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SurfperchRetention openBay · California
Rockport Bay
39.73°N · 123.83°W · Bay · Coastal waters from Cape Mendocino to Pt. Arena CA out 10 nm
Species here · tap to switch
Best score today · 11 PM · Surfperch
- Now
- 629 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 Rockport Bay 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
79Tide: FloodingCurrent: 0.3 knWind & pressure
ECMWF
88Wind: 2 kt NNEPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
Open-Meteo Marine
53Water temp: 56°F, primeLight: DawnSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 6.0 ftSeason & habitat · Surfperch
Species seasonality
81Season: PeakHabitat: Prime structureDepth: Out of rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Mendocino Groundfish Management Area
Surfperch
Retention open- Daily limit
- 20 per day
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Minimum 10.5 in, total length. Redtail surfperch only. No minimum size for other surfperch.
- Season
- No closed season on file
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Other
- In San Francisco Bay and San Pablo Bay, surfperch are closed April 1 through July 31 and the limit is 5 (shiner perch excepted). 20 surfperch in combination, not more than 10 of any one species. Shiner perch have a separate limit of 20.
From CDFW 2026 California Ocean Sport Fishing Regulations booklet (last updated July 17, 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)
- Pacific halibut Retention open (1 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)
- 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 Surfperch is best here
Peak season for Surfperch · 1 more week at peak
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Rockport Bay
- Depth
- 40-45 ftNearest water
- Structure
- Bay · Inner · Protected
- Season
- Peak seasonSurfperch
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 Rockport Bay
Rockport Bay is a bay 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 bay, inner water and protected.
Waterlands scores 12 species here; the best right now are striped bass, kelp greenling and surfperch. It is peak season now for striped bass, surfperch, cabezon and rockfish, and shoulder season for kelp greenling, lingcod, white seabass and Pacific halibut. Striped bass peak from June through July and from September through October. Kelp greenling peak from October through November. Surfperch peak in May and from July through September.
Tackle & technique
- Surfperch
- Surfperch feed in the troughs and holes within about 30 feet of the waterline, just outside the first set of breakers. Cast a two-hook high-low or Carolina rig with size 4 to 2 hooks and a 1 to 6 ounce pyramid sinker and let the surge work it through the trough. Fish the incoming tide on beaches with a steep drop, and switch to jetties, pilings and bays when the surf is too big.
- 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.
- Kelp greenling
- Kelp greenling are solitary bottom fish of rocky shores, jetties and kelp beds, usually in water shallower than 60 feet. Use a small number 4 to 6 hook with sand shrimp or marine worms, or a small lead-head grub, dropped to the bottom and reeled up slightly. Larger fish show in October and November when they spawn close to shore, and mornings tend to fish best.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Cape Vizcaino68
Cape · 0.5 mi
Top: CabezonPeak season- Cabezon 68
- Striped bass 66
- Rockfish 65
2 kt NNEH 10:26 AM · 4.7 ftL 3:39 PM · 2.2 ft
- Williams Point68
Cape · 1.4 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 · 9.0 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
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.