San Francisco Bay Fishing Report - Winter Patterns, Crab, Sanddab, and Stripers

This is Artificial Lure with your San Francisco Bay fishing report.

We’ve got a classic winter pattern in the Bay this morning. According to tides4fishing and Tide-Forecast, we’re on a **moderate tide**: a pre‑dawn high around 2:45–2:50 a.m., dropping toward a mid‑morning low near 9:30 a.m., then building into an evening high. That gives you a decent **outgoing push at first light** and a softer afternoon flood. Tides4fishing lists sunrise at about **7:25 a.m.** and sunset around **5:10 p.m.**, so your prime windows are first light through mid‑morning drop, and then that late‑afternoon “get home” tide.

Weather around the City is stable winter bay conditions: cool morning in the low 50s, light north–northwest breeze early, picking up modestly mid‑day, with scattered high clouds and good visibility. That means an easy ride for the party boats and comfortable conditions for pier and bank anglers.

NorCalFishReports shows the local fleet still leaning into **winter bottom action and crab combos**. Out of Emeryville, the Pacific Pearl checked in yesterday with **170 Dungeness crab and 104 sanddab for 17 anglers**, a full‑limit crab whack and steady dab picking. That’s been the main game: **limits of crab** plus sacks of sanddab and mixed bottom fish. California Department of Public Health is reminding sport crabbers not to eat the **viscera (guts) of sport‑harvested Dungeness** due to domoic acid concerns, but the meat is currently allowed when you clean them properly.

Inshore, expect **stripers** to be spotty but still around the usual current breaks and rock edges, especially around the South Bay bridges and the Oakland shoreline. Winter **halibut** are a scratch bite inside, but there’s always a chance at a resident fish on a slow‑rolled bait near the channel edges when that tide just starts to move. Sanddab are thick just outside the Gate on the sandy flats, with some smaller rockfish mixed in on rougher bottom.

For **lures**, this is a finesse, low‑light deal. Inside the Bay for stripers, run:
- 4–5" **paddletail swimbaits** in shad or anchovy on 1/2–1 oz jigheads
- 1–1.5 oz **hair raisers** in white or chartreuse
- Smaller **metal spoons** when the current is ripping

For **halibut**, think slow and close to bottom:
- Natural‑colored swimbaits and flukes on 3/4–1 oz heads
- Slim profile metals like Lucky Craft‑style wanders and jigs worked just off the sand

If you’re on a crab/dab combo, stick with the basics:
- For **crab**: squid strips, fish carcasses, or oily bait in snares and traps
- For **sanddab**: small strips of squid or anchovy on high‑low rigs with 1–2 oz of lead; they’re not picky, just keep it on the sand.

A couple of **hot spots** to key on today:
- **Alcatraz / Angel Island triangle**: work the edges of the channels for a shot at winter stripers and the odd halibut during the outgoing.
- Just **outside the Golden Gate** on the sandy flats off the shipping channel: wide‑open sanddab, and crab gear stacked along the edges when conditions allow.

Fish activity will be best on that **early outgoing** and again when the afternoon flood really starts to roll. Use the slack at low to reposition, grab coffee, and be set up before the current kicks.

That’s your Bay report for today from Artificial Lure.
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