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CabezonRetention openBay · California
Oakland Middle Harbor
37.80°N · 122.33°W · Bay · San Francisco Bay South of the Bay Bridge
Species here · tap to switch
Best score today · 6 PM · Cabezon
- Now
- 6611 PM PDT
- Best window
- 11 PM-12 AMEbb tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing5.2 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Oakland Middle Harbor 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 · 11 PM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
99Tide: EbbingCurrent: 0.6 kn ebbWind & pressure
ECMWF
98Wind: 5 kt SPressure: FallingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
42Water temp: 66°F, hotLight: NightSolunar: Near a majorSeas: 1.8 ftSeason & habitat · Cabezon
Species seasonality
89Season: PeakHabitat: Usable structureDepth: In rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
San Francisco Groundfish Management Area
Cabezon
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. All groundfish fishing is prohibited at Cordell Bank. RCG complex: all rockfish, cabezon, and kelp and rock greenlings combined. A descending device must be aboard when fishing from a boat.
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))
- California halibut Retention open (2 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)
- 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 Cabezon is best here
Peak season for Cabezon · 1 more week at peak
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Oakland Middle Harbor
- Depth
- 20-40 ftSlope
- Structure
- Bay · Inner · ProtectedBay · slope
- Season
- Peak seasonCabezon
NOAA NCEI DEM, sampled Sep 14 on a 3.4 m grid. Depths are feet below NAVD 88, not chart datum (MLLW), so they can differ from a chart by a few feet. Not for navigation.
About this spot
Fishing Oakland Middle Harbor
Oakland Middle Harbor is a bay in San Francisco Bay South of the Bay Bridge, California. Depth is 20-40 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads bay, inner water and protected.
Waterlands scores 11 species here; the best right now are striped bass, surfperch and white seabass. It is peak season now for striped bass, surfperch, rockfish and cabezon, and shoulder season for white seabass, California halibut, leopard shark and lingcod. Striped bass peak from June through July and from September through October. Surfperch peak in May and from July through September.
Tackle & technique
- 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.
- 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.
- 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
- Outer Harbor Entrance Channel82
Bay · 0.6 mi
Top: Striped bassPeak season- Striped bass 82
- Surfperch 70
- Leopard shark 67
5 kt SL 4:25 AM · 0.3 ftH 11:10 AM · 5.3 ft
- Oakland Outer Harbor82
Bay · 0.9 mi
Top: Striped bassPeak season- Striped bass 82
- Surfperch 71
- White seabass 70
5 kt SL 4:30 AM · 0.3 ftH 11:17 AM · 5.2 ft
- Oakland Inner Harbor80
Bay · 2.3 mi
Top: Striped bassPeak season- Striped bass 80
- White seabass 68
- Cabezon 66
5 kt SL 4:36 AM · 0.3 ftH 11:22 AM · 5.3 ft
- Bar Channel76
Bay · 1.4 mi
Top: Striped bassPeak season- Striped bass 76
- Surfperch 65
- Lingcod 61
5 kt SL 4:27 AM · 0.3 ftH 11:14 AM · 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.