Waterlands

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Striped bassRetention open

Cape · California

Molera Point

36.28°N · 121.86°W · Cape · Monterey Bay

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Best score today · 7 PM · Striped bass

80/100Great
Now
715 PM PDT
Best window
6-10 PMEbb tide
Tide now
Ebbing4.5 ft ▼

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

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24-hour conditions

Sunday, Sep 27 · 7 PM

Time7P
Score77Great
Tide0.8 ft ▲Flooding
CurrentNo data
Wind6 kn NNWgusts 16 · steady
Sea stateNo data
Air temp71°Warm
WeatherClear0% cloud
Water63°FModel

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Central Groundfish Management Area

IN EFFECT NOW

Striped bass

Retention open
Daily limit
2 per day
Possession
Not published
Size
Minimum 18 in, total length
Season
No closed season on file
Annual quota
Not published
Other
Angling, spearfishing or bow and arrow only. No sinker over 4 pounds, no power-driven gurdy or winch, no snagging. The CDFW San Francisco Bay District page states the same limits for the bay: two fish, 18 inches total length.

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)
  • 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)

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Striped bass is best here

Peak season for Striped bass · 6 more weeks at peak

Striped bass season by week of the year. Peak season for Striped bass · 6 more weeks at peak.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Striped bass in California

Spot profile

Molera Point

Depth
6-25 ftNearest water
Structure
Point · Outer · Exposed
Season
Peak seasonStriped 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 Molera Point

Molera Point is a cape in Monterey Bay, California. Depth in the nearest water is 6-25 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, white seabass and Pacific halibut. 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

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.
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

  • Cooper Point

    Cape · 2.4 mi

    72
    Top: Striped bassPeak season
    • Striped bass 72
    • Cabezon 64
    • Surfperch 63

    9 kt NWL 12:15 AM · 0.8 ftH 8:13 AM · 3.6 ft

  • Grimes Point

    Cape · 8.5 mi

    71
    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

  • Point Sur

    Cape · 2.8 mi

    58
    Top: Striped bassPeak season
    • Striped bass 58
    • Cabezon 53
    • Rockfish 52

    20 kt NNWL 12:15 AM · 0.8 ftH 8:13 AM · 3.6 ft

  • Sur Rock

    Bar · 1.6 mi

    54
    Top: CabezonPeak season
    • Cabezon 54
    • Rockfish 54
    • Pacific halibut 51

    20 kt NNWL 12:15 AM · 0.8 ftH 8:13 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.