Waterlands

UPDATEDAUTO-REFRESH 5 MIN

SurfperchRetention open

Cape · California

Breaker Point

35.74°N · 121.32°W · Cape · Monterey Bay

LOADING MAP

Best score today · 8 PM · Surfperch

76/100Great
Now
616 PM PDT
Best window
7-10 PMEbb tide
Tide now
Ebbing4.4 ft ▼

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

Notify me when Breaker 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 · rolling from now

Conditions · 6 PM · now

Time6PNOW
Score61Good
Tide4.4 ft ▼Ebbing
Current0.2 knmodeled · toward SW
Wind4 kn WNWgusts 11 · steady
Sea stateRough5.1 ft · 8 s
Air temp64°Mild
WeatherMostly cloudy75% cloud
Water62°FModel

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)

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

Breaker Point

Depth
4-25 ftNearest water
Structure
Point · Outer · Exposed
Season
Peak seasonSurfperch

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 Breaker Point

Breaker Point is a cape in Monterey Bay, California. Depth in the nearest water is 4-25 ft. Its profile reads point, outer water and exposed.

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

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Ragged Point

    Cape · 1.2 mi

    70
    Top: Striped bassPeak season
    • Striped bass 70
    • Cabezon 64
    • Pacific halibut 63

    4 kt WNWL 1:06 AM · 0.7 ftH 8:35 AM · 3.8 ft

  • San Simeon Point

    Cape · 10 mi

    68
    Top: Striped bassPeak season
    • Striped bass 68
    • Cabezon 65
    • Surfperch 62

    4 kt WNWL 1:06 AM · 0.7 ftH 8:35 AM · 3.8 ft

  • Harlech Castle Rock

    Bar · 4.1 mi

    66
    Top: CabezonPeak season
    • Cabezon 66
    • Rockfish 63
    • Pacific halibut 61

    4 kt WNWL 1:06 AM · 0.7 ftH 8:35 AM · 3.8 ft

  • 52
    Top: Pacific halibutShoulder season
    • Pacific halibut 52
    • Rockfish 51
    • Striped bass 51

    19 kt NWL 1:04 AM · 0.6 ftH 8:21 AM · 3.6 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.