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Kelp bassRetention openBar · California
Ship Rock
33.46°N · 118.49°W · Bar · Inner waters from Point Mugu to San Mateo Pt. CA including Santa Catalina and Anacapa Islands
Species here · tap to switch
Best score today · 6 PM · Kelp bass
- Now
- 521 AM PDT
- Best window
- 4-8 PMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing0.7 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Ship Rock 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 · 1 AM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS + Open-Meteo Marine
84Tide: EbbingCurrent: 0.4 knWind & pressure
ECMWF
98Wind: 5 kt WSWPressure: FallingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
50Water temp: 72°F, warmLight: NightSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 3.4 ftSeason & habitat · Kelp bass
Species seasonality
50Season: ShoulderHabitat: Usable structureDepth: Out of rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Southern Groundfish Management Area
Kelp bass
Retention open- Daily limit
- 5 per day (5 kelp bass, barred sand bass and spotted sand bass combined)
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Minimum 14 in, total length. Or 10 inches alternate length.
- Season
- No closed season on file
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Other
- Fillets must be at least 7.5 inches long with a one-inch square patch of skin.
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 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)
Source: CDFW · synced yesterday
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Kelp bass is best here
Shoulder season for Kelp bass · 5 more weeks at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Ship Rock
- Depth
- 250-300 ftDrop-off
- Structure
- Ledge · Outer · ExposedLedge · drop-off
- Season
- Shoulder seasonKelp bass
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 Ship Rock
Ship Rock is a bar in Inner waters from Point Mugu to San Mateo Pt. CA including Santa Catalina and Anacapa Islands, California. Depth is 250-300 ft, with a drop-off. Its profile reads ledge, outer water and exposed.
Waterlands scores 9 species here; the best right now are California yellowtail, rockfish and lingcod. It is peak season now for California yellowtail, California halibut and leopard shark, and shoulder season for rockfish, lingcod, barred sand bass and kelp bass. California yellowtail peak from July through September. Rockfish peak from April through June. Lingcod peak in April and from November through December.
Tackle & technique
- Kelp bass
- Kelp bass live in kelp beds, rocky reefs and breakwaters, most often in 9 to 70 feet of water, and seldom move far from home. In summer cast swimbaits or fish live anchovies along the up-current edge of the kelp and let them swim into the canopy. In winter the bigger fish move to reefs in 90 feet or more, where a squid-tipped jig works better.
- 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.
- 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
- Eagle Reef67
Bar · 0.8 mi
Top: California yellowtailPeak season- California yellowtail 67
- Rockfish 61
- Lingcod 60
5 kt WSWL 2:28 AM · 0.2 ftH 8:46 AM · 4.3 ft
- Harbor Reef67
Bar · 1.0 mi
Top: California yellowtailPeak season- California yellowtail 67
- Barred sand bass 61
- Lingcod 60
5 kt WSWL 2:28 AM · 0.2 ftH 8:46 AM · 4.3 ft
- Fourth of July Cove60
Bay · 1.1 mi
Top: California yellowtailPeak season- California yellowtail 60
- Lingcod 58
- Barred sand bass 57
5 kt WSWL 2:28 AM · 0.2 ftH 8:46 AM · 4.3 ft
- Isthmus Cove60
Bay · 1.3 mi
Top: California yellowtailPeak season- California yellowtail 60
- Lingcod 58
- Barred sand bass 57
5 kt WSWL 2:28 AM · 0.2 ftH 8:46 AM · 4.3 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.