Captain Molly’s Salmon Season Update
After three painful years of closures, salmon fishing is officially back in the San Francisco Bay Area for 2026. The Pacific Fishery Management Council and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife have confirmed the recreational salmon season — and Bay Area anglers have been waiting a long time to hear that.
If you’ve been dreaming about a Chinook on the end of your line, here’s everything you need to know to plan your 2026 San Francisco salmon fishing trip.
🗓️ 2026 San Francisco Salmon Season Dates
The San Francisco Management Area runs from Point Arena to Pigeon Point. These are the dates you need on your calendar:
Summer Season
- June 27 – July 22
- August 1 – August 31
Fall Season
- September 1 – September 30
The San Francisco area has a harvest guideline of 34,900 Chinook salmon. If that number is reached, regulators can close the season early — so don’t wait until the last week to book.
📞 Always confirm before heading out: CDFW Ocean Salmon Hotline — (707) 576-3429
🎣 Why You Should Book Your Salmon Trip Now
This isn’t a normal fishing season — this is a three-year comeback. Demand is going to be massive:
- Pent-up demand from anglers who’ve been waiting since 2022
- Limited windows — only about 3 months of total fishing opportunity
- Early closures possible if the harvest cap hits before October
- Charter availability fills fast — especially weekend dates during the June and July openers
If you want to fish opening weekend (June 27), you should be booking right now.
🚤 What to Expect on a San Francisco Salmon Fishing Charter
Salmon fishing out of San Francisco means heading through the Golden Gate Bridge and trolling the prime Chinook grounds along the coast. These waters — from the Marin Headlands south toward Pillar Point — produce some of the biggest Chinook salmon on the California coast.
On a Molly’s Boats salmon charter, you get:
- ✅ All rods, reels, downriggers, tackle, and bait included
- ✅ Captain Molly’s decades of San Francisco salmon experience
- ✅ Cleaning, filleting, and bagging of your catch
- ✅ Coffee, water, snacks, and the kind of day on the water you’ve been missing
You bring: a valid California sport fishing license with an ocean enhancement stamp, layers (it gets cold offshore even in summer), sunscreen, and Dramamine if you’re prone to seasickness.
🌊 Why Salmon Is Back: The Comeback Story
The closure happened because severe drought from 2020 to 2022 decimated Sacramento River Chinook populations. The Sacramento system is the primary spawning ground for Bay Area salmon — when those rivers ran dry and warm, the fish suffered.
Two things turned it around:
- Heavy winter rainfall in 2023, 2024, and 2025 restored river flows for migrating juvenile salmon
- The California Salmon Strategy (launched 2024) accelerated habitat restoration and removed migration barriers across key waterways including Alameda Creek
The result: enough adult Chinook returning to support a managed 2026 fishing season — with the careful quotas and trip limits needed to keep populations growing.
📍 Book Your 2026 Salmon Trip
Captain Molly is taking bookings for the 2026 salmon season right now. We’ve been waiting three years to put you on fish — let’s make this season count.
Two ways to book:
🌐 Online: mollysboats.com
📞 Call Captain Molly directly: (415) 225-5666
📅 Quick Reference
| What | When |
|---|---|
| Summer Season Window 1 | June 27 – July 22 |
| Summer Season Window 2 | August 1 – August 31 |
| Fall Season | September 1 – September 30 |
| Area | Point Arena to Pigeon Point (SF Management Area) |
| Harvest Cap | 34,900 Chinook |
| CDFW Hotline | (707) 576-3429 |
| Book with Molly | (415) 225-5666 |
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