Monday May 11, 2026
Action News Now —
Seafood lovers in San Francisco were rejoicing on Saturday as sales resumed of fresh-caught Chinook, or “king salmon.”
It’s been three years since local commercial fishermen were able to cast their lines off the California coast because of declining numbers. While there is optimism for the future, some experienced fishermen say there are plenty of challenges ahead.
Sarah Bates rummaged through a large cooler, searching through her prized catch — a catch that she said had been a long time coming.
“This is a California king salmon,” she said, holding up a 28-inch fish, weighing in at about seven pounds. “It’s May. So, these fish are three years old, but they are about half the size that they’re going to be in September.”
Bates has been operating out of San Francisco’s fishing wharf for a long time, so when the state shut down the commercial industry in 2023, it was a heavy blow.
But now it looks like the population has rebounded somewhat, and Bates was once again selling fresh Chinook salmon from the dockside market at Fisherman’s Wharf. The catch came from an area off Point Arena, far north of San Francisco Bay.