Waterlands

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SurfperchRetention open

Cape · California

Arrowhead Point

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

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Best score today · 7 PM · Surfperch

79/100Great
Now
558 AM PDT
Best window
6-11 PMEbb tide
Tide now
Low3.4 ft

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 8 AM · now

Time8ANOW
Score55Good
Tide3.4 ftLow
Current0.3 knmodeled · toward N
Wind8 kn NNEgusts 11 · steady
Sea stateModerate3.5 ft · 10 s
Air temp59°Mild
WeatherPartly cloudy39% cloud
Water61°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Central Groundfish Management Area

IN EFFECT NOW

Surfperch

Retention open
Daily limit
20 per day
Possession
Not published
Size
Minimum 10.5 in, total length. Redtail surfperch only. No minimum size for other surfperch.
Season
No closed season on file
Annual quota
Not published
Other
In San Francisco Bay and San Pablo Bay, surfperch are closed April 1 through July 31 and the limit is 5 (shiner perch excepted). 20 surfperch in combination, not more than 10 of any one species. Shiner perch have a separate limit of 20.

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))
  • California halibut Retention open
  • 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)
  • 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 Surfperch is best here

Peak season for Surfperch · 1 more week at peak

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

Surfperch in California

Spot profile

Arrowhead Point

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

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 rockfish, striped bass and cabezon. It is peak season now for rockfish, striped bass, cabezon and surfperch, and shoulder season for Pacific halibut, lingcod, white seabass and Chinook salmon. Rockfish peak from May through September. Striped bass peak from June through July and from September through October. Cabezon peak from May through September.

Tackle & technique

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.
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.
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.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Pescadero Point

    Cape · 0.6 mi

    63
    Top: Striped bassPeak season
    • Striped bass 63
    • Rockfish 62
    • Cabezon 58

    8 kt NNEL 9:18 AM · 3.5 ftH 4:03 PM · 4.6 ft

  • Carmel Bay

    Bay · 1.5 mi

    62
    Top: RockfishPeak season
    • Rockfish 62
    • Lingcod 54
    • Pacific halibut 54

    8 kt NNEL 9:18 AM · 3.5 ftH 4:03 PM · 4.6 ft

  • The Pinnacles

    Bar · 1.6 mi

    62
    Top: RockfishPeak season
    • Rockfish 62
    • Lingcod 54
    • Pacific halibut 53

    8 kt NNEL 9:18 AM · 3.5 ftH 4:03 PM · 4.6 ft

  • Stillwater Cove

    Bay · 0.2 mi

    60
    Top: SurfperchPeak season
    • Surfperch 60
    • Striped bass 59
    • Cabezon 58

    8 kt NNEL 9:18 AM · 3.5 ftH 4:03 PM · 4.6 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.