Rockfish fishing in Central California Coast

In Central California Coast, rockfish peak May–November and are around year-round, according to Fish Scouter's month-by-month season calendar. July: Peak — Big Sur, the Farallones, Cordell Bank.

1. JanuaryAroundBoat closure in winter — shore anglers on the jetties still catch blues and gophers.
2. FebruaryAround
3. MarchAround
4. AprilArrivingOpener: blues, olives and gophers on the shallow reefs off Monterey, Morro Bay, Half Moon Bay; depth limits by area.
5. MayPeakKings on the anchovy off the Gate; halibut on the Bay flats. Troll or mooch anchovy under the birds off Half Moon Bay; drift live anchovy for halibut on the Berkeley Flats.
6. JunePeakSalmon, halibut and surf stripers — the best month in the Bay Area. Kings off Pacifica and the Farallones; halibut off Alameda and Angel Island; poppers for stripers on Ocean Beach at dawn.
7. JulyPeakPeak — Big Sur, the Farallones, Cordell Bank.
8. AugustPeakFall-run kings stage at the Gate; albacore offshore. Troll Point Bonita and Alcatraz for fall kings on the flood; tuna boats out of Half Moon Bay and Morro Bay on the temperature breaks.
9. SeptemberPeakAlbacore peak; stripers back on the Bay reefs. Cedar plugs and live anchovy for albacore; Bay stripers on the reefs and rips; rockfish at the Farallones.
10. OctoberPeakRockfish and lingcod; the last albacore and halibut. Big Sur and Monterey reefs for rockfish and lings moving shallow; last albacore before the fall wind.
11. NovemberPeakPre-spawn lingcod; sturgeon return with the rain; perch in the surf. Lings shallow and aggressive before the winter closure; first sturgeon in San Pablo Bay after the rain.
12. DecemberAroundSeason closes for boats.

A rugged, cold coast of kelp and granite — Big Sur, Monterey Bay's submarine canyon, Half Moon Bay, the Farallones — and San Francisco Bay, San Pablo and Suisun Bays running up into the Delta.

Fish Scouter charts 175 wreck, 1 ledge / hard bottom, 1 artificial reef spots in the Central Coast & San Francisco Bay map area — the kinds rockfish hold on.

• SquidStrips on a bottom rig for snapper, grunts and porgies; whole on a deep-drop rig.
• Anchovies (Pacific)Nose- or collar-hooked on a #4 to 1/0 hook and fly-lined with no weight, or on a dropper loop; a dozen tossed over the side as chum keeps the bass and bonito up.
• HerringCut-plug for salmon: head off at an angle, guts out, two hooks in tandem so it spins slow behind a flasher or a banana weight. Whole and live on a circle hook for stripers where the herring run.

• Leader30–60 lb fluorocarbon
• Hook2/0–7/0
• Braid30–65 lb

Feeds in 44–62°F water, best at 48–56°F.

All about rockfish · Central Coast & San Francisco Bay, the whole year