UTERJanuary
Winter steelhead in the lower Smith and Eel
Lower river and tidewater after the rain drops and greens; boat groundfish closed for winter.
Bodega Bay to the Oregon line
Northern California Coast fishing
What's biting in Northern California Coast in October: lingcod, rockfish and cabezon at their peak, with albacore, Chinook (king) salmon and surfperch around too. Fish Scouter's season calendar follows 8 fish here month by month, from Bodega Bay to Crescent City.
Late kings at the river mouths; lings move shallow
An exposed, wild coast of rocky headlands, pinnacles and a few harbors — Bodega, Noyo, Shelter Cove, Humboldt Bay, Crescent City — with the Eel, Klamath and Smith rivers coming out through sand bars.
Bodega BayFort BraggShelter CoveEurekaTrinidadCrescent City
Updated
Now · October
Late kings at the river mouths; lings move shallow
Kings waiting off the Smith for rain; lings on the nearshore reefs.
Chinook (king) salmonLingcodRockfishAlbacore (longfin tuna)
This month here
From the season calendar, best firstPeakPeakPeakLeavingLeavingAround
Lingcod
Lings moving shallow ahead of the spawn.
Rockfish
Last calm days.
Cabezon
Albacore (longfin tuna)
Gone with the fall swell.
Chinook (king) salmon
Late fish holding off the Smith and Chetco mouths waiting for rain.
Surfperch
The water
The tide here
Mixed semidiurnal, 5–8 ft
Mixed semidiurnal — two highs and two lows a day, one pair much bigger than the other. Humboldt Bay's entrance and the river bars run hard — cross them only on the flood with calm swell.
Structure that matters
Artificial reefLedge / hard bottomBeach / surfPass / inletChannel edgeFishing pierRiver
After a cold front
Winter Pacific storms close the bars for days and blow out the rivers; steelhead come in as they drop. Spring and summer northwesterlies drive upwelling and fog; the fishing days are the windows between the wind.
Month by month
What's happening, and what to throwFebruary
Peak winter steelhead
Smith River giants on roe and jigs in the lower drifts.
March
Late steelhead; the surf wakes up
Last winter fish; redtail perch start on the Humboldt beaches.
April
Pacific halibut opens; redtail perch on the beaches
Halibut on the 150–300 ft flats off Eureka and Trinidad when the swell allows.
May
Rockfish and ling open; first kings and halibut
Shallow reefs off Fort Bragg and Trinidad; troll for the first kings when the krill shows.
June
Kings, halibut and rockfish — pick your calm day
Troll bait on the 20–40 fathom line for kings; drift herring for halibut; rock-hop for cabezon.
July
Peak kings off Fort Bragg and Shelter Cove
The Klamath zone closes fast on quota — check CDFW. Rockfish limits on calm summer days.
August
Kings off the Klamath; albacore offshore; lings on the pinnacles
Klamath estuary kings on the high tide; tuna 25–50 miles out on the warm breaks out of Eureka.
September
Klamath and Smith fall kings; albacore peak
Kings stacked off the Smith and in the Klamath estuary; tuna on calm days.
October · now
Late kings at the river mouths; lings move shallow
Kings waiting off the Smith for rain; lings on the nearshore reefs.
November
First winter steelhead; pre-spawn lings
Steelhead enter after the first big rain; lingcod before the closure.
December
Winter steelhead on
Lower river drifts on roe and jigs as the rivers drop.
Fish guides for Northern California Coast
When, where and what to use, fish by fishFish it with the tide in your pocket
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