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White seabassRetention openBay · California
Capistrano Bight
33.43°N · 117.65°W · Bay · Inner waters from Point Mugu to San Mateo Pt. CA including Santa Catalina and Anacapa Islands
Species here · tap to switch
Best score today · 8 AM · White seabass
- Now
- 529 PM PDT
- Best window
- 9 PM-12 AMEbb tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing4.3 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Capistrano Bight 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 PM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS + Open-Meteo Marine
88Tide: EbbingCurrent: 0.5 knWind & pressure
ECMWF
94Wind: 4 kt WPressure: FallingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
42Water temp: 73°F, hotLight: NightSolunar: Near a majorSeas: 3.1 ftSeason & habitat · White seabass
Species seasonality
60Season: ShoulderHabitat: Structure unmappedDepth: In rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Southern Groundfish Management Area
White seabass
Retention open- Daily limit
- 3 per day
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Minimum 28 in, total length. Or twenty and one-half inches alternate length (Section 28.35).
- Season
- No closed season on file
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Other
- CDFW pages disagree on the alternate length: the regulation text says 20.5 inches, the booklet summary table 21.5 inches, and the regional web pages 20 inches. Total length is 28 inches on all of them.
From CDFW 2026 California Ocean Sport Fishing Regulations booklet (last updated July 17, 2026), read Sep 13
Other species here
- Albacore tuna Retention open (10 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 (5 per day)
- Chinook salmon Retention open (2 per day (2 salmon combined))
- 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)
- 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 White seabass is best here
Shoulder season for White seabass · 5 more weeks at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Capistrano Bight
- Depth
- 25-40 ft
- Structure
- Bay · Outer · Exposed
- Season
- Shoulder seasonWhite seabass
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 Capistrano Bight
Capistrano Bight is a bay in Inner waters from Point Mugu to San Mateo Pt. CA including Santa Catalina and Anacapa Islands, California. Depth is 25-40 ft. Its profile reads bay, outer water and exposed.
Waterlands scores 9 species here; the best right now are California yellowtail, barred sand bass and California halibut. It is peak season now for California yellowtail, California halibut and leopard shark, and shoulder season for barred sand bass, kelp bass, lingcod and rockfish. California yellowtail peak from July through September. Barred sand bass peak from June through August. California halibut peak from May through September.
Tackle & technique
- White seabass
- White seabass hold along kelp bed edges and over nearby sand where market squid gather, usually in 20 to 80 feet of water and shallower as the water warms. Fish a live squid on a dropper loop or fly-line a sardine near the kelp at dawn, dusk and after dark, especially around the spring full moon. Tagged fish spend most of their time in 52 to 66 degree water.
- California yellowtail
- Yellowtail school around the offshore islands, banks, high spots and kelp paddies from spring into fall, moving north from Baja as the water warms past about 64 degrees. Fly-line a sardine or mackerel, cast a surface iron to breaking fish, or drop a heavy iron and wind it fast when they hold deep. Heavy line matters because they run straight for kelp and rock.
- Barred sand bass
- Barred sand bass hold on the sand and rock edge of reefs, artificial reefs, breakwaters and bays, mostly in less than 90 feet of water. In summer they stack up over sand flats in 60 to 120 feet to spawn, and a plastic or live anchovy bounced on the bottom under the boat will catch them. A sudden drop in water temperature from upwelling can shut the bite off for a day or two.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Crawfish Rock69
Bar · 2.6 mi
Top: California yellowtailPeak season- California yellowtail 69
- Barred sand bass 63
- Rockfish 63
4 kt WL 1:56 AM · 0.2 ftH 8:10 AM · 4.5 ft
- Goff Island69
Cape · 8.4 mi
Top: California yellowtailPeak season- California yellowtail 69
- Lingcod 61
- Kelp bass 60
4 kt WL 2:09 AM · 0.2 ftH 8:29 AM · 4.5 ft
- Dana Point68
Cape · 4.2 mi
Top: California yellowtailPeak season- California yellowtail 68
- Kelp bass 59
- Lingcod 59
4 kt WL 1:56 AM · 0.2 ftH 8:10 AM · 4.5 ft
- San Mateo Point65
Cape · 4.5 mi
Top: California yellowtailPeak season- California yellowtail 65
- Kelp bass 57
- Lingcod 56
1 kt WNWL 1:56 AM · 0.2 ftH 8:10 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.