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Updated January 8, 2026

SHELTER COVE — Limits of big crab are coming easily for Jake Mitchell of Sea Hawk Sport Fishing when he can get out. Commercial crab season opens Jan. 15. Rockfish season is closed for boats but remains open year-round for shore-based anglers and divers.

FORT BRAGG — Boat-based rockfish season closed on December 31, but anglers can catch rockfish from the jetty along with other shore locations. Recreational Dungeness crab season remains open, and it will stay open until July 30 with crab traps allowed from Cape Mendocino south to the Mendocino/Sonoma County Line.

BODEGA BAY — The crab combination season ended on December 31 in spectacular fashion with limits for both rockfish and Dungeness crab on every trip since November 1 with Captain Rick Powers of Bodega Bay Sport Fishing. He finished up the season with a combined 64 limits of both species along with several lingcod to a whopping 21 pounds. The commercial crab fleet set gear on January 2 with their first pull on January 5. Shore-based rockfishing remains open, and Dungeness crab remains open until June 30 in this section of the coast. A few recreational charter boats will continue to offer crab-only trips.

GOLDEN GATE — Like Bodega Bay, the crab combination season ended with limits all around for recreational charter boats traveling to the Farallon Islands. The commercial season starts this week, and there will be a few boats selling off the docks after the initial pulls. A few recreational charter boats will continue to offer crab-only trips, although most boats will be pulled out for maintenance to prepare for halibut trolling trips starting in March.