Skip to content
Fish City

Tackle Shops in Orange County

8 shops — hours, live bait, and directions.

Updated

Bait and tackle near you in Orange County

8 open shops, 4 with live bait, live bait first.

Orange County's eight tackle shops spread across five cities. Newport Beach hosts the county's two heaviest offshore operations: Newport Landing Tackle at 309 Palm Street and Davey's Locker Tackle at 400 Main Street. Both sit inside active sportfishing landings on Newport Harbor — one of the largest recreational boat harbors on the West Coast — and both carry live bait. Heading south, Hogan's Bait & Tackle in Dana Point sits across from Doheny State Beach with live bait, rod repair, custom rod building, and Spectra splicing, and the Dana Wharf Sportfishing landing keeps its own tackle shop in Dana Point Harbor. Inland in the City of Orange, The LongFin (open since January 1986) stocks a two-story building with saltwater and freshwater tackle and serves as the exclusive booking agent for Tony Reyes fishing tours out of San Felipe, Mexico. North in Brea, Fisherman's Access on Imperial Highway is a family-owned full-service shop: live and frozen bait, custom rod building, rod and reel repair, and imported Japanese lures. Huntington Beach adds CharkBait! Sportfishing, a specialty offshore rod-and-reel retailer that carries no live bait but runs deep inventory on slow-pitch jigs, surface irons, and conventional reels; and Fishermen's Hardware, a family-owned full-service shop open seven days, with custom rod building and rod repair across saltwater and freshwater gear.

The county's fishery splits between Newport Harbor and Dana Point Harbor as the two commercial sportfishing hubs. Newport's landing fleet targets calico bass and sand bass year-round on the inshore kelp at Barn Kelp, San Mateo Kelp, and the Huntington Flats; barracuda and white seabass peak spring through early summer; yellowtail run from roughly April through October when water temperatures reach the low-to-mid 60s°F; and overnight boats pick up bluefin tuna and dorado offshore in summer and fall. Dana Point Harbor — which opened in 1971 — runs the same kelp-bed species plus bluefin and yellowfin tuna trips offshore. The three offshore-focused shops (Newport Landing, Davey's Locker, CharkBait!) are tuned to these patterns: heavy conventional reels, irons and jigs, and — at the two Newport landings — the bait systems the overnight fleet depends on.

The harbor-based shops in Newport Beach and Dana Point open with the boats; for specialty offshore rod or reel work, CharkBait! and Fishermen's Hardware in Huntington Beach are a short drive up PCH. Select a city or scroll the map to find the closest shop.

Shops in Orange County

Orange County on the map

Species to target here

Nearby charters

Related regions

Frequently asked questions

  • Where can I buy live bait in Orange County?

    Four OC tackle shops confirm they carry live bait: Newport Landing Tackle and Davey's Locker Tackle, both on Newport Harbor in Newport Beach, Hogan's Bait & Tackle in Dana Point, and Fisherman's Access in Brea, which lists live and frozen bait alongside freshwater and saltwater tackle. The Newport shops operate bait systems that supply the sportfishing fleet. Hogan's carries lug worm, nightcrawlers, and frozen marine baits including squid, anchovy, sardine, and mackerel. CharkBait! Sportfishing in Huntington Beach is a specialty rod-and-reel retailer and carries no live or frozen bait.

  • What's the difference between the offshore-focused and general OC shops?

    Three shops are offshore-focused — Newport Landing Tackle, Davey's Locker Tackle, and CharkBait! Sportfishing. Newport Landing and Davey's Locker are landing-based, stocking heavy conventional reels, offshore jigs and irons, and live bait for the Newport sportfishing fleet. CharkBait! is a specialty retailer emphasizing slow-pitch jigging, surface irons, popping, and trolling tackle; it carries no bait. The remaining five — Fishermen's Hardware, Hogan's Bait & Tackle, Dana Wharf Sportfishing Tackle, The LongFin, and Fisherman's Access in Brea — are general shops with offshore coverage, serving a broader mix of inshore, surf, and freshwater anglers alongside offshore needs.

  • What fish are in season in Orange County waters?

    Calico bass and sand bass are available year-round in the kelp beds and on the sand flats. Barracuda and white seabass run spring through early summer. Yellowtail appear when water temps reach the low-to-mid 60s°F, typically April through October, with Catalina and San Clemente Island as key targets. Bluefin tuna and dorado move in offshore during summer and fall, with overnight boats out of Newport and Dana Point reaching the offshore banks. California halibut are present year-round on the sand flats and in Newport Bay, with spring and summer the favored targeting window.

  • Is there a tackle shop near Dana Point Harbor?

    Hogan's Bait & Tackle is the closest dedicated tackle shop to Dana Point Harbor, located on Pacific Coast Highway across from Doheny State Beach — minutes from the harbor. The shop is open Tuesday through Saturday and offers rod repair, custom rod building, line spooling, and lure rigging in addition to bait and full tackle inventory. Dana Wharf Sportfishing inside the harbor is the commercial sportfishing landing for the area.