UPDATEDAUTO-REFRESH 5 MIN
Yellowfin tunaRetention openBay · California
Willows Anchorage
33.96°N · 119.75°W · Bay · Outer waters from Santa Cruz Island to San Clemente Island to 60 NM offshore including San Nicolas and Santa Barbara Islands
Species here · tap to switch
Best score today · 7 AM · Yellowfin tuna
- Now
- 609 AM PDT
- Best window
- 4-9 PMFlood tide
- Tide now
- High4.3 ft
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Willows Anchorage 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 · 9 AM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS + Open-Meteo Marine
37Tide: High slackCurrent: 0.4 knWind & pressure
ECMWF
79Wind: 1 kt NNEPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
80Water temp: 71°F, coolLight: MorningSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 2.6 ftSeason & habitat · Yellowfin tuna
Species seasonality
93Season: PeakHabitat: Prime structureDepth: Out of rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Southern Groundfish Management Area
Yellowfin tuna
Retention open- Daily limit
- 10 per day
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Not published
- Season
- No closed season on file
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Other
- Counts toward the general limit of 20 finfish.
From CDFW 2026 California Ocean Sport Fishing Regulations booklet (last updated July 17, 2026), read Sep 13
Other species here
- Albacore tuna Retention open (10 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 (5 per day)
- 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)
- Surfperch Retention open (20 per day)
- White seabass Retention open (3 per day)
- Yellowtail Retention open (10 per day)
Source: CDFW · synced today
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Yellowfin tuna is best here
Peak season for Yellowfin tuna · 1 more week at peak
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- Not here
- This week
Spot profile
Willows Anchorage
- Depth
- 30-45 ft
- Structure
- Bay · Outer · Exposed
- Season
- Peak seasonYellowfin tuna
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 Willows Anchorage
Willows Anchorage is a bay in Outer waters from Santa Cruz Island to San Clemente Island to 60 NM offshore including San Nicolas and Santa Barbara Islands, California. Depth is 30-45 ft. Its profile reads bay, outer water and exposed.
Waterlands scores 13 species here; the best right now are California halibut, leopard shark and yellowfin tuna. It is peak season now for California halibut, leopard shark, yellowfin tuna and California yellowtail, and shoulder season for surfperch, kelp bass, lingcod and rockfish. California halibut peak from May through September. Leopard shark peak from June through September. Yellowfin tuna peak from August through September.
Tackle & technique
- Yellowfin tuna
- Yellowfin feed in blue water along canyon edges, the shelf break, current edges, deepwater platforms and FADs, usually from the surface to about 300 feet. Troll ballyhoo, spreader bars and cedar plugs early in the day, then chunk butterfish or sardines, fish live hardtails, or drop jigs to marks. Around Gulf platforms and in the canyons the night bite on chunks and jigs is often better than the day.
- California halibut
- California halibut are ambush feeders that lie on sand or mud bottom, mostly in water shallower than 100 feet and often inside bays, harbors and estuaries. Drift or slow-troll a live anchovy or sardine on a sliding sinker rig, or bounce a swimbait along the bottom over flats, channel edges and sandy areas near structure. Keep the bait within a foot or two of the bottom and give a fish time to turn the bait before setting the hook.
- Leopard shark
- Leopard sharks cruise shallow mudflats, sloughs and channel edges in bays, most often in less than 15 feet of water, and follow the flooding tide onto the flats to feed on crabs, worms, clams and small fish. Anchor or fish from shore or a pier with a sliding sinker rig and a chunk of squid, mackerel or ghost shrimp on the bottom. The bite is often better into the evening and at night.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Blue Banks Anchorage68
Bay · 4.5 mi
Top: California halibutPeak season- California halibut 68
- Leopard shark 61
- Yellowfin tuna 60
1 kt NNEL 2:18 PM · 1.9 ftH 8:17 PM · 5.2 ft
- Valley Anchorage68
Bay · 5.0 mi
Top: California halibutPeak season- California halibut 68
- Leopard shark 65
- Yellowfin tuna 60
1 kt NNEL 2:18 PM · 1.9 ftH 8:17 PM · 5.2 ft
- Alamos Anchorage66
Bay · 1.3 mi
Top: California halibutPeak season- California halibut 66
- California yellowtail 57
- Kelp bass 56
1 kt NNEL 2:18 PM · 1.9 ftH 8:17 PM · 5.2 ft
- Bowen Point60
Cape · 1.6 mi
Top: California halibutPeak season- California halibut 60
- Yellowfin tuna 60
- California yellowtail 59
1 kt NNEL 2:18 PM · 1.9 ftH 8:17 PM · 5.2 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.