San Francisco Bay Fishing Report: Wild Weather, Hot Bites

Hey folks, this is Artificial Lure, your go-to guy for all things angling in the San Francisco Bay. It's early Sunday morning, January 4th, 2026, and the Bay's got that post-storm vibe after those wild New Year's rains. Tides4Fishing charts show sunrise at 7:25 a.m., sunset 5:05 p.m., with very high solunar activity at 92—prime fishing window. Today's tides: low at 5:14 a.m. (2.9 ft), high 11:18 a.m. (6.9 ft), low 6:14 p.m. (-1.5 ft), and overnight high 12:48 a.m. (5.2 ft). But heads up—Sausalito alerts and CBS News report king tides, strong winds, rain, thunderstorms, and coastal flooding through today, with Sausalito gauge hitting 2.2 feet above normal at high tide. Beach hazards are real, so watch your step and check local roads.

Fish activity's heating up despite the weather. NorCal Fish Reports from Fish Emeryville note solid Dungeness crab bites ending soon, and 976-TUNA logs trips out of Pierpoint Landing pulling 188 sand bass, 132 bluefin tuna, 19 yellowtail, plus barracuda, rockfish, calico bass, and sheephead—mostly live bait rigs. Striped bass are cruising the surf per California Fly Fisher podcasts, chasing tides around structure. Halibut showing on heavy-duty live bait setups from SoCal reports bleeding north. Salmon's shut down again per LAist, so skip that.

Best baits: live anchovies or sardines on rigs for halibut and bass—works killer in the murk. Top lures? Clouser minnows or surf candy flies for stripers in the breakers, spoons or swimbaits for bass. Match the hatch with anchovy patterns.

Hit these hot spots if you dare the conditions: Ocean Beach for surf stripers on outgoing tide, or the Emeryville flats from piers for bass and perch—tides4fishing solunar peaks align perfect. Stay safe out there, bundle up against the wind.

Thanks for tuning in, folks—subscribe for more Bay bites! This has been a Quiet Please production, for more check out quietplease.ai.

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