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White seabassRetention openBay · California
Half Moon Bay
37.48°N · 122.47°W · Bay · San Pablo Bay, Suisun Bay, the West Delta and the San Francisco Bay north of the Bay Bridge
Species here · tap to switch
Best score today · 6 PM · White seabass
- Now
- 393 PM PDT
- Best window
- 5-8 PMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing2.1 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Half Moon Bay 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 · 3 PM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS + Open-Meteo Marine
21Tide: EbbingCurrent: 0.2 knWind & pressure
ECMWF
99Wind: 5 kt NWPressure: FallingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
42Water temp: 66°F, primeLight: Bright sunSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 6.2 ftSeason & habitat · White seabass
Species seasonality
60Season: ShoulderHabitat: Structure unmappedDepth: In rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
San Francisco Groundfish Management Area
White seabass
Retention open- Daily limit
- 3 per day
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Minimum 28 in, total length. Or twenty and one-half inches alternate length (Section 28.35).
- Season
- No closed season on file
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Other
- CDFW pages disagree on the alternate length: the regulation text says 20.5 inches, the booklet summary table 21.5 inches, and the regional web pages 20 inches. Total length is 28 inches on all of them.
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 (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)
- 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 White seabass is best here
Shoulder season for White seabass · 5 more weeks at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- Not here
- This week
Spot profile
Half Moon Bay
- Depth
- 35-50 ftSlope
- Structure
- Bay · Outer · ExposedBay · slope
- Season
- Shoulder seasonWhite seabass
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 Half Moon Bay
Half Moon Bay is a bay in San Pablo Bay, Suisun Bay, the West Delta and the San Francisco Bay north of the Bay Bridge, California. Depth is 35-50 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads bay, outer water and exposed.
Waterlands scores 11 species here; the best right now are Pacific halibut, striped bass and rockfish. It is peak season now for striped bass, rockfish, surfperch and cabezon, and shoulder season for Pacific halibut, kelp greenling, white seabass and lingcod. Pacific halibut peak from May through July. Striped bass peak from June through July and from September through October. Rockfish peak from May through September.
Tackle & technique
- White seabass
- White seabass hold along kelp bed edges and over nearby sand where market squid gather, usually in 20 to 80 feet of water and shallower as the water warms. Fish a live squid on a dropper loop or fly-line a sardine near the kelp at dawn, dusk and after dark, especially around the spring full moon. Tagged fish spend most of their time in 52 to 66 degree 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.
- 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.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Kings Rock56
Bar · 0.9 mi
Top: Pacific halibutShoulder season- Pacific halibut 56
- Rockfish 52
- Cabezon 47
5 kt NWL 3:22 PM · 2.1 ftH 9:11 PM · 5.4 ft
- Wash Rock56
Bar · 1.1 mi
Top: Pacific halibutShoulder season- Pacific halibut 56
- Rockfish 52
- Cabezon 47
5 kt NWL 3:22 PM · 2.1 ftH 9:11 PM · 5.4 ft
- Southeast Reef55
Bar · 1.0 mi
Top: Pacific halibutShoulder season- Pacific halibut 55
- Rockfish 52
- Cabezon 47
5 kt NWL 3:22 PM · 2.1 ftH 9:11 PM · 5.4 ft
- Whaleman Harbor53
Bay · 2.7 mi
Top: Striped bassPeak season- Striped bass 53
- Rockfish 49
- Surfperch 48
5 kt NWL 3:22 PM · 2.1 ftH 9:11 PM · 5.4 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.