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San Pablo Reservoir Fishing Report

Updated Fri, Oct 23, 2026 from live gauge and weather data

An East Bay drinking-water reservoir between Orinda and El Sobrante that EBMUD stocks regularly with trout and catfish, open from February to mid-November.

4/5
Good. Solid day ahead.Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up.
Water temp
~62 F est.
Air / High
63 / 67 F
Wind
NNE 6 mph

Sources: Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.

Satellite view
Friday
23
October 2026

Today's Fishing Report

Generated this morning from live readings: gauge, weather model, sun and moon. A fresh report is published here every morning.

4/5Good. Solid day ahead.Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up.

San Pablo Reservoir feels the season turning: shorter days, grouping fish. Today brings a mixed sky, wind NNE around 6 mph, falling pressure near 1019 hPa and a high of 67. Water sits around 62 F for the season (estimated). With the waxing gibbous, the solunar majors run 9:49 AM-11:49 AM and 10:17 PM-12:17 AM: the windows to build the day around.

The plan, species by species

Largemouth bassExcellent

In spring, pre-spawn bass push shallow as the water climbs through the mid-50s; in fall they feed actively until the water cools into the low 50s, then drop back toward deeper structure.

Smallmouth bassExcellent

Spring pre-spawn and fall: Iowa DNR notes the larger bass come up to shallow structure, where a shallow-running minnow bait or a spinnerbait just under the surface works.

Catfish (blue, channel)Excellent

In spring after ice-out, Iowa finds channel cats feeding on winter-killed shad on the shallow, warmer mudflats at the upper ends of reservoirs; cut bait on the bottom works there.

CrappieGood

Pre-spawn fish move toward shallow coves, and Iowa DNR points to wading as an effective way to reach them in spring; minnows or small jigs under a float.

Tomorrow: Warmer at 74 F. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.Next report: Sat, Oct 24, 6:30 AMHow this report is made β†’

Before you go

California requires a fishing licence from age 16, from $64.54 for residents. What a California licence costs and where to buy it β†’

Chasing largemouth bass here? Check the size and bag limits with CDFW before you keep anything. The season dates for California, read off the agency, are on the California seasons page.

Water and weather

Live readings.

No live gauge on this water

Conditions here are modeled from weather, season and the nearest stations. Water readings appear when a USGS gauge is available.

4050607080JanMarMayJulSepNovOct, ~62 F now

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp63 F
High / Low67 / 53 F
WindNNE 6-13 mph
Pressure1018.6 hPa, falling
Sky / Rain58% cloud, 1%
Sunrise / Sunset07:25 / 18:20
MoonWaxing Gibbous, 91%
Water temp (seasonal)~62 F est.

Bite planner

Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today. Tap a bar to see why.

5 AM8 AM11 AM2 PM5 PM8 PMsunrisesunsetPRIMEPRIME

Which day to fish San Pablo Reservoir this week

Today is the pick of the week on San Pablo Reservoir, at 4 out of 5.

Best day this week: today, Oct 23 β€” good at 4/5, falling pressure, usually the best window of a week.

Today, Oct 23 β€” Good

Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up.

Solunar majors
9:49 AM-11:49 AM and 10:17 PM-12:17 AM
Minor period
4:13 AM-5:13 AM
Sun
07:25 to 18:20
Moon
Waxing Gibbous, 91% lit
Sky and wind
Overcast, 8 mph
Rain chance
1%

Forecast-based scores, less reliable further out: how the score is built.

Species guide

The species that matter on San Pablo Reservoir: seasons, structure and how to fish each one. Today's ratings live in the report above.

Largemouth bass illustration

Largemouth bass

Best: the spring pre-spawn and the fall feed

A warm-water sunfish of lakes, reservoirs, ponds and slow river backwaters that holds tight to cover: weeds, logs, rock ledges and docks. In Texas, TPWD surveys rank it "by far" the freshwater fish anglers most want to catch. In spring, pre-spawn bass push shallow as the water climbs through the mid-50s; in fall they feed actively until the water cools into the low 50s, then drop back toward deeper structure.

Smallmouth bass illustration

Smallmouth bass

Best: spring and fall, when bigger fish come shallow

A bronze-brown black bass of clear, cool streams and rocky lakes, with dark vertical bars instead of a side stripe. Michigan DNR says its southeastern coast, from Port Huron to Lake Erie, is known nationally for both the size and the number of its smallmouth. Spring pre-spawn and fall: Iowa DNR notes the larger bass come up to shallow structure, where a shallow-running minnow bait or a spinnerbait just under the surface works.

Crappie illustration

Crappie

Best: the spring spawn; summer around docks, brush and the thermocline

Two slab-sided panfish, the white crappie and the black crappie, that gather around submerged timber, brush piles, docks and bridge pilings in lakes, reservoirs and slow river backwaters. Texas Parks and Wildlife counts crappie as the state's most popular panfish. Pre-spawn fish move toward shallow coves, and Iowa DNR points to wading as an effective way to reach them in spring; minnows or small jigs under a float.

Catfish (blue, channel) illustration

Catfish (blue, channel)

Year-round, best at dusk and after dark

Three big catfish share most of the country's rivers and reservoirs: the channel catfish, the most widespread; the blue catfish, the largest; and the flathead, which hunts live fish. All feed mostly on or near the bottom. In spring after ice-out, Iowa finds channel cats feeding on winter-killed shad on the shallow, warmer mudflats at the upper ends of reservoirs; cut bait on the bottom works there.

When to come: the San Pablo Reservoir calendar

Activity by species and month, and how the water warms through the year. Tap any cell.

Species activity by month

1 = slow, 5 = peak. Current month highlighted.

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Largemouth bass
Smallmouth bass
Crappie
Catfish (blue, channel)
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 62 F (estimated, not a reading).

4050607080JanMarMayJulSepNovOct, ~62 F now

Angler reports

Real reports from real anglers, reviewed before publishing. The water log below tracks each day automatically.

No angler reports yet this weekBe the first: your report helps every angler who checks San Pablo Reservoir today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Thu, Oct 22

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Largemouth bass led the card at good. High of 61 F, wind to 7 mph.

Wed, Oct 21

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Largemouth bass led the card at excellent. High of 69 F, wind to 7 mph.

Tue, Oct 20

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Largemouth bass led the card at good. High of 71 F, wind to 7 mph.

Where roughly, what depth, what bait. Skip anything you want to keep secret.
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Before you go

License

California requires a valid fishing license for adults. Buy online from the state agency; one-day options exist for visitors.

Regulations

California fishing license plus an EBMUD fishing permit. Follow CDFW regulations and the EBMUD Watershed Rules and Regulations, including San Pablo's limits on boat propulsion; see EBMUD's current fee sheet for permit, entry and launch fees.

Access

San Pablo Recreation Area, 7301 San Pablo Dam Road, El Sobrante, (510) 223-1661: visitor center, boat rentals and inspected launches Thursday through Sunday and holidays. Closed from mid-November to early February.

About this water

An 834-acre EBMUD reservoir in the San Pablo Creek valley, unincorporated Contra Costa County, California, storing about 38,600 acre-feet.

Fishing San Pablo Reservoir: the full guide

An EBMUD water-supply reservoir

San Pablo Reservoir fills the valley of San Pablo Creek north of Orinda and south of El Sobrante and Richmond. EBMUD describes it as about 834 surface acres and 38,600 acre-feet of storage, roughly 2.8 miles long with about 14 miles of shoreline and a maximum depth near 200 feet. Because it is a drinking-water reservoir, swimming and any body contact are not allowed.

Trout, catfish and the rest

EBMUD says the reservoir is stocked regularly with trout and catfish and calls it one of the finest fisheries in the East Bay. The district's eating guide for San Pablo also covers crappie and largemouth, smallmouth and spotted bass. Staff at the visitor center sell licenses, bait and tackle and can point to current spots.

Season, hours and boats

The recreation area opens in early February and closes for the season after the second Sunday of November, with hours that change by month. After a yearlong closure over the invasive golden mussel, EBMUD is reopening launches on a limited basis in 2026: trailered boats must be inspected, banded and quarantined for 30 days before launching, and car-top boats are inspected before each launch. Rental patio, motor and row boats are available, but not kayaks.

Common questions

Is San Pablo Reservoir open year-round?

No. EBMUD's schedule runs from early February through the second Sunday of November, and the recreation area is closed from mid-November through January.

Can I eat the fish?

EBMUD's posted advisory lists trout and crappie as the safest choices, bass at one serving a week for adults, and says not to eat catfish or carp.

Can I bring my own boat?

Only through EBMUD's 2026 inspection program: trailered boats are banded and held in a 30-day quarantine before launching, and hand-launched boats are inspected first.

Is fishing good at San Pablo Reservoir right now?

Check the daily report at the top of this page: it is regenerated every morning from live data. Today's read: Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up.

Nearby waters

Pacifica24 miLos Vaqueros Reservoir28 miCalifornia Delta34 miLake Del Valle37 miPutah Creek42 miLake Berryessa46 mi

Where this page's numbers come from

Weather and pressure
Open-Meteo forecast model
Queried at 37.9200, -122.2300 in this water's own timezone. A model, not an observation.
Moon and solunar windows
Calculated on this site
Astronomical calculation from these coordinates and the date, not a third-party feed. How much weight it deserves.
Pages checked
The facts in the written guide were checked against these pages, from the agencies and operators that manage the water, on October 5, 2026. Anything we could not verify was taken out.
The written guide on this page
Pablo Ruiz Quintero
How this page was made. The daily report is computed by our scoring engine from live readings; nobody types it. The written text was drafted with AI assistance from the official pages listed above, and its facts were checked against those pages by automated verification on October 5, 2026; anything that could not be verified was taken out. Pablo Ruiz Quintero sets every guideline, the data-verification system and the minimum standards a page must meet to be published, reviews page structure and approves what goes live; the responsibility is his, and the AI carries out the work. We work this way because it is how one person can keep every page current with named sources. Errors are published in the verification log; the full policy is in the editorial policy.

Readings refresh on a 30-minute window. The full method, with every figure and its source, is on how our reports are made. Something wrong here? Tell us and it goes in the log with the date.