San Francisco Bay Area Archives - Pier Fishing in California

Fort Baker Pier — Sausalito

Public Pier — No Fishing License Required Like its counterpart across the bay, the Fort Point Pier, this pier offers not only decent fishing but one of the world’s most interesting and beautiful views. Look up to your right and you are looking into the…

Ravenswood Pier — Palo Alto — Gone But Not Forgotten

Sometimes it’s hard to fight for a pier when you hear ongoing, almost non-stop stories of people (anglers and non-anglers alike) vandalizing and committing a variety of crimes at the pier. Eventually the poor behavior and crimes seen at this pier helped define the pier…

Warm Water Cove Pier — San Francisco — Gone But Not Forgotten

I’m not sure if the music was punk, grunge or something altogether different, but it was corybantic, loud, obnoxious to these old ears and terribly off key (I think). Yet it somehow seemed perfectly suited for the area. There I was in this industrial, dirty…

South Beach Harbor Marina Pier — San Francisco

Public Access Area — Status Unclear — Fishing License May Be Required O.K., so how many piers have a major league baseball stadium practically connected to the pier? Or, on how many piers can you look over your shoulder and see a huge baseball mitt—or…

Heron’s Head Park Pier — San Francisco

Public Pier — No Fishing License Required The first date, the first kiss…the first visit to a new pier, all offer intrigue and hope for the future. And then reality sits in. Here my first visit offered a mixed message. The park itself was certainly…

Shorebird Park and Chevy’s Pier — Emeryville

Public Access Area — Status Unclear — Fishing License May Be Required Although undoubtedly seen by many among the thousands of commuters who pass along this stretch of shoreline daily, two small piers exist in Emeryville that are virtually unused (if not unknown) by local…

Frank Joseph’s Fishing Pier — Rodeo — Gone But Not Forgotten

For many, many years, a small private pier was found near the marina in Rodeo. It was simply called Joseph’s Pier by most anglers and what describes the pier best are the words hit or miss. When fishing was bad, it was very bad, when…

Dowrellio Pier — Crockett — Gone But Not Forgotten

This was a pier that I fished regularly throughout much of the ’70 before I headed north to Mendocino County. I lived in the Eats Bay community of Pinole and during the long summer days could easily drive over from Pinole after work and get several hours of…

The “Old” Vallejo Pier — Gone But Not Forgotten

This was a pier frequently missed by anglers unaware of its location. It used to sit almost directly underneath the Sears Point/Highway 37 (Napa River) bridge that connects Vallejo to Mare Island and areas to the north. That shouldn’t be surprising since the pier was…

Robert E. Wooley Pier — Burlingame

Public Pier — No Fishing License Required My daughter Kim called one day. “Guess what, you missed a pier!” And, as usual, she was right. She also went on to tell me about the 14-inch baby sturgeon she had caught and released. Although small, it…