Waterlands

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CabezonPeak season

Cape · California

Arrowhead Point

36.56°N · 121.94°W · Cape · Monterey Bay

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Best score today · 6 PM · Cabezon

78/100Great
Now
692 PM PDT
Best window
5-9 PMEbb tide
Tide now
Flooding4.7 ft ▲

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 2 PM · now

Time2PNOW
Score69Great
Tide4.7 ft ▲Flooding
Current0.5 knmodeled · toward NE
Wind6 kn SWgusts 8 · steady
Sea stateModerate3.7 ft · 10 s
Air temp61°Mild
WeatherClear0% cloud
Water60°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Central Groundfish Management Area

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Cabezon is on file here yet, so its status is unknown, not closed. 32 rules for this area are waiting for review and not shown until checked. Confirm limits with CDFW before you keep a fish.

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Cabezon is best here

Peak season for Cabezon · 1 more week at peak

Cabezon season by week of the year. Peak season for Cabezon · 1 more week at peak.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Cabezon in California

Spot profile

Arrowhead Point

Depth
5-50 ftDrop-off
Structure
Point · Inner · Semi-exposedPoint · drop-off
Season
Peak seasonCabezon

NOAA NCEI DEM, sampled Sep 14 on a 3.4 m grid. Depths are feet below NAVD 88, not chart datum (MLLW), so they can differ from a chart by a few feet. Not for navigation.

About this spot

Fishing Arrowhead Point

Arrowhead Point is a cape in Monterey Bay, California. Depth is 5-50 ft, with a drop-off. Its profile reads point, inner water and semi-exposed.

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

Tackle & technique

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.
Surfperch
Surfperch feed in the troughs and holes within about 30 feet of the waterline, just outside the first set of breakers. Cast a two-hook high-low or Carolina rig with size 4 to 2 hooks and a 1 to 6 ounce pyramid sinker and let the surge work it through the trough. Fish the incoming tide on beaches with a steep drop, and switch to jetties, pilings and bays when the surf is too big.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Stillwater Cove

    Bay · 0.2 mi

    70
    Top: SurfperchPeak season
    • Surfperch 70
    • Cabezon 67
    • California halibut 58

    6 kt SWH 2:56 PM · 4.7 ftL 11:03 PM · 0.9 ft

  • Pescadero Point

    Cape · 0.6 mi

    68
    Top: CabezonPeak season
    • Cabezon 68
    • Surfperch 63
    • Rockfish 62

    6 kt SWH 2:56 PM · 4.7 ftL 11:03 PM · 0.9 ft

  • Carmel Bay

    Bay · 1.5 mi

    62
    Top: RockfishPeak season
    • Rockfish 62
    • Surfperch 62
    • Pacific halibut 57

    6 kt SWH 2:56 PM · 4.7 ftL 11:03 PM · 0.9 ft

  • The Pinnacles

    Bar · 1.6 mi

    62
    Top: RockfishPeak season
    • Rockfish 62
    • Cabezon 61
    • Pacific halibut 59

    6 kt SWH 2:56 PM · 4.7 ftL 11:03 PM · 0.9 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.