Waterlands

UPDATEDAUTO-REFRESH 5 MIN

California halibutRetention open

Cape · California

Sharp Point

41.24°N · 124.11°W · Cape · Humboldt Bay

LOADING MAP

Best score today · 7 PM · California halibut

79/100Great
Now
3111 PM PDT
Best window
11 PM-12 AMEbb tide
Tide now
Ebbing1.6 ft ▼

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

Notify me when Sharp Point scores 75+

Checked every morning against the 14-day forecast. Free by push and email.

Sign in to set an alert

24-hour conditions

Tuesday, Sep 29 · 4 AM

Time4A
Score41Fair
Tide4.7 ft ▼Ebbing
Wind3 kn SEgusts 9 · steady
Air temp49°Cool
WeatherPartly cloudy42% cloud
Water57°FPersisted

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Northern Groundfish Management Area

IN EFFECT NOW

California halibut

Retention open
Daily limit
2 per day
Possession
2 in possession
Size
Minimum 22 in, total length
Season
No closed season on file
Annual quota
Not published

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))
  • 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)
  • 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)

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When California halibut is best here

Shoulder season for California halibut · 6 more weeks at shoulder

California halibut season by week of the year. Shoulder season for California halibut · 6 more weeks at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

California halibut in California

Spot profile

Sharp Point

Depth
15-40 ft
Structure
Point · Outer · Exposed
Season
Shoulder seasonCalifornia 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 Sharp Point

Sharp Point is a cape in Humboldt Bay, California. Depth is 15-40 ft. Its profile reads point, outer water and exposed.

Waterlands scores 11 species here; the best right now are striped bass, rockfish and cabezon. It is peak season now for striped bass, rockfish, cabezon and surfperch, and shoulder season for lingcod, white seabass, kelp greenling and Pacific halibut. Striped bass peak from June through July and from September through October. Rockfish peak from May through September. Cabezon peak from May through September.

Tackle & technique

California halibut
California halibut are ambush feeders that lie on sand or mud bottom, mostly in water shallower than 100 feet and often inside bays, harbors and estuaries. Drift or slow-troll a live anchovy or sardine on a sliding sinker rig, or bounce a swimbait along the bottom over flats, channel edges and sandy areas near structure. Keep the bait within a foot or two of the bottom and give a fish time to turn the bait before setting the hook.
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.
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

  • Rocky Point

    Cape · 7.3 mi

    72
    Top: Striped bassPeak season
    • Striped bass 72
    • Rockfish 66
    • Cabezon 59

    8 kt NNEL 12:38 AM · 1.1 ftH 8:08 AM · 4.5 ft

  • Abalone Point

    Cape · 7.5 mi

    72
    Top: Striped bassPeak season
    • Striped bass 72
    • Rockfish 66
    • Cabezon 59

    8 kt NNEL 12:38 AM · 1.1 ftH 8:08 AM · 4.5 ft

  • Lookout Point

    Cape · 3.1 mi

    68
    Top: Striped bassPeak season
    • Striped bass 68
    • Rockfish 64
    • Cabezon 56

    1 kt ENEL 12:38 AM · 1.1 ftH 8:08 AM · 4.5 ft

  • Mussel Point

    Cape · 6.1 mi

    68
    Top: Striped bassPeak season
    • Striped bass 68
    • Rockfish 64
    • Cabezon 56

    1 kt ENEL 12:38 AM · 1.1 ftH 8:08 AM · 4.5 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.