Pier Fishing in California - The Complete Coast and Bay Guide to Shore-Based Fishing

Long Wharf — Oakland Pier — Gone But Not Forgotten

The Long Wharf as seen from Goat Island, now called Yerba Buena Island The Oakland Long Wharf also later known as the Oakland Pier and South Pacific (SP) Mole was an 11,000-foot long railroad wharf and ferry pier in Oakland, one of the most important…

Capistrano Beach Pier — Gone But Not Forgotten

For many years a large pier was located on the sandy seashore between Dana Point and San Clemente. It was the Capistrano Beach Pier, a pier built in 1929 by Edward (Ned) Doheny Jr. and the Capistrano Beach Company. The wooden pier was 1,180 foot…

Red Rock Marina Pier — Richmond — Gone But Not Forgotten

The marina and pier were located just left of the bridge in this picture. Piers can be seen poking out from the shoreline. One of the most interesting components of the pier building process in California has been the utilization of previously built structures. This…

Center Pier — Carquinez Bridge — Gone But Not Forgotten

When I lived in the East Bay in Pinole in the1970s, one of the piers I frequently fished was the Dowrelio Pier in Crockett, a pier that was often good for striped bass and one that always offered the possibility of a sturgeon. The pier,…

Ellen Browning Scripps Memorial Pier — San Diego — No Fishing Allowed

Frustration thy name is the Ellen Browning Memorial Pier. One of my long-time goals has been to fish from every California piers (or at least as many as possible) so a visit on 2009 to the pier was both great and frustrating. Hashem, a friend…

Miller Park Pier — Marshall — Gone But Not Forgotten

On November 29, 1954 the Wildlife Conservation Board, part of the California Department of Fish and Game, allocated $5,500 for the development of Miller Park at Nick’s Cove on Tomales Bay, a park designed for fishing access. That fund was inadequate and basically nothing happened…

Hotel del Coronado Pier — Gone But Not Forgotten

Although piers and wharves have lined Coronado’s bayside shoreline over the years, the most famous pier at Coronado was the oceanfront pier that sat adjacent to the iconic Hotel del Coronado for over a third of a century. Hotel guests and people who stayed at…

Redondo Wharf No. 1 (Santa Fe Wharf), 1888-1915 — Gone But Not Forgotten

An Angler’s history of Redondo’s Wharf #1 The story of Redondo and its early wharves is one that is far more complex than that seen at the typical California seaside towns that sprang up in the late 1800s. The plan by the Redondo Beach Company…

Del Mar Pier — Gone But Not Forgotten

Although today’s Oceanside Pier is the first pier to be encountered north of San Diego, that hasn’t always been the case. The north county area saw several wharves and “pleasure piers” come and go over the years, piers at Del Mar, Carlsbad and Cardiff by…

Point Mugu Pier — Gone But Not Forgotten

Although the history of California’s coastline includes many piers that are today just traces of history, few lasted as long, or saw as many challenges and changes, as the pier at Point Mugu. It is also less known than some piers even though it was…