Monterey Bay fishing conditions and tides
California · Pacific coast · 5.3 ft mean tide range · 33 ppt
A deep submarine canyon a mile from shore, rockfish reefs and upwelling-driven salmon
Current conditions
Excellent
Fishing score 85/100
How this score is calculated
57°F against a 48–58°F band for rockfish (mixed).
Outgoing (ebb) at 2.9 ft, moving 1.1 ft/hr. Strong water movement is positioning bait on structure.
20 mph out of the N. Workable wind with useful chop.
3.4 ft at 12 seconds. Good working surf for beaches and inlets.
Good working clarity with some colour for cover.
29.98 inHg and rising.
56% illumination — neap tides with a smaller exchange.
Fall pattern is fully established for this zone.
What should I do today?
The highest-percentage pattern for this tide and this wind.
Backup pattern
Lingcod — large swimbait or live bait on a jig head in 60–220 ft. Sit on the top of rock pinnacles and ambush anything passing; best on the first drop of a fresh spot.
Right now
Current conditions
Tide
Outgoing (ebb)
2.9 ft, -1.1 ft/hr
Next high
—
Tomorrow
Next low
—
Tomorrow
Mean range
5.3 ft
Typical high-to-low swing
Water temp
57°F
0°F / 3 days
Water clarity
Stained
Salinity about 33 ppt
Swell
3.4 ft
12 second period
Wind
20 mph
Out of the N
Pressure
29.98"
Rising pressure — clearing behind a front
Air temp
60°F
91% cloud cover
Moon
56%
First Quarter · solunar 12/100
Daylight
6:26 AM
Sunset 5:18 PM
Timing
Today's tides and fishing windows
- Low tide (0.8 ft) — tide change window12:45 AM – 2:45 AM
- Solunar major 25:47 AM – 7:47 AM
- Morning prime window6:01 AM – 8:46 AM
- Sunrise6:26 AM
- High tide (4.8 ft) — tide change window6:57 AM – 8:57 AM
- Low tide (0.5 ft) — tide change window1:10 PM – 3:10 PM
- Evening window3:18 PM – 5:53 PM
- Sunset5:18 PM
- Solunar major 15:47 PM – 7:47 PM
- High tide (4.5 ft) — tide change window7:22 PM – 9:22 PM
Targets
Target species in this zone
| Species | Activity | Depth | Best tide | Technique | Bait | Active temp | Season |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rockfish (mixed) | ★★★★★ | 60–250 ft | Slack to light current for vertical presentations | Shrimp flies and jigs on a rockfish rig | Squid strips | 48–58°F | April through December |
| Lingcod | ★★★★☆ | 60–220 ft | Light current | Large swimbait or live bait on a jig head | Live sanddab, squid | 46–56°F | April through November |
| California Halibut | ★★★★☆ | 20–70 ft | Drifting on a light current | Live bait drift or slow-trolled bait | Live anchovy, sardine | 54–62°F | May through September |
| King Salmon | ★★★★☆ | 30–180 ft | Early morning, any tide with bait present | Mooching anchovies or trolling with downriggers | Anchovy, herring | 50–58°F | Season varies annually, typically May through September |
- Rockfish (mixed): Stack on hard reef in 80–250 ft; vermilion and copper hold tight to the highest relief.
- Lingcod: Sit on the top of rock pinnacles and ambush anything passing; best on the first drop of a fresh spot.
- California Halibut: Drift the sand flats off Capitola and Seaside in 25–60 ft, keyed on anchovy schools.
- King Salmon: Follow bait along the canyon edges; depth changes daily with the thermocline and bait depth.
Structure
Habitat and structure that holds fish
- Submarine canyon
- Rock reef
- Sand flat
- Kelp
- Harbor and slough
- Soquel Hole
- Monterey Canyon edge
- Point Pinos reef
- Moss Landing harbor mouth
- Elkhorn Slough
Surf and beach notes
Beach fishing for barred surfperch works best on a 3–5 ft swell into the trough at Marina and Sunset State Beach.
Bait in the zone
Live anchovies when available from the bait receiver; frozen squid is the year-round backup.
Patterns
Season-by-season patterns
Spring
52–56°FUpwelling starts, bait concentrates and rockfish season opens on the shallower reefs.
Summer
56–62°FHalibut on the sand, salmon along the canyon, and heavy morning fog that usually burns off by late morning.
Fall
56–60°FCalmest seas of the year and the best deep rockfish and lingcod fishing.
Winter
51–54°FRockfish season is closed in most depths; surfperch and jacksmelt from the beaches fill the gap.
Outlook
7-day fishing forecast
| Day | Score | Water | Wind | Swell | First high tide | Best species | Morning window |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Today | 79Very Good | 57°F | 20 mph N | 3.4 ft | 7:57 AM (4.8 ft) | Rockfish (mixed) | 6:01 AM – 8:46 AM |
| Tue | 69Good | 57°F | 19 mph NW | 4.5 ft | 8:48 AM (5.1 ft) | Rockfish (mixed) | 6:02 AM – 8:47 AM |
| Wed | 85Excellent | 59°F | 7 mph S | 2.3 ft | 9:38 AM (5.3 ft) | Rockfish (mixed) | 6:03 AM – 8:48 AM |
| Thu | 96Excellent | 57°F | 13 mph NW | 1.7 ft | 10:29 AM (5.5 ft) | Rockfish (mixed) | 6:03 AM – 8:48 AM |
| Fri | 93Excellent | 56°F | 4 mph N | 1.9 ft | 11:19 AM (5.7 ft) | Rockfish (mixed) | 6:04 AM – 8:49 AM |
| Sat | 85Excellent | 56°F | 19 mph NE | 4.6 ft | 12:10 PM (5.9 ft) | Rockfish (mixed) | 6:05 AM – 8:50 AM |
| Sun | 94Excellent | 56°F | 7 mph E | 1.8 ft | 12:35 AM (5.9 ft) | Rockfish (mixed) | 6:06 AM – 8:51 AM |
Trends
Last 7 days
Water temperature
55°F → 57°F
Wind
11 mph → 20 mph
Swell
2.5 ft → 3.4 ft
Daily score
84 → 79
Water temperature has risen 2°F this week, which usually pulls bait and gamefish further into the shallows and up the estuary.
The water
About Monterey Bay
Monterey Bay is dominated by a submarine canyon that reaches 10,000 ft deep and comes within a mile of Moss Landing. Cold upwelling drives enormous productivity: krill, anchovies and sardines feed salmon, rockfish, halibut and whales in the same water. Water temperatures rarely exceed 62°F, and fog and wind, not heat, govern the fishing day.
Local knowledge
Expert notes
- Fish the canyon edge contours, not the flat bottom. Salmon and bait stack where the slope steepens, usually along the 200–400 ft contour line.
- On a rockfish drift, the first drop on an untouched pinnacle produces the biggest fish. If you re-drift the same spot four times, expect smaller fish each pass.
- Halibut drift speeds matter: 0.8–1.5 knots keeps bait in the strike zone. In dead-calm water, a drift sock is the wrong tool — use the motor to create the drift.
Logistics
Access, ramps and launches
boat ramp
Moss Landing harbor ramp
Closest launch to the canyon edge — a short run to deep water.
marina
Santa Cruz Harbor
Fuel, launch and the charter fleet on the north side of the bay.
pier
Monterey Municipal Wharf II
Free pier fishing for mackerel, perch and the occasional halibut.
kayak launch
Elkhorn Slough kayak launch
Protected paddling with perch and halibut in the channel.
Rules
Regulations
- California fishing license required; ocean enhancement validation not needed north of Point Arguello.
- Groundfish depth constraints and seasons change by management area every year.
- Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary contains several MPAs closed to all take.
Always verify current regulations with the relevant state wildlife agency before fishing. California Department of Fish and Wildlife
Transparency
Data sources
Where this data comes from
Conditions are modelled from each water's documented climate, structure and seasonal patterns. Modules marked “Live data integration pending” are not yet pulling from their API, so those values are clearly labelled as sample data rather than presented as real-time readings.
Weather API
PendingNOAA / National Weather Service — Air temperature, wind, cloud cover, rainfall and barometric pressure with a 7-day forecast.
Water Level & Flow API
PendingUSGS Water Services — Reservoir stage, discharge and 7-day level trend from the nearest gauge.
Water Temperature
PendingUSGS / NOAA buoys — Surface water temperature and its multi-day trend.
Tide & Current API
PendingNOAA CO-OPS — Tide predictions, current direction and speed for coastal zones.
Moon & Solunar
LiveComputed on-site — Moon phase, illumination and solunar major/minor periods are calculated from date and coordinates.
Water Clarity
PendingSatellite imagery + angler reports — Visibility estimates by lake arm, refined by submitted fishing reports.
Fishing Regulations
PendingState wildlife agencies — License, size and creel rules, linked to the official agency page for verification.
Map Data
PendingBathymetry + access point database — Depth zones, structure locations and boat ramps for the lake infographic.
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