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Yellowtail · Open

Dana Point Kelp Beds

33.45°N · 117.72°W

Species
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Best score for the day · 8 AM
87/100
GOOD

Now 84 · 1 PM PDT

BEST WINDOW
7 AM-8 PM
Tide flooding
14-Day Forecast
Data from: ECMWF + GFS + BlueCaster
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24-Hour Conditions

All times PDT

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Conditions
Time
1 PM
Now
Score
84
Good
Tide
4.5 ft ▼
Ebbing
Current
Ebb
Wind
5 kn
WSW · steady
Sea state
Choppy
2.7 ft
Air temp
77°
Warm
Weather
Clear
20% cloud
Hour 1 PM. Score 84 Good. Tide 4.5ft Falling ▼. Current -1.3kn Ebb. Wind 5kn WSW G5. Sea 2.7ft Chop. Air 77.0°.
Why this score
Current
0.3 kn light
Prime

Current regulations

In effect now

What you can keep at this spot today

Yellowtail
Retention open
Daily limit
10 per day
Possession
10 in possession
Size
Minimum 24"
Annual quota
Not published
Other
Open year-round. Daily bag/possession limit is 10 fish. Minimum size 24 inches fork length, except up to 5 fish less than 24 inches fork length may be taken or possessed.
Other species here
Lingcod Catch & releaseCabezon ClosedCalico Bass ClosedCalifornia Sheephead Retention openWhite Seabass Retention openRockfish (Aggregate) ClosedCalifornia Halibut Retention openKelp Bass Closed
Always check with CDFW

Source: CDFW · synced today

Seasonality

52-week view · today highlighted

When Yellowtail is best at this spot

Peak seasonCurrently in peak season for Yellowtail
~5 more weeks at peak
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Peak seasonShoulder seasonOff season
SPOT PROFILE
DEPTH
30-80 ft
LAUNCH
Not mapped
PEAK
Peak now
STRUCTURE

The Dana Point Kelp Beds form a stretch of submerged kelp structure running across depths of 30 to 80 feet off the Southern California coast. California Halibut, White Seabass, and Yellowtail anchor the calendar here, with halibut and seabass peaking March through July and yellowtail holding from May into October. Anglers work the halibut by drift fishing live anchovies, sardines, or smelt across the sandier margins, while White Seabass respond to live squid, sardines, or mackerel worked through the kelp edges. Yellowtail come on live sardines and mackerel or on heavy iron dropped along the deeper columns, and the kelp itself holds Calico Bass that take swimbaits and soft plastic grubs from spring through summer. Rockfish stay active year-round on the bottom, with dropper loops of squid and cut mackerel producing over the harder structure, and Lingcod and Cabezon fill out the colder months from fall into winter.

CUSTOM ALERT
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Dana Point Kelp Beds is one of the spots we track around Dana Point. See every scored spot in California.

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