Surf Fishing Guide: Your San Diego Surf Fishing Experience
Nick Heid – San Diego’s Surf Fishing Guide | 23-inch spotfin croaker
Surf fishing in San Diego is one of the most exciting, yet underrated activities our beautiful city has to offer. My name is Nick Heid and I’m your surf fishing guide. If you’re interested in learning how to go surf fishing or if you’re just visiting and looking to experience surf fishing, continue reading below to learn more.
Page Updated 2/24/2024
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About Your Guided Surf Fishing Session
When you book Nick Heid as your San Diego surf fishing guide, all necessary gear, tackle and bait is included. Whether you want to target leopard sharks, corbina, surfperch or other surf species, I’ll guide you through a day of surf fishing the beautiful shoreline of San Diego. All skill levels and people with even zero experience are welcomed.
What Will We Do?
All guided surf fishing sessions begin with an overview of the gear and tackle I use and how to go about gathering your bait. After a detailed overview, I will fish by your side and answer any questions you have while giving you feedback on what you’re doing and what you should look for when applicable.
After the initial overview, it’s all about putting what you’ve learned into practice and fishing to the conditions as we try to get on some fish together!
As the day progresses, you’ll be able to hone your skills and focus on what you do as you follow my lead.
- Each session will last 4 hours.
- Typical time slots are within the hours of 6 am- sunset/last light.
- All gear and tackle is included.
- Bait is included and freshly caught as we will cover that process too (summertime only as sand crabs are seasonal).
- You will learn how to catch fish in the surf of Southern California.
- You will learn how to read the surf.
- Any questions you have will be answered to the best of my abilities.
- If you have any specific questions or things you would like me to note or emphasize please feel free to let me know in your email/message to me.
If you have any questions about my offered service, please feel free to reach out. You can reach me through our “Contact Us” page or my email or phone (both listed above). I want to do everything I can to make you feel as comfortable as possible. So don’t hesitate!
What to Bring to Your Session
- Empty Water Bottle (we’ll keep our sand crabs in these)
- Snacks/water
- Sunscreen/sunglasses (polarized helps)
- Fishing License WITH OCEAN ENHANCEMENT
- Signed liability waiver
- Hoodie if you want
- Headlamp if we are fishing before sunrise or after sunset
- Waders if fishing the colder months
Where Will Your Session Be?
I typically run guided fishing outings from Silver Strand State Beach to Carlsbad but I am willing to travel if requested. I can and have guided as far north as Santa Barbara but for best experience, plan for San Diego County.
What’s The Best Time of Year To Go Surf Fishing In San Diego?
Have a look at the table below to see which species bite well during which months of the year. Generally speaking, summer is the best time of year for surf fishing.
Winter Surf Fishing
Winter is the slowest season for surf fishing with mostly surfperch and potentially halibut if you fish with lures.
Fall Surf Fishing
Fall is the next slowest season. It can be hot and cold as it’s a transitional month. You might get lucky and catch some lingering corbina, spotfin croaker and leopard sharks. Otherwise, it might be pretty slow with some surfperch and a couple croaker. Again, halibut are always a possibility, but it’s a much trickier species to target than the rest of these so be warned if you want to target halibut.
Spring Surf Fishing
Spring is when things start to turn around. The bite could turn on in March and be absolutely hot! Or, it could remain slow until May. But either way, your odds increase a lot when you fish in May. Expect corbina, yellowfin croaker and leopard shark fishing to be solid.
Summer Surf Fishing
Summer is the best time of year to surf fish. Leopard shark, corbina, spotfin croaker and literally any of the species shown in the table below are “on the table” when it comes to surf fishing for them.
| Species | Peak Season | General Season |
| California Corbina | Jun-Aug | May-Oct |
| Yellowfin Croaker | Jun-Aug | Apr-Oct |
| Spotfin Croaker | Jun-Aug | May-Oct |
| Barred Surf Perch | Nov-Apr | Year Round |
| Walleye Surf Perch | Nov-Apr | Year Round |
| Shovelnose Guitar Fish | Jun-Aug | May-Oct |
| Sting Ray | Jun-Aug | Year Round |
| Bat Ray | Jun-Aug | Year Round |
| Leopard Shark | May-Aug | Apr-Oct |
| California Halibut | Mar-Jun | Year Round |
| Soupfin Shark | Mar-Jul | Year Round |
| White Seabass | Mar-Jun | Feb-Sep |
| Calico Bass | Mar-Sep | Year Round |
If you’re ready to book your guided session, fill out the form below or send me an email and let’s get going! But, I encourage you to read on to learn more about me before you book. I am NOT trying to sell myself and to be honest, providing great info through my website is more important to me than making money guiding.
If the form below does not work, book your guided surf fishing session by emailing me at surffishingsocalsd@gmail.com or send me a text at (619) 922-1733. Pricing is shown below (closer to bottom of page).
Book Your San Diego Surf Fishing Guide
About Your Surf Fishing Guide
Hey guys, my name is Nick Heid and I started surf fishing back in 2014 during the summer of my sophomore year in High School when a friend of mine introduced me to the topic. We picked a day, he took me to one of his favorite spots and I never looked back.
That day absolutely changed my life. I caught my first surfperch and watched him reel in a 4-foot guitarfish. From that point on, I was hooked! Ever since, I’ve fished any where from 2-to-5 days a week in the summertime and at least once a week in the off-season.
I think it’s important to understand a few things about who I am as a surf fisherman and as a person before you book a session. I’m not trying to fool anyone. I was born in 1997 and I’m no fishing guru. There may be a couple of So Cal surf fishermen who know more than I do about the sport. In fact, I am constantly seeking advice and wisdom from anglers I’ve met on the sand, online, and via social media.
There will always be more to learn about the art and better yet, there will always be so many more people to learn from. It’s really an awesome community that’s been built here in the So Cal surf and that’s part of the reason I created my blog and website.
I try to write about what’s happening in the surf and the new and relevant things that I learn along the way. Be sure to check that out and subscribe.
What Do You Have To Gain?
If you book a session with me, I’m not going to try and impress you with all the things I know about surf fishing, nor will I flood you with information that’s guaranteed to put you on loads of fish for every session to come.
If you book a session with me, you’re booking a hands-on experience and a day of surf fishing with me. You’ll get to see exactly what I do when I fish the surf. You’ll be able to ask any questions, and I’ll try to explain aspects about surf fishing that I think are valuable or good to know. It is my belief and expectation that if you practice what I show you during our session (no matter how “productive” our session together happens to be), you WILL find yourself consistently catching fish in the future.
With guiding and with fishing in general, nothing is guaranteed. Every great fisherman has been skunked and that’s part of what makes them great. Although, I’m no “fishing guru”, I like to think I’m decently knowledgeable with a proven track record of success. To gain a better picture of my track record, follow the blog, check me out on YouTube, and check out my Instagram.