CatchWindow fishing intelligence

Crescent City, CA Daily Water Report — October 5, 2026

Crescent City is workable rather than mellow today: a good fishing-and-sailing day with fair-to-middling conditions for boats, paddles and dives, provided everyone treats the 1.3–1.6 m sea as the boss of the schedule. The best all-around daylight window runs from the 8:51 AM high tide into the late morning solunar major period, 8:12–10:12 AM. Winds remain light overall, with a representative SSW breeze of 7 knots and gusts near 9, while pressure is steady around 1015 hPa and no rain is indicated. Fishing carries the day’s top activity score at 7.7/10, supported by the tide, stable pressure and that morning solunar overlap. Sailing follows at 7.2/10: enough breeze to move a boat, but not much spare wind for anyone hoping for a lively ride. The tradeoff is the ocean itself. Waves are running about 1.64 m at 8.75 seconds, with a 1.26 m northwest swell at a short 5.15 seconds. That is not a glassy-water setup, even though locally generated wind waves are minimal. Boating scores 6.3/10 and kayaking 6/10, both down from yesterday’s notably easier scores of 7.9 and 8.5. The calmest modeled wave height, 1.28 m, was near midnight—not exactly a practical consolation prize. Divers get a 6.9/10 estimate, but should expect cool 13.1 C marine water and surface motion; the reported 12.2 km atmospheric visibility says nothing about underwater clarity. For shoreline explorers and wildlife watchers, the 2:08 PM low tide is the practical timing marker, with a minor solunar period from 2:42–3:42 PM. Wildlife rates 7.4/10, helped by low-tide proximity and light wind. Cloud cover is complete, temperatures only reach about 17.5 C, and the air will feel damp and cool, so pack the extra layer rather than negotiating with October. The next two days stay relatively light-wind, but seas build: 1.5–2.0 m Tuesday and 2.0–2.3 m Wednesday, with larger waves continuing later in the week. Best bet: fish the morning high-tide/major-period overlap, then let the rising sea have the last word.