Seasonal Trip Calendar — SoCal Sportboats (Month × Trip Type × Target Species)
Published · Researched 2026-09-21
Every cell is either evidenced (source noted) or tagged UNVERIFIED. This calendar reflects 2026-09-21 research; ocean conditions shift year to year — treat it as a planning baseline, not a guarantee.
Key: ✅ = documented in research (source in Notes) · 🔶 = community consensus, single-thread or anecdotal · ❓ = UNVERIFIED (no source found)
| Month | Half-day | 3/4-day | Overnight | 1.5-day | Long-range (classic) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | Bass, sculpin, rockfish ✅ | Bass, rockfish/whitefish 🔶 | Slow; occasional trips 🔶 | Rarely scheduled ❓ | Lower-banks season: yellowfin, yellowtail 🔶 |
| Feb | Bass, sculpin, rockfish ✅ | Bass, rockfish/whitefish 🔶 | Slow 🔶 | Rarely scheduled ❓ | Lower banks / Guadalupe: yellowfin, yellowtail 🔶 |
| Mar | Bass, sculpin; early yellowtail showing 🔶 | Yellowtail season begins ✅ | Bluefin trips begin appearing 🔶 | Bluefin trips begin 🔶 | Guadalupe yellowfin/yellowtail 🔶 |
| Apr | Bass, bonito arriving 🔶 | Yellowtail ✅ | Bluefin ✅ | Bluefin ✅ | Spring 5–8 day: yellowfin, bluefin 🔶 |
| May | Bass, bonito, barracuda ✅ | Yellowtail ✅ | Bluefin ✅ | Bluefin ✅ | Bluefin semi-local on 5–6 day 🔶 |
| Jun | Bass, bonito, barracuda ✅ | Yellowtail, calico ✅ | Bluefin ✅ | Bluefin ✅ | Bluefin; early warm-water exotics 🔶 |
| Jul | Bass, bonito, barracuda ✅ | Yellowtail ✅ | Bluefin ✅ (976-TUNA 2024 big-bluefin report) | Bluefin ✅ | Bluefin; dorado arriving 🔶 |
| Aug | Bass, bonito, barracuda ✅ | Yellowtail, dorado possible ✅ | Bluefin ✅ | Bluefin, dorado ✅ | Summer long-range: bluefin, yellowfin 🔶 |
| Sep | Bass, bonito, barracuda ✅ | Yellowtail ✅ | Bluefin ✅ (2026-09-21 schedules running) | Bluefin ✅ (2026-09-21 schedules running) | Fall long-range: wahoo ✅, yellowfin ✅ |
| Oct | Bass, bonito; rockfish picking up ✅ | Yellowtail, calico ✅ | Bluefin ✅ | Bluefin ✅ | Fall long-range peak: wahoo, yellowfin, dorado ✅ |
| Nov | Bass, sculpin, rockfish ✅ | Bass, rockfish/whitefish 🔶 | Late bluefin 🔶 | Late bluefin 🔶 | Late-fall long-range 🔶 |
| Dec | Bass, sculpin, rockfish ✅ | Bass, rockfish/whitefish 🔶 | Slow 🔶 | Rarely scheduled ❓ | Winter lower-banks trips 🔶 |
Notes and evidence
- Half-day base fishery (bass/sculpin/rockfish, year-round): evidenced by 976-TUNA Premier report (sand bass, calico, rockfish counts), socalfishreports sculpin report ("good sculpin fishing today"), YouTube Dolphin/Sea Watch mixed-bag reports.
- Bonito/barracuda summer–fall: 976-TUNA Daily Double report (130 bonito, 26 anglers); YouTube Premier bonito "wide open" and Sea Watch (barracuda, bonito) reports.
- Yellowtail spring–fall, island peak spring–early summer: socalfishreports ("Channel Islands yellows on the chew," "Epic yellowtail fishing!!"); Salt Water Sportsman kelp-paddy yellowtail guide; BDOutdoors island threads. UNVERIFIED: exact peak weeks — varies with water temperature.
- Bluefin May–November, peak summer–fall: overnight/1.5-day landing schedules active 2026-09-21; sandiegofishreports "good fishing on big bluefin" (July 2024); sportfishingreport.com Condor bluefin report; BDOutdoors overnight-tuna threads.
- Dorado/yellowfin late summer–fall: BDOutdoors and 976-TUNA offshore reports; longrangesportfishing.net yellowfin reports. UNVERIFIED: precise arrival months — warm-water dependent.
- Wahoo on fall long-range: longrangesportfishing.net PENN trip report; Royal Polaris report (wahoo photos in this package).
- Winter rockfish/whitefish emphasis: community consensus (🔶) — pelagics fade, boats fish deeper structure. UNVERIFIED: current rockfish depth/season regulations — check CDFW groundfish regulations before booking a winter rockfish trip; rules change.
- "Slow" / "rarely scheduled" cells: no landing schedules for Jan–Feb overnight or 1.5-day trips were found on 2026-09-21; absence of listings is weak evidence — treat as UNVERIFIED and check landings directly.
- Long-range destination timing: BDOutdoors — 5–6 day trips may stay semi-local for bluefin; 7+ days opens Baja/Guadalupe/Rocks. Exact monthly destination rotation is per-boat and UNVERIFIED here.
How to use this calendar
- Pick the species you want, then the month, then the shortest trip type that reaches it.
- Yellowtail in April? 3/4-day to the islands. Bluefin in September? Overnight minimum; 1.5-day preferred (see trip-1.5-day.md).
- Always cross-check the landing's current fish counts the week you book — the calendar is history, the counts are now.