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Kelp greenlingRetention openSpecies here · tap to switch
Best score today · 8 AM · Kelp greenling
- Now
- 5511 PM PDT
- Best window
- 11 PM-12 AMEbb tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing5.4 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Arcata 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 · 11 PM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
96Tide: EbbingCurrent: 0.8 kn ebbWind & pressure
ECMWF
92Wind: 2 kt NWPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
35Water temp: 55°F, primeLight: NightSolunar: Near a majorSeas: 6.4 ftSeason & habitat · Kelp greenling
Species seasonality
68Season: ShoulderHabitat: Usable structureDepth: In rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Northern Groundfish Management Area
Kelp greenling
Retention open- Daily limit
- 10 per day (10 rockfish, cabezon and greenlings combined)
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- No minimum size limit.
- Season
- Apr 1 to Dec 31, 2026
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Other
- Shore-based anglers and spear divers are exempt from groundfish seasons and depth limits. RCG complex: all rockfish, cabezon, and kelp and rock greenlings combined. A descending device must be aboard when fishing from a boat. CDFW limits and seasons cover kelp and rock greenlings together.
From CDFW Summary of Recreational Groundfish Fishing Regulations (updated June 23, 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))
- 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)
- 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 Kelp greenling is best here
Shoulder season for Kelp greenling · 1 more week at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Arcata Bay
- Depth
- 7-15 ft
- Structure
- Bay · Inner · Semi-exposed
- Season
- Shoulder seasonKelp greenling
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 Arcata Bay
Arcata Bay is a bay in Humboldt Bay, California. Depth is 7-15 ft. Its profile reads bay, inner water and semi-exposed.
Waterlands scores 11 species here; the best right now are striped bass, cabezon and surfperch. It is peak season now for striped bass, cabezon, surfperch and rockfish, and shoulder season for kelp greenling, white seabass, lingcod and Pacific halibut. Striped bass peak from June through July and from September through October. Cabezon peak from May through September. Surfperch peak in May and from July through September.
Tackle & technique
- 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.
- 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.
- 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
- Arcata Channel67
Channel · 1.1 mi
Top: Striped bassPeak season- Striped bass 67
- Rockfish 56
- Lingcod 55
2 kt NWL 3:57 AM · 0.6 ftH 11:03 AM · 5.7 ft
- Inner Reach67
Channel · 2.3 mi
Top: Striped bassPeak season- Striped bass 67
- Rockfish 56
- Lingcod 55
2 kt NWL 3:51 AM · 0.6 ftH 10:56 AM · 5.6 ft
- Eureka Channel67
Channel · 2.9 mi
Top: Striped bassPeak season- Striped bass 67
- Rockfish 56
- Lingcod 55
2 kt NWL 3:51 AM · 0.6 ftH 10:56 AM · 5.6 ft
- Samoa Channel67
Channel · 3.2 mi
Top: Striped bassPeak season- Striped bass 67
- Rockfish 56
- Lingcod 55
2 kt NWL 3:51 AM · 0.6 ftH 10:56 AM · 5.6 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.