Fishing the San Mateo Rocks

Along the coast between Pacifica and Ano Nuevo State Park, a set of scattered rocky beaches provide beautiful views of the Pacific Ocean, as well as occasional chances for rocky-bottom species. Most of these areas lie within state parks (Pescadero, Bean Hollow, Pigeon Point) along Highway 1, providing easy access and some facilities.

About this Stretch of Coast

Always keep your eyes on the ocean! Like the Santa Cruz Cliffs, this section of coast can have some big waves, and people foraging and fishing the coast here have been swept into the water by rogue waves. Always check the wave forecast, and be safe. In addition, many of the rocks here can be quite slippery, so take your time when climbing these rocks to get to fishing spots.

In general, the rocky stretches of coastline here can be fished at both low tide or high tide. A simple high/low rig, baited with shrimp or squid, works quite well for rockfish, striped surfperch, and the occasional cabezon. Be prepared to bring a lot of extra tackle, as it can be very easy to snag and break off. In general, try and find the deeper holes and deeper water, as there can be a lot of variation in depth close to shore. Keep in mind spots that are excellent at high tide can be left high and dry when the tide gets low, so be prepared to move around if there is significant tidal variation.

If you can find a nice access point to deeper water, swimbaits rigged on a jighead or Texas rig can net you a couple rockfish — the typical catch will be black or blue rockfish. When I have been targeting perch here in the past, lingcod have occasionally latched onto a tiny piece of shrimp, for whatever reason.

At strong minus tides, these beaches can be great places to do some poke-poling - basically sticking your bait in the deep holes under boulders and rocks to catch trapped fish. With a small strip of squid and a good pair of boots or waders, you can catch some nice monkeyface eels and small rockfish. These fish seem to be experts at stealing bait, so make sure to bring a lot of extra.

If you’re interested in crab, I’ve done pretty well at the rocky beaches here throwing snares for rock crab. The sandier areas will net you a sprinkling of Dungeness.

Sometimes, the fishing can be slow, if the waves are choppy and mother nature does not cooperate. But the coastline views of the ocean here are incredible — you won’t regret making the drive.

Notes

Some of these spots have been hit quite hard in recent years, and as a result fish sizes as well as catch rates have gone down significantly. Do your part for future generations, and only take home the fish you’ll actually use and eat yourself.

Most of the rockfish I’ve caught here are black-and-yellow rockfish, similar to other rocky-shore fishing spots in the rest of the state. If you intend on keeping the fish you catch, keep in mind that this particular species of rockfish are classified as high in methylmercury and PCBs, and you should limit your consumption if possible.

Check out my Bay Area rockfish fishing guide.

Recommended Gear

Berkley Gulp Sandworms

Dealing with squid or shrimp for bait can be a pain, with lugging around a cooler to keep it fresh, the bait falling off the hook, and potentially even running out. As a result, I like keeping a pack of these flavor-infused plastic sandworms in my tackle box just in case. They seem to work ok for rockfish, although not as good as the fresh stuff. These worms are also one of the best baits for catching surfperch off beaches on the West Coast.

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Berkley Bonefish Ribbed Swimbait

If you don't want to use bait, this is a good all-around swimbait for rocky-shore species. I usually fish it on a Texas rig or jighead, or occasionally a dropshot rig. Try and fish the lure as close to the bottom as possible (unless you're fishing for black or blue rockfish).

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Keitech Swimbait

The swimbait that most people swear by. I honestly have had better personal success recently with the Berkley swimbait, but people have had some awesome catches on these Keitechs.

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When fishing the rocks, there is always a surprising amount of current, so you’ll need some heavy weights. I usually use anywhere from half an ounce to four ounces for my rigs. You’ll also snag and break off a lot, so make sure to bring a lot of spares. I’ve listed the weights I use below, in order of preference.

Cloth Bags

I hate snagging off and leaving a hunk of metal at the bottom of the ocean. As a result, I recently switched to using cloth bags, which I fill with gravel and small rocks at the fishing spot and hopefully biodegrade in the water. I've found that these cloth bags work incredibly well. They snag much less frequently than the metal weights I used to use, and the fish don't seem to mind. In addition, they are much cheaper.

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Ultra Steel Bullet Weights, 3/4 ounce

I usually use steel weights whenever I can. While they tend to be somewhat more expensive than lead-based weights, they lack most of the toxicity and developmental impacts of lead. In regards to your own health, you should use steel weights whenever possible. However, steel weights can be hard to find in larger sizes.

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Lead Sinkers, 2 ounces

These lead weights are much cheaper than steel, and come in much larger sizes. However, keep in mind the toxicity and developmental impacts of lead. Use at your own risk.

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Crab Snare

Your basic setup for catching crab. Fill the cage with some kind of bait - squid, chicken, or fish usually do well. Cast out, and reel in every 10 minutes or so - if there's a crab nibbling on the bait, the loops of the snare will catch on the crab. I like doing a slow smooth "hookset" to engage the snare loops. While you're reeling in, try and maintain pressure on the snare, to make sure a crab doesn't get loose! I've linked a nice, but somewhat expensive crab snare here; a cheaper option is here, but it doesn't really work as well in practice.

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