Waterlands

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RockfishRetention open

Cape · California

Point Sur

36.31°N · 121.90°W · Cape · Monterey Bay

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Best score today · 7 PM · Rockfish

69/100Great
Now
5211 AM PDT
Best window
6-10 PMEbb tide
Tide now
Flooding3.6 ft ▲

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

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24-hour conditions

Wednesday, Sep 23 · 11 PM

Time11P
Score61Good
Tide4.0 ft ▼Ebbing
Current0.3 knmodeled · toward WNW
Wind13 kn NNWgusts 20
Sea stateRough5.7 ft · 9 s
Air temp64°Mild
WeatherPartly cloudy38% cloud
Water61°FModel

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Central Groundfish Management Area

IN EFFECT NOW

Rockfish

Retention open
Daily limit
10 per day (10 rockfish, cabezon and greenlings combined)
Possession
Not published
Size
No minimum size limit.
Season
Apr 1 to Dec 31, 2026
Annual quota
Not published
Other
Shore-based anglers and spear divers are exempt from groundfish seasons and depth limits. Within the 10-fish RCG limit: no more than 1 copper rockfish, 2 canary rockfish, and 2 vermilion/sunset rockfish. RCG complex: all rockfish, cabezon, and kelp and rock greenlings combined. A descending device must be aboard when fishing from a boat. Yelloweye, cowcod, bronzespotted and quillback rockfish may not be kept.

From CDFW Summary of Recreational Groundfish Fishing Regulations (updated June 23, 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)
  • 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)

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Rockfish is best here

Peak season for Rockfish · 1 more week at peak

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

Rockfish in California

Spot profile

Point Sur

Depth
15-80 ftNearest water
Structure
Point · Outer · ExposedPoint · drop-off
Season
Peak seasonRockfish

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 Point Sur

Point Sur is a cape in Monterey Bay, California. Depth in the nearest water is 15-80 ft, with a drop-off. Its profile reads point, outer water and exposed.

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

Tackle & technique

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.
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.
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

  • Molera Point

    Cape · 2.8 mi

    61
    Top: RockfishPeak season
    • Rockfish 61
    • Cabezon 57
    • Surfperch 54

    5 kt WNWH 4:03 PM · 4.6 ftL 12:15 AM · 0.8 ft

  • Cooper Point

    Cape · 5.1 mi

    61
    Top: RockfishPeak season
    • Rockfish 61
    • Cabezon 57
    • Surfperch 54

    5 kt WNWH 4:03 PM · 4.6 ftL 12:15 AM · 0.8 ft

  • Kasler Point

    Cape · 7.4 mi

    61
    Top: RockfishPeak season
    • Rockfish 61
    • Pacific halibut 59
    • Cabezon 56

    9 kt NNWH 4:03 PM · 4.6 ftL 12:15 AM · 0.8 ft

  • Sur Rock

    Bar · 1.7 mi

    54
    Top: RockfishPeak season
    • Rockfish 54
    • Pacific halibut 49
    • Cabezon 46

    20 kt NNWH 4:03 PM · 4.6 ftL 12:15 AM · 0.8 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.