November: Bay Area Fishing's Most Underrated Month

November gets a bad rap. Too late for the summer blitz, too early to chase monster sturgeon. The stripers and halibut don’t hit like they used to and man it has been freezing (by California standards). All that aside, for those of you brave enough to face rough conditions and venture into some of the coast’s more unforgiving landscapes, November can be a catch and cook dream

As you can see, the Dungeness season is HOT! Lots of rockfish and ling too.

*CA Dawn, Fish Emeryville

Bring it on CDFW!!

In my humble opinion, there are three Northern Californian fish that blow the rest out of the water when it comes to good eating. You can probably guess two of them: halibut and salmon.

Seeing as the salmon fishery has been shut down and the halibut are slowing down, it seems we are running out of options. However, the season for one particular group of fish is in full swing until the end of December. That would be one of my favorite fish to catch - the rockfish!

The term rockfish is used loosely these days. In the Bay Area and California Coast you can find brown, black, blue, vermillon, and many other types of rockfish. Some people lump Cabezon and Lingcod into this category too, but I’m going to speak on them separately. Rockfish may not put up the toughest fight in the world, but they’re a blast to catch and can get absolutely huge! 

I think half the fun of rockfishing is actually finding spots to fish. This search will take you to some of the coolest, most out there, and downright dangerous places on the California Coast. Sure, piers can be fun and I’ll always have a soft spot for the beach. But man, it’s hard to beat that feeling of hooking into a big rockfish or ling as you fish off the edge of a rock face at low tide.

If you’re looking for rockfish, simply look for where the rocks are. If you don’t have access to a kayak or a boat, cliffs, jetties, and low tide will be your best friends. Rockfish like to hunker down when it gets rough, and these places can be dangerous when the swell and wave power are ripping so the conditions are important. You can visit the tried and true places, or even better, take a drive down Highway One and explore! That’s what it’s all about.

To actually catch rockfish and lingcod, soft plastics are going to be the best lure. You WILL lose tackle unless you know a spot like the back of your hand. Try to use the lightest jighead that will get you to the bottom, and bounce that piece off the rocks. If you’re hitting the bottom, soon enough an angry rockfish or ling will take a bite.

I like curly tail grubs for rockfish, and bigger hammerheads for ling. If you’re more of a bait and wait person, grab a high-low rig and throw on some squid or shrimp. 

Just remember, in California you can only use one rod at a time for rockfish. Also, I know we’re talking about catch and cook but please only take what you need. Know the regulations on different rockfish. The regs are strict and slightly convoluted for a reason - these fish reproduce slowly and we don’t want to fish them out. If you’re taking a full limit of rockfish don’t waste it.

Where there are rockfish there are often rock crabs. They are a bit sweeter than Dungeness and I prefer the latter, but you can make some killer crab cakes out of them. If you’re on a jetty near a sandy bottom you can go for Dungeness too! This is the only time of year you can combo rockfish and Dungeness for your catch and cook feast, so don’t be so hard on November fishing. A crab snare with mackerel heads will do the trick. Good luck out there and stay safe!

*Always check conditions before going out there, this data may no longer be up to date so please be safe! Good luck out there 😎