Surf Fishing Torrey Pines State Beach: Complete Guide

In this guide, we’ll cover everything you need to know about surf fishing Torrey Pines State Beach. Torrey Pines is one of the best beaches for surf fishing in San Diego. It’s one of the most (if not the most) popular surf fishing spots in San Diego due to its ease of access and good fishing. Below we’ll talk about things like common species, type of terrain and structure, which tides are best, what bait to use and much more.

Overview of Surf Fishing Torrey Pines State Beach

Parking Info	Free and Paid – Free is typically tough to find.
Ease of Access	Easy from Parking Lot
Tides	No Higher than a 4-foot High Tide
Crowds	Crowded Near Lots – Thins Out North and South
Terrain Type	Mostly Sandy with Mixed Reef and Pebbles
No Fishing Areas	None
Recommended Gear and Tackle	Surf Fishing Gear and Tackle

On the south end of Torrey Pines State beach, we have Flat Rock. The middle-south stretch of beach tends to be the least crowded as the parking is on the middle-north end where the majority of beach-goers gather. The north end meets Del Mar around 6th street, but before that, Torrey Pines does feature a lagoon/river mouth that creates some a unique habitat as well.

Similar to South Torrey Pines, North Torrey Pines shelters all the same types of fish. Additionally, this beach tends to be less crowded the further away from parking and public access you wander. Corbina and perch are prominent here and there’s one really interesting characteristic about North Torrey Pines that brings in different species.

Due to the channel that flows into the North side of Torrey Pines, halibut can be targeted with great success! Halibut like structure and they like moving waters, like inlets and such. Torrey Pines is a good beach to choose if you’re looking for halibut or any fish for that matter.

What Fish Can You Catch Surf Fishing at Torrey Pines State Beach?

Flat Rock attracts a myriad of species of fish including sand bass, calico bass, halibut and even white seabass. One of the most interesting species in my mind that it attracts is baby leopard sharks about 12-18″ in length. Baby leopard sharks appear to find refuge at Torrey Pines. They are attracted to the structure and marine wildlife that the rock and neighboring structure provides.

Overall, commonly caught species include corbina, surfperch, yellfowin croaker, spotfin croaker, sting rays, bat rays, guitarfish, leopard sharks, halibut, calico, sandbass and seabass.

Common Species	Peak Season	General Season
California Corbina	Jun-Aug	May-Oct
Spotfin Croaker	Jun-Aug	May-Oct
Yellowfin Croaker	May-Aug	May-Oct
Barred Surfperch	Nov-Apr	Year-Round
Walleye Surfperch	Nov-Apr	Year-Round
Shovelnose Guitarfish	Jun-Aug	May-Oct
Sting Ray (Round Ray)	Jun-Aug	Year-Round
Bat Ray	Jun-Aug	Year-Round
Leopard Shark	May-Aug	Apr-Oct
California Halibut	Jan-May	Year-Round
Soupfin Shark	Mar-Jul	Year-Round

Bait and Gear & Tackle

During the months of May through August, I can almost guarantee that sand crabs will be readily available for you to use for bait. If they’re available, I’m using sand crabs every time while surf fishing at Torrey Pines. If they aren’t, store bought clams or mussel meat works well. See the drop-down below for my exact gear and tackle for light tackle surf fishing.

For lures, I will use both jerkbaits and swimbaits here. If it’s a year where more reef is exposed, I’ll opt for swimbaits. If it’s a year where less structure is exposed, I’m okay with jerkbaits. See the drop-down below for my specific gear and tackle for each style.

If you haven’t noticed, I don’t talk much about leopard shark fishing and the other shark and ray species. That’s mainly because it can be done just the same at just about every beach. Let me know if you have questions about sharking etc.

Parking at Torrey Pines State Beach:

There are a few different options for Torrey Pines beach parking. There are two pay lots that are run by the state park. Then, there’s a limited stretch of diagonal and parallel parking that runs along the beach. Other than that, there’s street parking, but it’s relatively far wherever you find it. If you’re open to going to North Torrey Pines or even a little further north to Del Mar, you have a few more options that will be covered in the “Del Mar” section.

Type of Structure and Terrain

The structure and terrain at Torrey Pines beach is best described as “mixed”. Depending on the year and season, the structure at this beach is known to change quite a bit. In the summertime, it’s usually mostly sandy with a fair amount of pebbles at the upper shoreline. During the winter and spring lots of reef is exposed on years that we’ve had lots of rough surf and storms. Some years, there’s reef everywhere, others it’s only at flat rock and nearby.

Usually winter and early spring is when we get our roughest surf in So Cal. Depending on how rough the storms were, some beaches can lose up to 3 feet of sand. You might be wondering what the significance of “3 feet” of sand is. make sure to read the section on which tides for surf fishing Torrey Pines further down in this article.

Tides for Fishing Torrey Pines State Beach

The entire stretch of Torrey Pines State Beach requires a tidal height of lower than 4 feet. Depending on the height of the surf and the amount of sand loss we had for the given year, 4 feet plus/minus 1 foot is a good rule to follow.

Continuing from what was mentioned above, expect this beach to have less sand in the winter and spring. So during summer, it may be able to take a 4 foot tide. But sometimes, winter and spring it can’t even take a 3-foot tide. It totally depends on the year.

Surf Fishing Torrey Pines State Beach: YouTube Video

Where to Legally Fish at Torrey Pines State Beach:

As long as you don’t fish the lagoon east of the bridge, there are no MPAs that you need to worry about. You CAN fish the mouth of the lagoon, but do NOT fish east of the bridge.

Flat Rock at Torrey Pines

One of my favorite experiences here occurred in the winter months. When I arrived and climbed atop The Rock, I noticed something that left me awestruck. I looked down at the water and saw more than 50 leopard sharks ranging from 1-3 ft! My buddy and I caught a myriad of sharks that day and it was just an incredible experience. But, we’ve also had many slow days and even skunks here. Regardless, it’s one of the most beautiful beaches in So Cal and I’d recommend at least taking a stroll on the beach.

I hope this guide to surf fishing Torrey Pines beach helped you and if you’re interested in more guides like this follow the image-linked page below on the best beaches for surf fishing. This is a library of guides like this. If you’d like to book me as your in person surf fishing guide, do so at the link! Tight lines!