Book Your Fishing Charter in Imperial Beach, CA

The residential beach city, Imperial Beach, houses the best fish. Here are the best ways to fish in its waters.

Book Your Fishing Charter in Imperial Beach, CA
Book Your Fishing Charter in Imperial Beach, CA
Team Guidesly

March 31, 2022, 3 min read

Updated on June 19, 2023

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Imperial Beach in San Diego, California, is where you can experience all the fun recreational activities, excellent facilities, and fishing with no fees or fishing license required. It is a residential beach located in North San Diego County. If the weather permits, this place is the perfect spot to enjoy the city’s natural beauty together with the ocean backdrop, which has a lot of various restaurants, bars, and shops. There are also a lot of recreational activities like volleyball, surfing, bodyboarding, and fishing that are fit for any person of any age. 

Before it was officially incorporated as the 10th city in San Diego in 1956, Imperial Beach was only considered a coastal retreat for the farmers and landowners. But over the years, it grew into a fine establishment ever since the pier was built in 1909 alongside the first sidewalk, general store, public library, and a café. It is also home to one of the largest military bases in California with other military facilities, including the Naval Training Center, Naval Medical Center Imperial, National Guard Air Force Base, and a Naval Base.

Imperial Beach Fishing: Different Fishing Spots

two men on a white boat fishing on the water body

You will experience Pier Fishing in this place, where you can snatch an 18 inches long California Halibut, a Shortfin Corvina weighing almost 10 pounds, and even the usual inshore fish species that you can find in the city. 

In Imperial Beach, the best place to go fishing is behind the surf line. During winter and early spring, barred surfperch is very abundant. The best way to catch it is by using live sand crabs as baits. But if you are not specific about the fish you’re going to catch, you can use baits like bloodworms, ghost shrimp, and fresh mussels. These baits work effectively for all inshore fish species. On the other hand, mid-summer to fall is the best time for large croakers, primarily when high tide measures five feet or greater. 

The second-best fishing spot on the beach is the mid-pier area. In this spot, sharks, including the leopard shark, gray smoothhound, shovelnose shark, and stingrays like the star ray, round stingray, butterfly ray, bat ray, and shortfin Corvina, are the species that you might be able to snag.  

You can catch most fish using small spoons, mega baits, plastics like fish traps, and even fresh mussels as baits. There are also a couple of predominant species in that area, like the California halibut, queenfish, and walleye surfperch, that usually schools mid-depth about halfway to the bottom. 

We can go on telling you ways to go fishing in Imperial Beach, but it would be the best idea for you to come and see for yourself how grand this fishing haven is. Take time to visit this place and awe its beauty and sustainability regarding its environmental and natural resources.

Take Pleasure in the Beauty of Imperial Beach

Imperial Beach is a perfect spot to stroll, relax, and watch the California sunsets. The beauty of nature and the smell of salty air that you experience here will give you a warm and calming feeling.

Here are the best ways to enjoy the beauty of Imperial Beach:

1. Horseback Riding Along the Beach

They offer two and a half-hour of horseback riding at the beach while waiting for the sun to set. Begin by going into a nature preserve to stroll around the beach as you watch the waves go back and forth shore. You can also watch out for dolphins during those hours.

2. The USS Midway Museum 

This place is one of San Diego’s most inspirational museums. It is a historical and the longest-serving aircraft carrier of the 20th century. Here, tourists can explore the floating city at sea with the fantastic flight deck and 29 restored aircraft and flight simulators. The Battle of Midway inspired all of these ideas. 

Fish in Imperial Beach and beyond.