Stearns Wharf (Santa Barbara)
Santa Barbara Harbor · near Santa Barbara · Central Coast
Fishing
At a glance
- Difficulty
- beginner
- Best season
- Year-round
Permits and booking
- Licence required
- No
- Licence detail
- NO LICENSE needed — public wharf. California's oldest working wharf. Fishing allowed; also restaurants and shops. Parking on the wharf.
What is here
- Features
- No license required · California's oldest working wharf · Mackerel & perch · Mountains-meet-sea setting
Worth knowing
- Dogs
- Not permitted
- Good for a first timer
- Yes
Fishing detail
- Water type
- pier-jetty
- Water
- salt
- Methods
- Bait · Sabiki
- Boat
- shore
- Target species
- Mackerel · Surfperch · White croaker · Jacksmelt
- Intl tip
- No license needed. Sabikis for mackerel; light tackle for perch. It's a tourist wharf with restaurants — mellow, scenic fishing rather than trophy hunting. Combine with the Santa Barbara waterfront and Sea Landing charters. Great for a casual family cast.
The guide
Stearns Wharf, the oldest working wharf in California (built 1872), extends into Santa Barbara's harbor and offers free, no-lic…
In the Guidebook
Everything above is yours for free. The written guide to Stearns Wharf (Santa Barbara) — what it is actually like, and what we would tell a friend before they went — comes with the Guidebook.
Getting there
- Coordinates
- 34.409, -119.685