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Pacific halibutRetention openCape · California
Cape Vizcaino
39.73°N · 123.83°W · Cape · Coastal waters from Cape Mendocino to Pt. Arena CA out 10 nm
Species here · tap to switch
Best score today · 11 PM · Pacific halibut
- Now
- 549 AM PDT
- Best window
- 11 PM-12 AMEbb tide
- Tide now
- Flooding4.3 ft ▲
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Cape Vizcaino scores 75+
Checked every morning against the 14-day forecast. Free by push and email.
14-day forecast
Best days to fish
24-hour conditions · rolling from now
Conditions · 9 AM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS + Open-Meteo Marine
96Tide: FloodingCurrent: 0.3 knWind & pressure
ECMWF
88Wind: 2 kt NNEPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
Open-Meteo Marine
42Water temp: 56°F, hotLight: DawnSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 6.0 ftSeason & habitat · Pacific halibut
Species seasonality
55Season: ShoulderHabitat: Usable structureDepth: Out of rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Mendocino Groundfish Management Area
Pacific halibut
Retention open- Daily limit
- 1 per day
- Possession
- 1 in possession
- Size
- Not published
- Season
- Apr 1 to Nov 15, 2026
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Changes
- Closed from Nov 16
- Other
- Closes early if the California quota is reached. Check the CDFW Pacific halibut page before fishing. When angling, no more than one line with two hooks.
From CDFW Current Ocean Recreational Fishing Regulations, Northern Region (updated August 31, 2026), read Sep 13
Other species here
- Albacore tuna Retention open (25 per day)
- Barred sand bass Retention open (4 per day (5 kelp bass, barred sand bass and spotted sand bass combined))
- Cabezon Retention open (10 per day (10 rockfish, cabezon and greenlings combined))
- California halibut Retention open (2 per day)
- Chinook salmon Closed (No retention)
- Coho salmon Closed (No retention)
- Kelp bass Retention open (5 per day (5 kelp bass, barred sand bass and spotted sand bass combined))
- Kelp greenling Retention open (10 per day (10 rockfish, cabezon and greenlings combined))
- Leopard shark Retention open (3 per day)
- Lingcod Retention open (2 per day)
- Mahi-mahi Retention open (10 per day)
- Pacific bluefin tuna Retention open (2 per day)
- Rockfish Retention open (10 per day (10 rockfish, cabezon and greenlings combined))
- Sablefish Retention open (10 per day)
- Striped bass Retention open (2 per day)
- Surfperch Retention open (20 per day)
- White seabass Retention open (3 per day)
- Yellowfin tuna Retention open (10 per day)
- Yellowtail Retention open (10 per day)
Source: CDFW · synced today
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Pacific halibut is best here
Shoulder season for Pacific halibut · 1 more week at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- Not here
- This week
Spot profile
Cape Vizcaino
- Depth
- 40-45 ftNearest water
- Structure
- Point · Outer · Exposed
- Season
- Shoulder seasonPacific halibut
NOAA NCEI DEM, sampled Sep 14 on a 464 m grid. Depths are feet below mean sea level, not chart datum (MLLW), so they can differ from a chart by a few feet. Not for navigation.
About this spot
Fishing Cape Vizcaino
Cape Vizcaino is a cape in Coastal waters from Cape Mendocino to Pt. Arena CA out 10 nm, California. Depth in the nearest water is 40-45 ft. Its profile reads point, outer water and exposed.
Waterlands scores 12 species here; the best right now are cabezon, striped bass and rockfish. It is peak season now for cabezon, striped bass, rockfish and surfperch, and shoulder season for kelp greenling, lingcod, white seabass and Pacific halibut. Cabezon peak from May through September. Striped bass peak from June through July and from September through October. Rockfish peak from May through September.
Tackle & technique
- Pacific halibut
- Halibut sit on sand and gravel bottoms near drop-offs, bars and pinnacles, most often in 90 to 500 feet in Alaska and on the shelf off Washington, Oregon and far northern California. Anchor up-current of a likely edge and fish herring, squid, octopus or a salmon head on a circle hook with 24 to 32 ounces of weight, or bounce a large jig on the bottom. The best bite usually comes in the hour around slack tide.
- Cabezon
- Cabezon sit in rock crevices, kelp beds and jetty boulders from the intertidal zone to about 100 feet and feed mostly on crabs and small fish. Fish a fish-finder rig with sand shrimp, squid or crab right on the bottom in the rocks, or drag a lead-head grub slowly through the kelp. Expect snags, and do not eat the roe, which is toxic.
- Striped bass
- Striped bass feed where moving tide pushes bait past structure: inlets, points, jetties, bridge pilings and rips in the surf, usually in 2 to 40 feet of water. Fish dawn, dusk and night hardest, casting plugs, bucktails and soft plastics or drifting live bunker and eels, and chunk bait on the bottom in current. In midsummer the larger fish drop deeper or feed mostly after dark.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Williams Point68
Cape · 1.8 mi
Top: CabezonPeak season- Cabezon 68
- Surfperch 66
- Rockfish 65
2 kt NNEH 10:26 AM · 4.7 ftL 3:39 PM · 2.2 ft
- Bruhel Point65
Cape · 8.6 mi
Top: SurfperchPeak season- Surfperch 65
- Rockfish 64
- Lingcod 59
2 kt ESEH 10:26 AM · 4.7 ftL 3:39 PM · 2.2 ft
- Ten Mile River Bluff65
Cape · 12 mi
Top: SurfperchPeak season- Surfperch 65
- Rockfish 64
- Lingcod 59
2 kt ESEH 10:26 AM · 4.7 ftL 3:39 PM · 2.2 ft
- Rockport Bay63
Bay · 0.5 mi
Top: Striped bassPeak season- Striped bass 63
- Kelp greenling 62
- Surfperch 62
2 kt NNEH 10:26 AM · 4.7 ftL 3:39 PM · 2.2 ft
Scores and forecasts are for planning only and can be wrong. Conditions on the water change fast; check the marine forecast before you go. Regulations change during the season, so confirm limits and closures with CDFW before you keep a fish.