UTERThe best time to fish San Diego is July through September, when yellowtail are in the kelp, bluefin are on the offshore banks, calico bass are spawning, and in warm years yellowfin and dorado are a day's run away. San Diego fishes all year, though. Winter belongs to surf perch and halibut in the bays, and spring brings white seabass into the kelp on the squid.
This guide covers San Diego and the rest of the Southern California Bight: the Point Loma and La Jolla kelp beds, Mission Bay and San Diego Bay, the beaches and piers from Imperial Beach to Oceanside, the Coronado Islands just over the border, and the offshore banks the sportboat fleet runs to (the 9-Mile, the 302, the 371, the 425, and Tanner and Cortes far out). The months come from the Southern California page of Fish Scouter's season calendar, so this post and the app say the same thing.
San Diego fishing calendar at a glance
| Month | Headline | Top targets |
|---|---|---|
| January | Barred surfperch in the surf; winter bluefin offshore | Surfperch, bluefin, halibut |
| February | Surf perch peak; halibut start moving shallow | Surfperch, halibut, kelp bass |
| March | Squid spawn brings white seabass into the kelp; rockfish open | White seabass, rockfish, lingcod, barracuda |
| April | Seabass and spring yellowtail at the islands; calicos wake up | White seabass, yellowtail, kelp bass |
| May | Bluefin push in; barracuda and bonito boil on the bait | Bluefin, yellowtail, barracuda, bonito, halibut |
| June | Sand bass spawn; calicos and yellowtail in the kelp | Sand bass, kelp bass, yellowtail, corbina |
| July | Summer on; the first yellowfin and dorado | Yellowtail, bluefin, sand bass, yellowfin, dorado |
| August | Peak offshore; first striped marlin | Yellowfin, dorado, bluefin, striped marlin |
| September | Warm-water offshore; calicos at the kelp | Yellowfin, dorado, marlin, yellowtail |
| October | Last of the pelagics; calicos fat for fall | Yellowfin, marlin, kelp bass, halibut |
| November | Fall rockfish and lingcod; perch return | Rockfish, lingcod, surfperch |
| December | Surf perch peak; halibut in the bays | Surfperch, halibut, bluefin some years |
Winter: December to February
December and January
Winter is surf season. Barred surfperch stack in the troughs along every sandy beach (Imperial Beach, Coronado, Ocean Beach, Pacific Beach, Del Mar, Oceanside) as the winter swells sort the sand. The rig is a Carolina rig with a Gulp sandworm or a grub, cast to the trough and walked back slowly on the incoming tide. Look for the darker water behind the shore break, where a rip has dug a channel.
Halibut are around in the bays. Slow drifts in Mission Bay and San Diego Bay with a swimbait or a live sardine on the bottom catch them on a warm afternoon. Calico bass are slow in the cold water, so fish plastics on the bottom along the deep kelp edges at Point Loma.
Offshore, some bluefin have stayed on the outer banks through recent winters, which is why the long-range fleet runs winter bluefin trips. Boat-based groundfish (rockfish and lingcod) is closed for part of the winter in California's Southern management area. Check CDFW's groundfish table for the dates.
February
Surf perch peak before they drop their young in spring, so it's the best month for a big barred perch from the beach. Halibut start moving shallow, and a warm, calm afternoon in Mission Bay can be very good.
Spring: March to May
March
The market squid spawn pulls white seabass into the kelp beds, from La Jolla up to Catalina and the Ventura beds. Fish live squid on a dropper loop in the kelp at night and at dawn. California drops the seabass bag south of Point Conception in spring, so read the CDFW rule before you keep one. Rockfish and lingcod reopen for boats on the deep reefs off the islands, and barracuda start moving up from Baja with the warming water.
April
Spring yellowtail show at the islands on the squid. Yo-yo iron on the high spots and fly-lined squid catch them. Calicos wake up in the Point Loma and La Jolla kelp, so swim a 5-inch swimbait through the kelp stringers. Sand bass move up onto the flats, and corbina show in the surf as the sand crabs come up.
May
Bluefin push into US water on the offshore banks. Most anglers fish them on kite-flown flying fish or sinker rigs with sardine on heavy fluorocarbon, from a sportboat or a private boat with a good fish finder. Barracuda peak on chrome jigs and fly-lined anchovy. Bonito boil on the bait off the harbors. Halibut spawn on the shallow sand, so dawn swimbaits from the beach and drifts in the bays on the incoming tide are both good.
Summer: June to August
June
Barred sand bass spawn on the sand flats. The Silver Strand flats and the bay breakwaters fill up, and a plastic on a dart head bounced on the bottom is the classic summer half-day boat fishery. Calicos form spawning groups in the kelp, which makes this the best bass fishing of the year (most of it is catch-and-release by choice). Yellowtail peak in the La Jolla kelp and at the Coronados on fly-lined sardine, surface iron and yo-yo iron. Corbina feed in a foot of water at the high tide on the beach.
July
Summer is fully on. Yellowtail school under kelp paddies offshore, so stop on every paddy. The bluefin bite runs at night on the knife jig and on the kite at dawn. In warm years the first yellowfin and dorado cross the border with the warm water, 20 to 100 miles out. From the beach, sight-fish corbina at La Jolla Shores, Carlsbad and Oceanside on the morning high tide with a soft-shell sand crab or a ghost shrimp on a light Carolina rig.
August
The peak offshore month. Work kelp paddies and porpoise schools 30 to 100 miles out for yellowfin and dorado, and watch the surface on the 9-Mile and 14-Mile banks for tailing striped marlin in warm years. Pitch a live mackerel to a tailing fish. Closer in, calicos boil on the bait at the kelp edges at dawn, and sand bass stay on the flats and breakwaters at night.
Fall: September to November
September
In a warm year, September is the best offshore month of all, with yellowfin, dorado, marlin and bluefin all possible on the same trip. Inshore, surface iron catches yellowtail at the Coronados and La Jolla, and calicos feed hard before the water cools.
October
Tuna stay until the first cold north swell, then the pelagics leave. Calicos are fat for the fall, halibut are on the sand on warm days, and rockfish are still open on the deep reefs.
November
Fish the island rock piles for rockfish and lingcod before the winter closure, and go back to the beaches for surf perch as the swells reshape the troughs.
Kelp, piers and beaches: where to fish San Diego
The kelp
The Point Loma and La Jolla kelp beds are San Diego's best inshore fishing. Calico bass live in them all year, yellowtail and white seabass come through in spring and summer, and barracuda and bonito work the outside edges. Fish the up-current edge of the kelp, where bait collects. Half-day and three-quarter-day sportboats out of Point Loma's landings fish the kelp most of the year. Kayak anglers launch at La Jolla Shores for the La Jolla kelp. Part of La Jolla is a marine protected area where fishing is restricted, so check the CDFW MPA map before you drop a line.
The piers
Ocean Beach Pier, Crystal Pier, Imperial Beach Pier, Oceanside Pier and the Shelter Island Pier in the bay catch fish all year: surf perch and corbina in the wash along the inside pilings, bonito, mackerel and barracuda off the end in summer, halibut on the sand, and sand bass and spotted bay bass from the bay piers. California doesn't require a fishing license on a public ocean pier, but every other rule still applies. Our bridge and pier fishing guide covers rigs and etiquette.
The beaches
Surf perch in winter and spring, corbina in summer, and halibut on swimbaits at dawn. You need nothing but a light rod, a Carolina rig and a tide chart. The fishing without a boat guide covers reading the surf.
Offshore and the Coronados
The Coronado Islands are in Mexican waters and need a Mexican fishing permit, which the landings can arrange. The offshore banks are in US waters on most trips, but tuna and billfish fall under federal rules as well as California's.
Tides and water temperature in San Diego
San Diego has a mixed semidiurnal tide, with two highs and two lows a day and one pair much bigger than the other. The range runs about 3 to 7 feet. The big winter low exposes the reefs and tide pools. Mission Bay and San Diego Bay fish best on the incoming, which pushes clean ocean water in. Corbina and perch in the surf feed best on the incoming and the top of the tide.
Water temperature drives everything here. Spring northwesterlies cause upwelling, which brings green, cold water inshore, slows the kelp bite and pushes the pelagics offshore. Warm-water years (El Niño) bring yellowfin, dorado and marlin much closer to the coast. A 2-degree change in the surface temperature can move the tuna 30 miles. Our water temperature guide covers the numbers by species.
Rules
California's ocean rules change often, and the Southern management area has its own groundfish dates and depth limits. Read the current rules at CDFW ocean regulations before you keep a fish. Bluefin and other tunas also fall under federal rules.
Plan the day, not just the month
The calendar tells you the month. Fish Scouter tells you the day and the spot. We think it's the best fishing app for planning a San Diego trip, because it puts the season calendar, the NOAA tide for the nearest station, the live water temperature from the nearest reporting buoy, the wind and the seven-day outlook on one screen. It also ranks every species for the spot you're standing on, hour by hour, with the reasons written out. The map covers the kelp, the piers, the beaches and the offshore banks. Try Fish Scouter free.