Cachuma Lake water level today 743.06 ft, falling

Questions people ask about Cachuma Lake

Answered from the same readings as the rest of this page. Where we have no basis for an answer, there is no entry — spot-by-spot local knowledge is not something we can claim for Cachuma Lake.

Is it worth fishing Cachuma Lake today?

7 out of 10 — biting. Worth a cast. The strongest stretch is 10:18 AM–12:18 PM. That number is worked out fresh each morning from the solunar windows, the pressure trend, the water level.

What time should you fish Cachuma Lake?

Today's major windows run 10:18 AM–12:18 PM and 10:41 PM–12:41 AM, with minor windows at 4:29 AM–5:29 AM and 4:58 PM–5:58 PM. Sunrise is 7:00 AM and sunset 6:34 PM. A major landing on first or last light is the stretch worth setting an alarm for.

What is the water temperature at Cachuma Lake?

No gauge on Cachuma Lake measures it, so this is an estimate: roughly 74.7°F, worked out from the 7-day mean of air temperature at NOAA weather station KIZA (Santa Ynez, Santa Ynez Airport). Checked against the lakes that do have a thermometer, that method lands within about 4.5°F of the real reading and was off by 8.3°F at worst. Treat it as a ballpark, not a measurement — and note the bite index above ignores it entirely, because an error that size would move the verdict as often as it would fix it.

What is the water level at Cachuma Lake right now?

743.06 ft, the reading for October 7 from the Cachuma Lake and Bradbury Dam gauge run by the USBR, which publishes one value a day. Over 24 hours it is down 0.07 ft.

Are water levels rising or falling at Cachuma Lake?

Falling. The lake is down 0.07 ft in 24 hours and down 0.40 ft over the week. Over the last 9 days it has held between 743 and 743.59 ft. Every figure here is a difference between two gauge readings, not a forecast — what the level does next depends on rain and on what the dam releases.

Can you eat the fish you catch in Cachuma Lake?

That is a health question, and it is answered officially rather than by us. California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment publishes the fish consumption advisory covering these waters, where over 150 site-specific advisories, searchable by water, species or county, plus a statewide default for untested waters. Read it before you keep a meal — we give no eating advice.

OEHHA fish consumption advisory

Do you need a licence to fish Cachuma Lake?

Yes. A California fishing license covers this water, required from age 16. CDFW sets the rules and is the one that counts.

What a California license costs, and who is exempt

What size fish can you keep in California?

It depends on the species, and several have slot limits rather than a simple minimum. Open to harvest today: california halibut, pacific halibut, striped bass, white seabass. Seasons here change mid-year by agency order, so the status is re-checked every morning.

California halibut limits · Pacific halibut limits · Striped bass limits · White seabass limits · Check a length against the rules