal surge.

Hot spots right now:
- Berkeley Flats and Pier 7 for stripers and halibut on the tide change
- Paradise Park and Crissy Field for dawn topwater bass or passing halibut

Thanks for tuning in to today’s San Francisco Bay fishing report with Artificial Lure. Don’t forget to subscribe to get the latest bites, tides, and tips for your next angling adventure. This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai.

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