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Bay Area Fishing Report: Stripers, Halibut, and More on a Productive Fall Tide
Artificial Lure here with your San Francisco Bay fishing report for Friday, October 31, 2025. Today’s sunrise came at 7:34AM with sunset at 6:11PM. The air’s brisk, mid-50s at first light, climbing to low-60s midday—it’s classic bay fall: light morning fog giving way to bright skies and a soft southerly breeze keeping the water glassy. According to NOAA and the National Weather Service, expect calm conditions with winds around 5-10 knots this morning, rising slightly by evening, and small, steady swells—ideal for getting on the water.
Tides are classic fall swing. We’re starting off with a low tide just before 2AM at 0.43 feet, peaking at a high of 5.44 feet about 9AM. After a moderate midday ebb (2.38 feet at 2:42PM), another strong push rolls in for a high just after 8PM at 5.11 feet, per San Francisco Pier 22 1/2 tide charts. So, best fishing happens on that early incoming flood and again right before sunset as those big tides move water—and fish—up into the shallows.
Striped bass remain the prime bite across the Bay, with reports from Fish Emeryville and Nor Cal Fish Reports highlighting solid catches on live anchovies, shad-pattern swimbaits, and classic hair-raisers around Alcatraz, Angel Island, and the Oakland flats. Boat and bank anglers alike are hooking up. Late-fall schoolies are hot on moving baits as water temps cool off. Fish the outflows near the Ferry Building or drift the Alameda rockwall for best numbers.
Halibut action’s still holding but slowing as the season winds down. The drift bite remains best near Treasure Island and the Berkeley Flats—guys dragging live bait rigs, herring, or big white flukes on a drop-shot are still pulling up quality fish, with keepers in the 10 to 15-pound range making the news on Fish Emeryville’s latest update.
If you’re looking for multi-species action, the South Bay is producing solid leopard shark numbers, with squid and oily baits being key off Oyster Point and Coyote Point. Don’t sleep on perch along Crissy Field and Fort Point, especially during the morning flood—bring sand crabs or Gulp! camo worms for best results.
For the line and tackle: SpiderWire Stealth Braid and Berkley Trilene XL continue to top Outdoor Gear Lab’s reviews for dependability and castability—critical when working structure for striper or halibut on the bay. If you’re headed for rock piles or dragging bait, consider a fluorocarbon leader to avoid those last-minute heartbreak break-offs.
A heads up to crabbers: the Dungeness crab opener has been delayed north of the Sonoma/Mendocino line due to domoic acid, but pots drop south of Point Reyes starting tomorrow. If you’re targeting opener, remember state health agencies recommend you avoid eating the guts, just go for that sweet white meat.
Final hot spots for today:
- Angel Island’s east side and the Berkeley Reef for stripers and halibut on the flood.
- Oyster Point pier for leopards and schoolie stripers several hours after the morning high.
- Crissy Field and Fort Point for perch and the occasional bycatch striper at daybreak.
That’s it for today from Artificial Lure—thanks for tuning in! Don’t forget to subscribe for tomorrow’s rundown on tides, tips, and Bay Area hot bites. This has been a Quiet Please production, for more check out quietplease dot ai.
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This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI
Published on 1 day, 18 hours ago