Waterlands

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California halibutRetention open

Cape · California

Point Carquinez

38.04°N · 122.18°W · Cape · San Pablo Bay, Suisun Bay, the West Delta and the San Francisco Bay north of the Bay Bridge

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Best score today · 10 PM · California halibut

86/100Epic
Now
445 AM PDT
Best window
9 PM-12 AMFlood tide
Tide now
Ebbing0.5 ft ▼

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 5 AM · now

Time5ANOW
Score44Fair
Tide0.5 ft ▼Ebbing
CurrentEbb0.6 kn · toward WSW
Wind3 kn SWgusts 8 · steady
Sea stateLight chop1.7 ft · 8 s
Air temp55°Mild
WeatherMostly cloudy73% cloud
Water67°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

San Francisco Groundfish Management Area

IN EFFECT NOW

California halibut

Retention open
Daily limit
2 per day
Possession
2 in possession
Size
Minimum 22 in, total length
Season
No closed season on file
Annual quota
Not published

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))
  • Chinook salmon Closed (No retention)
  • 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 yesterday

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When California halibut is best here

Shoulder season for California halibut · 5 more weeks at shoulder

California halibut season by week of the year. Shoulder season for California halibut · 5 more weeks at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

California halibut in California

Spot profile

Point Carquinez

Depth
15-90 ftNearest water
Structure
Point · Inner · ProtectedPoint · drop-off
Season
Shoulder seasonCalifornia halibut

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 Point Carquinez

Point Carquinez is a cape in San Pablo Bay, Suisun Bay, the West Delta and the San Francisco Bay north of the Bay Bridge, California. Depth in the nearest water is 15-90 ft, with a drop-off. Its profile reads point, inner water and protected.

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

Tackle & technique

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.
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.
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.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Benicia Point

    Cape · 0.8 mi

    76
    Top: Striped bassPeak season
    • Striped bass 76
    • White seabass 68
    • Rockfish 64

    3 kt SWL 6:26 AM · 0.1 ftH 12:48 PM · 4.5 ft

  • Commodore Jones Point

    Cape · 1.3 mi

    75
    Top: Striped bassPeak season
    • Striped bass 75
    • White seabass 66
    • Chinook salmon 55

    3 kt SWL 6:26 AM · 0.1 ftH 12:48 PM · 4.5 ft

  • Carquinez Strait

    Channel · 1.2 mi

    70
    Top: Striped bassPeak season
    • Striped bass 70
    • Leopard shark 55
    • White seabass 55

    3 kt SWH 12:20 PM · 5.3 ftL 5:55 PM · 2.0 ft

  • Benicia Shoals

    Bar · 0.8 mi

    69
    Top: Striped bassPeak season
    • Striped bass 69
    • White seabass 60
    • Rockfish 59

    3 kt SWL 6:26 AM · 0.1 ftH 12:48 PM · 4.5 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.