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Pacific halibutRetention openSpecies here · tap to switch
Best score today · 7 AM · Pacific halibut
- Now
- 639 AM PDT
- Best window
- 9 AM-12 PMHigh slack
- Tide now
- Flooding4.8 ft ▲
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Bar Channel 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
100Tide: FloodingCurrent: SlackWind & pressure
ECMWF
100Wind: 4 kt NNEPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
70Water temp: 59°F, hotLight: DawnSolunar: Major periodSeas: 4.3 ftSeason & habitat · Pacific halibut
Species seasonality
57Season: ShoulderHabitat: Usable structureDepth: Out of rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Northern Groundfish Management Area
Pacific halibut
Retention open- Daily limit
- 1 per day
- Possession
- 1 in possession
- Size
- Not published
- Season
- Apr 1 to Nov 15, 2026
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Changes
- Closed from Nov 16
- Other
- Closes early if the California quota is reached. Check the CDFW Pacific halibut page before fishing. When angling, no more than one line with two hooks.
From CDFW Current Ocean Recreational Fishing Regulations, Northern Region (updated August 31, 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)
- 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 Pacific halibut is best here
Shoulder season for Pacific halibut · 1 more week at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- Not here
- This week
Spot profile
Bar Channel
- Depth
- 40-50 ft
- Structure
- Channel · Outer · Exposed
- Season
- Shoulder seasonPacific halibut
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 Bar Channel
Bar Channel is a channel in Humboldt Bay, California. Depth is 40-50 ft. Its profile reads channel, outer water and exposed.
Waterlands scores 11 species here; the best right now are cabezon, rockfish and striped bass. It is peak season now for cabezon, rockfish, striped bass and surfperch, and shoulder season for Pacific halibut, lingcod, kelp greenling and white seabass. Cabezon peak from May through September. Rockfish peak from May through September. Striped bass peak from June through July and from September through October.
Tackle & technique
- Pacific halibut
- Halibut sit on sand and gravel bottoms near drop-offs, bars and pinnacles, most often in 90 to 500 feet in Alaska and on the shelf off Washington, Oregon and far northern California. Anchor up-current of a likely edge and fish herring, squid, octopus or a salmon head on a circle hook with 24 to 32 ounces of weight, or bounce a large jig on the bottom. The best bite usually comes in the hour around slack tide.
- 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.
- 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
- Humboldt Bay69
Bay · 2.3 mi
Top: CabezonPeak season- Cabezon 69
- Surfperch 68
- Striped bass 66
4 kt NNEH 10:20 AM · 3.5 ftL 4:22 PM · 1.1 ft
- North Bay Channel68
Channel · 1.9 mi
Top: CabezonPeak season- Cabezon 68
- Surfperch 68
- Striped bass 67
4 kt NNEH 10:01 AM · 5.0 ftL 2:50 PM · 3.5 ft
- Buhne Spit Shoal67
Bar · 2.3 mi
Top: RockfishPeak season- Rockfish 67
- Cabezon 66
- Surfperch 66
4 kt NNEH 10:20 AM · 3.5 ftL 4:22 PM · 1.1 ft
- Hookton Channel65
Channel · 1.7 mi
Top: CabezonPeak season- Cabezon 65
- Surfperch 64
- Pacific halibut 62
4 kt NNEH 10:01 AM · 5.0 ftL 2:50 PM · 3.5 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.