Waterlands

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RockfishPeak season

Cape · California

Duncans Point

38.39°N · 123.09°W · Cape · Coastal Waters from Point Arena to Point Reyes California out to 10 nm

LOADING MAP

Best score today · 6 PM · Rockfish

78/100Great
Now
6611 AM PDT
Best window
2-9 PMEbb tide
Tide now
Flooding3.8 ft ▲

Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 11 AM · now

Time11ANOW
Score66Great
Tide3.8 ft ▲Flooding
Current0.4 knmodeled · toward NNW
Wind3 kn ESEgusts 11 · steady
Sea stateModerate3.8 ft · 9 s
Air temp70°Warm
WeatherMostly cloudy55% cloud
Water59°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

San Francisco Groundfish Management Area

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Rockfish is on file here yet, so its status is unknown, not closed. 32 rules for this area are waiting for review and not shown until checked. Confirm limits with CDFW before you keep a fish.

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Rockfish is best here

Peak season for Rockfish · 1 more week at peak

Rockfish season by week of the year. Peak season for Rockfish · 1 more week at peak.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Rockfish in California

Spot profile

Duncans Point

Depth
20-70 ftNearest water
Structure
Point · Outer · ExposedPoint · drop-off
Season
Peak seasonRockfish

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 Duncans Point

Duncans Point is a cape in Coastal Waters from Point Arena to Point Reyes California out to 10 nm. Depth in the nearest water is 20-70 ft, with a drop-off. Its profile reads point, outer water and exposed.

Waterlands scores 12 species here; the best right now are rockfish, surfperch and cabezon. It is peak season now for rockfish, surfperch, cabezon and striped bass, and shoulder season for Pacific halibut, lingcod, Chinook salmon and kelp greenling. Rockfish peak from May through September. Surfperch peak in May and from July through September. Cabezon peak from May through September.

Tackle & technique

Rockfish
Rockfish live on rocky reefs, pinnacles and kelp from the shoreline out past 300 feet, with black and blue rockfish schooling mid-water over shallow reefs and copper, quillback, yelloweye and vermilion sitting tight to deeper bottom. Drift over the structure with a shrimp fly above a lead-head grub or metal jig, or a squid strip, and reel up a few cranks after touching bottom to cut snags. Use a descending device to release any fish brought up from deep water.
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.
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.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Gull Rocks

    Bar · 2.2 mi

    71
    Top: RockfishPeak season
    • Rockfish 71
    • Cabezon 69
    • Surfperch 68

    2 kt SSWH 3:24 PM · 5.2 ftL 11:10 PM · 1.0 ft

  • Bodega Harbor

    Bay · 5.4 mi

    69
    Top: SurfperchPeak season
    • Surfperch 69
    • Cabezon 68
    • Rockfish 67

    2 kt SSWH 3:24 PM · 5.2 ftL 11:10 PM · 1.0 ft

  • Spud Point

    Cape · 5.1 mi

    68
    Top: SurfperchPeak season
    • Surfperch 68
    • Rockfish 67
    • Cabezon 66

    2 kt SSWH 3:24 PM · 5.2 ftL 11:10 PM · 1.0 ft

  • Horseshoe Cove

    Bay · 5.5 mi

    68
    Top: SurfperchPeak season
    • Surfperch 68
    • Striped bass 62
    • Rockfish 61

    2 kt SSWH 3:24 PM · 5.2 ftL 11:10 PM · 1.0 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.