Stripers moving through Santa Cruz as SF Bay water cools

What's biting

What's next

Tonight's Full Moon will push stronger tidal exchanges through the Bay and Bodega Harbor over the next few days, and moving water on the turn is typically when striped bass and other structure feeders switch on. NOAA's San Francisco station shows a low near 5:07pm today and a high just past 11pm; the Point Reyes-area station shows a high near 10:16pm tonight and a low around 4:41am tomorrow. The last two hours of the outgoing tide and first two of the incoming, around those swings, are worth planning around.

If the shoreline striper action Bushnell described near Santa Cruz holds through the week, it's the kind of bird-and-bait pattern that tends to work up the coast as water temperatures settle, so Bay-side beaches and structure are worth checking as the Full Moon tides work through.

Context

Mid-50s water in late September is on schedule for Northern California, as the SF Bay and Bodega coast transition out of summer upwelling into the fall striper run that typically builds through October and November. Full Moon tides this time of year tend to concentrate bait and predators around current breaks and structure, which is the pattern locals watch for heading into fall. Check state regs before harvesting striped bass, as size and bag limits apply.