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Striped bassRetention openBay · California
Van Damme Beach
39.27°N · 123.79°W · Bay · Coastal waters from Cape Mendocino to Pt. Arena CA out 10 nm
Species here · tap to switch
Best score today · 6 AM · Kelp greenling
- Now
- 604 AM PST
- Best window
- 6-10 AMEbb tide
- Tide now
- Flooding3.9 ft ▲
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Van Damme Beach 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 · 4 AM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS + Open-Meteo Marine
88Tide: FloodingCurrent: 0.5 knWind & pressure
ECMWF
64Wind: 5 kt EPressure: RisingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
54Water temp: 63°F, primeLight: NightSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 6.1 ftSeason & habitat · Striped bass
Species seasonality
75Season: ShoulderHabitat: Usable structureDepth: In rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Mendocino Groundfish Management Area
Striped bass
Retention open- Daily limit
- 2 per day
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Minimum 18 in, total length
- Season
- No closed season on file
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Other
- Angling, spearfishing or bow and arrow only. No sinker over 4 pounds, no power-driven gurdy or winch, no snagging. The CDFW San Francisco Bay District page states the same limits for the bay: two fish, 18 inches total length.
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)
- 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 yesterday
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Striped bass is best here
Shoulder season for Striped bass · 4 more weeks at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Van Damme Beach
- Depth
- About 10 ftNearest water
- Structure
- Bay · Inner · Protected
- Season
- Shoulder seasonStriped bass
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 Van Damme Beach
Van Damme Beach is a bay in Coastal waters from Cape Mendocino to Pt. Arena CA out 10 nm, California. Depth in the nearest water is about 10 ft. Its profile reads bay, inner water and protected.
Waterlands scores 10 species here; the best right now are striped bass, surfperch and kelp greenling. It is peak season now for kelp greenling and lingcod, and shoulder season for striped bass, surfperch, rockfish and albacore tuna. Striped bass peak from June through July and from September through October. Surfperch peak in May and from July through September. Kelp greenling peak from October through November.
Tackle & technique
- 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.
- 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.
- 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
- Colby Reef64
Bar · 1.7 mi
Top: LingcodPeak season- Lingcod 64
- Rockfish 54
- Striped bass 54
5 kt EH 6:06 AM · 4.9 ftL 11:19 AM · 2.8 ft
- Mendocino Bay62
Bay · 1.7 mi
Top: LingcodPeak season- Lingcod 62
- Striped bass 60
- Surfperch 56
5 kt EH 6:06 AM · 4.9 ftL 11:19 AM · 2.8 ft
- Albion Cove61
Bay · 3.3 mi
Top: Striped bassShoulder season- Striped bass 61
- Surfperch 56
- Kelp greenling 55
5 kt EH 6:06 AM · 4.9 ftL 11:19 AM · 2.8 ft
- Buckhorn Cove60
Bay · 1.1 mi
Top: Striped bassShoulder season- Striped bass 60
- Kelp greenling 55
- Lingcod 55
5 kt EH 6:06 AM · 4.9 ftL 11:19 AM · 2.8 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.