Waterlands

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CabezonPeak 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

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Best score today · 6 PM · Cabezon

78/100Great
Now
6812 PM PDT
Best window
2-9 PMEbb tide
Tide now
Flooding4.1 ft ▲

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 12 PM · now

Time12PNOW
Score68Great
Tide4.1 ft ▲Flooding
Current0.5 knmodeled · toward NNW
Wind3 kn SSEgusts 12 · building
Sea stateModerate3.7 ft · 9 s
Air temp72°Warm
WeatherMostly cloudy59% cloud
Water59°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

San Francisco Groundfish Management Area

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Cabezon 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 Cabezon is best here

Peak season for Cabezon · 1 more week at peak

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

Cabezon in California

Spot profile

Duncans Point

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

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 surfperch, rockfish and cabezon. It is peak season now for surfperch, rockfish, cabezon and striped bass, and shoulder season for lingcod, Chinook salmon, white seabass and kelp greenling. Surfperch peak in May and from July through September. Rockfish peak from May through September. Cabezon peak from May through September.

Tackle & technique

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.
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.
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.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Gull Rocks

    Bar · 2.2 mi

    73
    Top: RockfishPeak season
    • Rockfish 73
    • Cabezon 72
    • Surfperch 72

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

  • Bodega Harbor

    Bay · 5.4 mi

    72
    Top: SurfperchPeak season
    • Surfperch 72
    • Cabezon 71
    • Rockfish 70

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

  • Spud Point

    Cape · 5.1 mi

    71
    Top: SurfperchPeak season
    • Surfperch 71
    • Cabezon 69
    • Rockfish 69

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

  • Horseshoe Cove

    Bay · 5.5 mi

    71
    Top: SurfperchPeak season
    • Surfperch 71
    • Striped bass 66
    • Rockfish 64

    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.