UPDATEDAUTO-REFRESH 5 MIN
Leopard sharkRetention openCape · California
Point Lobos
37.78°N · 122.51°W · Cape · 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 · 7 PM · Leopard shark
- Now
- 304 AM PDT
- Best window
- 7-8 PMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Flooding0.4 ft ▲
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Point Lobos 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 · 4 AM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
73Tide: FloodingCurrent: 1.1 kn ebbWind & pressure
ECMWF
97Wind: 3 kt SSEPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
56Seas over the limit · capped at 30Water temp: 64°F, primeLight: NightSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 5.3 ftSeason & habitat · Leopard shark
Species seasonality
48Season: ShoulderHabitat: Poor fitDepth: In rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
San Francisco Groundfish Management Area
Leopard shark
Retention open- Daily limit
- 3 per day
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Minimum 36 in, total length
- Season
- No closed season on file
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Other
- Closed in the Groundfish Exclusion Areas off southern California.
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))
- 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 Leopard shark is best here
Shoulder season for Leopard shark · 5 more weeks at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Point Lobos
- Depth
- 2-30 ftNearest water
- Structure
- Point · Outer · ExposedPoint · slope
- Season
- Shoulder seasonLeopard shark
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 Lobos
Point Lobos 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 2-30 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads point, outer water and exposed.
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, surfperch and cabezon, and shoulder season for white seabass, Chinook salmon, lingcod and kelp greenling. Striped bass peak from June through July and from September through October. Rockfish peak from May through September.
Tackle & technique
- 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.
- 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
- Lands End63
Cape · 0.7 mi
Top: Striped bassPeak season- Striped bass 63
- White seabass 55
- Rockfish 54
3 kt SSEH 10:00 AM · 5.0 ftL 3:31 PM · 2.2 ft
- South Channel (historical)57
Channel · 1.6 mi
Top: Striped bassPeak season- Striped bass 57
- Pacific halibut 50
- Lingcod 49
3 kt SSEH 10:00 AM · 5.0 ftL 3:31 PM · 2.2 ft
- South Bay56
Bay · 1.5 mi
Top: Striped bassPeak season- Striped bass 56
- Surfperch 51
- White seabass 48
3 kt SSEH 10:49 AM · 4.9 ftL 4:06 PM · 2.2 ft
- Bonita Cove51
Bay · 2.8 mi
Top: Striped bassPeak season- Striped bass 51
- Surfperch 51
- Pacific halibut 50
3 kt SSEH 10:32 AM · 5.2 ftL 3:56 PM · 2.2 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.