Fort Point Pier — San Francisco

Date: June 5, 2009; To: PFIC Message Board; From: oceanbeachmatt; Subject: Fort Point pier, crabs, stripers, bummer           

Had the day off yesterday so I decided to hit Fort point Pier with my 5 year old son for some crabbing on the late afternoon, incoming tide. The crabbing was very good but tons of Dungies and a pesky sea lion that would try to eat our bait every now and then. I saw a nice striper caught at the base of the pier on a white Hair Raiser. Around 4:30 I turned to the west to look out the [Golden] Gate and saw a person falling through the sky. The impact was horrific. I could not believe what I’d just seen; others on the pier didn’t see this but heard the impact. In a state of shock I called 911 and reported what I had just seen and where, between the Fort and South Tower, and soon saw a flare followed by a Coast Guard cutter that circled around the flare and quickly speed north to port. Then I got a call from the Coast Guard asking for my personal info/account of what I saw. They told me they recovered a man’s body and that he did not survive. I am still really tripped out about the whole experience. Thank God my son didn’t see this as he was playing with the rock crabs we’d caught. Anyway the crabbing was good but I don’t think I’ll fish there again for quite a while.

Date: June 22, 2009; To: PFIC Message Board; From: tsang151; Subject: Fort Point Pier

Fished Sat Morning from about 8:30-10:30 at Ft Point. Lots of casters fishing the inside of the L near shore. During the 2 hours that I was there I saw about 5 stripers come up with at least 2 more lost to wraps around pilings or fisherman error. The largest was a 12 pound, 31” fish. This was all on the incoming, too bad nothing for me. There was also lots of salad in the water. Most fish were caught on chartreuse or green bucktails in the 1/2-3/4 oz size.

<*}}}}}}}}}>< —  Special Bay Area Regulations:

• A perch closure exits in San Francisco and San Pablo Bay from April 1 to July 31. No perch may be kept other than shinerperch (20).
• In San Francisco and San Pablo Bay a fishing line may not contain more than three hooks.

Sturgeon Regulations:

• A sturgeon report card and tags are required for anyone fishing for or taking sturgeon. (a) The card must be in the angler’s possession; (b) a tag must be used for any sturgeon retained by the angler; (c) the angler must record information on the Sturgeon Report Card immediately after catching and   keeping or releasing the sturgeon.
• White sturgeon can only be kept from 40-60 inches; larger and smaller sturgeon must be released.
• Green sturgeon may not be taken or possessed.

History Note. In 1776 Juan Bautista de Anza raised the Spanish flag and chose the Fort Point site as the area for a Presido. Eighteen years later, in 1794, an adobe brick fort, the Castillo de San Joaquin was built on the site, while the Presideo was located further inland. Between 1853-1861 the old fort was torn down and U.S. Army Engineers constructed a new “Fort Point”. It was abandoned in 1886 but later was used as both the base of operations during the building of the Golden Gate Bridge and as part of the protection for a submarine net that stretched across the entrance to San Francisco Bay during the war years of WW II.

The L-shaped pier located just up the road from the fort (our Fort Point Pier) was constructed in 1908 and repaired in 1941. The Army originally used it as a base for soldiers (mine planters) who laid out submarine mines (torpedoes) in minefields near the entrance to San Francisco Bay. Today it’s strictly used for fishing; its current length is 437 feet with a width of about 60 feet at the end.

Fort Point Pier Facts

Hours: Sunrise to sunset; the gate to the entrance road is locked during the night.

Facilities: Restrooms are adjacent to the pier as is limited free parking (about six spots). Additional parking can be found near Fort Point itself. There are no lights or fish cleaning stations. A small snack bar is located near the front of the pier.

Handicapped Facilities: There are some handicapped parking spaces near the park offices. The surface of the pier is primarily wood surface although part is also asphalt. There is a short wooden berm around the pier but no railings.

How To Get There: From Highway 101 the easiest way is to turn into the parking lot near the toll plaza at the south end of the Golden Gate Bridge, from there Battery E. Road winds down the hill to Lincoln Boulevard, turn left and proceed a short way until you see markers indicating the way to Fort Point, turn left on Long Avenue and it will take you down to the pier.

Management: National Park Service.