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Pacific halibutRetention openSpecies here · tap to switch
Best score today · 7 PM · Pacific halibut
- Now
- 535 PM PDT
- Best window
- 6-9 PMEbb tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing4.4 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Lopez Point 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 · 5 PM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS + Open-Meteo Marine
96Tide: EbbingCurrent: 0.3 knWind & pressure
ECMWF
97Wind: 5 kt WNWPressure: FallingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
50Water temp: 63°F, hotLight: Late afternoonSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 4.9 ftSeason & habitat · Pacific halibut
Species seasonality
44Season: ShoulderHabitat: Poor fitDepth: Out of rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Central Groundfish Management Area
Pacific halibut
Retention open- Daily limit
- 1 per day
- Possession
- 1 in possession
- Size
- Not published
- Season
- Apr 1 to Dec 31, 2026
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Other
- Closes early if the quota for south of Point Arena is reached. Check the CDFW Pacific halibut page before fishing. When angling, no more than one line with two hooks. The 2026 booklet (Section 28.20) still says the season ends November 15 statewide. CDFW web pages and the 2026 federal rule (91 FR 23369) keep south of Point Arena open through December 31.
From CDFW Current Ocean Recreational Fishing Regulations, San Francisco Region (updated September 1, 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)
- 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 today
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Pacific halibut is best here
Shoulder season for Pacific halibut · 1 more week at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- Not here
- This week
Spot profile
Lopez Point
- Depth
- 8-35 ft
- Structure
- Point · Outer · Exposed
- Season
- Shoulder seasonPacific halibut
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 Lopez Point
Lopez Point is a cape in Monterey Bay, California. Depth is 8-35 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, white seabass, kelp greenling and lingcod. 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
- Pacific halibut
- Halibut sit on sand and gravel bottoms near drop-offs, bars and pinnacles, most often in 90 to 500 feet in Alaska and on the shelf off Washington, Oregon and far northern California. Anchor up-current of a likely edge and fish herring, squid, octopus or a salmon head on a circle hook with 24 to 32 ounces of weight, or bounce a large jig on the bottom. The best bite usually comes in the hour around slack tide.
- 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
- Grimes Point71
Cape · 16 mi
Top: Striped bassPeak season- Striped bass 71
- Cabezon 63
- Rockfish 63
9 kt NWL 12:10 AM · 0.8 ftH 7:56 AM · 3.5 ft
- Jade Cove68
Bay · 9.9 mi
Top: SurfperchPeak season- Surfperch 68
- Striped bass 67
- Cabezon 62
5 kt WNWL 12:10 AM · 0.8 ftH 7:56 AM · 3.5 ft
- Tide Rock66
Bar · 6.3 mi
Top: CabezonPeak season- Cabezon 66
- Rockfish 66
- Pacific halibut 62
5 kt WNWL 12:10 AM · 0.8 ftH 7:56 AM · 3.5 ft
- McWay Cove65
Bay · 11 mi
Top: SurfperchPeak season- Surfperch 65
- Striped bass 64
- Rockfish 63
9 kt NWL 12:10 AM · 0.8 ftH 7:56 AM · 3.5 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.