Monterey, CA fishing times, tides & weather

Spot type

Pier/harbor. These notes cover Monterey Municipal Wharf II in Monterey Harbor. The city says a 700-foot fishing promenade extends out from Wharf II and covers the protective sea wall on the east side of the marina, and that anglers may fish from the east side of the wharf ([1]). CDFW lists "Monterey Municipal Wharf 2" as a public pier ([2]).

Public access

• The city says no fishing is allowed around the commercial facilities or in the marina for safety reasons, and those areas are posted "No Fishing". Metered parking is available on the promenade ([1]).
• Wharf II, built in 1926, also has wholesale fish companies, a commercial abalone farm, public restrooms, restaurants and the Monterey Peninsula Yacht Club ([1]).
• Nearby, the city says public access to the U.S. Coast Guard Wharf is permitted from sunrise to sunset, and fishing is permitted on the north side of the breakwater ([3]).
• For promenade hours and current conditions, contact the Office of the Harbormaster ([4]).
• Repairs: on March 11, 2026, Rep. Jimmy Panetta and City of Monterey officials announced $1.92 million in federal funding for critical repairs to Monterey Municipal Wharf No. 2 ([5], [6]).
• Status: CDFW notes that landowners may close piers at any time for safety, maintenance or other reasons ([2]). Check the City of Monterey Harbor and Marina page for current status ([4]). As of 2026-10-16, CDFW lists Monterey Municipal Wharf 2 without a closure note ([2]).

Commonly caught species

From a pier-fishing guide (secondary, last modified July 2023) ([7]): Pacific and jack mackerel, Pacific sardine, northern anchovy, jacksmelt, surfperch and seaperch species, starry flounder, sanddabs, California halibut, small rockfish, white croaker, bat rays and leopard sharks. The guide also reports salmon and striped bass at times.

Local rules and authority

• License: CDFW says a fishing license is not required when recreationally fishing from a "public pier" in ocean or bay waters, as defined in Section 1.88 of Title 14, CCR: connected to the shoreline, with free, unrestricted public access, and built or functioning mainly for fishing. Publicly owned jetties and breakwaters qualify only if they also form the most seaward protective boundary of an ocean harbor ([2]). All other regulations, including minimum size, bag limits, report cards and seasons, still apply, and there is a per-person gear limit on public piers; see CDFW's page for the details ([2]). The city's Wharf II page also says a license is not required for sport fishing from a public pier or wharf ([1]).
• Regulations: check the current CDFW ocean sport fishing regulations ([8]).
• Marine sanctuary: the city says Monterey Harbor is located in the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary ([4]).
• MPAs nearby: CDFW says Edward F. Ricketts SMCA stretches along shore for one mile from the Monterey Coast Guard Jetty to the western edge of the Monterey Bay Aquarium, and that it and Lovers Point–Julia Platt SMR are two of four MPAs between Monterey and Pacific Grove ([9]). Each has its own take rules; check the CDFW MPA page before fishing there.
• Eating your catch: OEHHA publishes a statewide advisory for eating fish from California coastal locations without site-specific advice (October 2016) ([10]). Check OEHHA's domoic acid page for current biotoxin advice before eating fish or shellfish ([11]).

Tide station

• Monterey, CA — NOAA 9413450 (listed in NOAA's prediction stations as "Monterey, Monterey Bay") ([12], [13], [14]).
• Type: harmonic reference station (prediction type "R", no reference station) ([15]). It is also an active NOAA water-level station (National Water Level Observation Network) that was reporting live water levels on 2026-10-16 ([12], [16]).
• NOAA coordinates: 36.6089, -121.8914, on Monterey Bay — the same water as Wharf II ([12]).

Other spots nearby

These are on CDFW's public pier list. Check the operator for current status before you go ([2]).

• Monterey Coast Guard Breakwater, on the north side of Monterey Harbor ([3])
• Capitola Wharf and Santa Cruz Wharf, across Monterey Bay to the north (Santa Cruz County)
• San Francisco (Pier 7), farther north

Note updates

• 2026-10-16: Checked against the sources listed below and approved, replacing the earlier draft shown on this page. Statements we couldn't confirm from those sources were taken out, and status lines now carry the date we checked them. Changes from the draft:
  • Wharf II details now use the City of Monterey's wording.
  • The marine protected area description now uses CDFW's wording.
  • Removed an estimated distance to the tide station.

Sources

1. City of Monterey — Fisherman's Wharf and Wharf II — https://monterey.gov/your_city_hall/departments/public_works/harbor_and_marina/fishermans_wharf_and_wharf_ii.php — accessed 2026-10-16
2. CDFW — Free Fishing Piers, Jetties, and Breakwaters — https://wildlife.ca.gov/Fishing/Ocean/Beach-Fishing — accessed 2026-10-16
3. City of Monterey — Breakwater Cove Marina and Coast Guard Pier — https://monterey.gov/your_city_hall/departments/public_works/harbor_and_marina/breakwater_cove_marina_and_coast_guard_pier.php — accessed 2026-10-16
4. City of Monterey — Harbor and Marina — https://monterey.gov/your_city_hall/departments/public_works/harbor_and_marina — accessed 2026-10-16
5. Rep. Jimmy Panetta — $1.92 Million in Federal Funding for Critical Repairs to the Monterey Municipal Wharf (2026-03-11) — https://panetta.house.gov/media/press-releases/rep-panetta-city-monterey-officials-announce-192-million-federal-funding — accessed 2026-10-16
6. City of Monterey — News: federal funding for Monterey Municipal Wharf repairs — https://monterey.gov/news_detail_T39_R78.php — accessed 2026-10-16
7. Pier Fishing in California — Monterey Municipal Wharf #2 (last modified 2023-07-30) — https://www.pierfishing.com/monterey-wharf-2/ — accessed 2026-10-16 (secondary)
8. CDFW — Ocean Sport Fishing Regulations — https://wildlife.ca.gov/Fishing/Ocean/Regulations — accessed 2026-10-16
9. CDFW — Lovers Point–Julia Platt SMR and Edward F. Ricketts SMCA — https://wildlife.ca.gov/Conservation/Marine/MPAs/Edward-F-Ricketts-Lovers-Point-Julia-Platt — accessed 2026-10-16
10. OEHHA — Statewide Advisory for Eating Fish from California Coastal Locations Without Site-Specific Advice (PDF, October 2016) — https://oehha.ca.gov/media/downloads/advisories/californiacoastaladvisory110916.pdf — accessed 2026-10-16
11. OEHHA — Domoic Acid in Fish and Shellfish — https://oehha.ca.gov/habs/domoic-acid-marine-biotoxin-fish-and-shellfish — accessed 2026-10-16
12. NOAA CO-OPS metadata API — station 9413450 — https://api.tidesandcurrents.noaa.gov/mdapi/prod/webapi/stations/9413450.json — accessed 2026-10-16
13. NOAA Tides & Currents — Monterey 9413450 station home — https://tidesandcurrents.noaa.gov/stationhome.html?id=9413450 — accessed 2026-10-16
14. NOAA CO-OPS — tide prediction station list — https://api.tidesandcurrents.noaa.gov/mdapi/prod/webapi/stations.json?type=tidepredictions — accessed 2026-10-16
15. NOAA CO-OPS metadata API — 9413450 tide prediction offsets — https://api.tidesandcurrents.noaa.gov/mdapi/prod/webapi/stations/9413450/tidepredoffsets.json — accessed 2026-10-16
16. NOAA CO-OPS data API — 9413450 latest water level — https://api.tidesandcurrents.noaa.gov/api/prod/datagetter?product=water_level&station=9413450&date=latest&datum=MLLW&units=english&time_zone=lst_ldt&format=json&application=fishdatapoint — accessed 2026-10-16