Barra de Navidad · Mexico

2.6

visibility: 2 m

visibility2m

Today — sit it out.

Sources: NDBC · Open-Meteo · Copernicus · Sentinel-2 — high confidence · data 02:59

Sources & confidence

Sources: NDBC · Open-Meteo · Copernicus · Sentinel-2
Method: spearo sea-state engine: consensus of up to 6 models + satellite clarity (ZSD) + buoy-bias checks
Freshness: Re-read every hour, per coast

Compiled by the spearo sea-state engine · How it works →

The verdict comes from seven water factors and hard safety gates — not ten tabs. Go or stay.

How we score the water

Our own model

Our own forecast engine — not a third-party widget. It weighs these water factors into one go-or-stay verdict for this coast; the 0–10 dial is that verdict, read out as a number.

Swell & wave memory: Height, period and direction of the swell, plus the wake of recent storms — an old storm still stirs the water, and the engine remembers.
Wind & gusts: Speed and gusts, hour by hour — wind speed and an onshore push chop the surface and cut visibility.
Tide phase: Timing and range of the tide, calibrated per coast — big spring tides pull the verdict toward caution.
Water temperature: Sea-surface temperature — sharply cold water vetoes a green verdict.
Currents & outflow: Direction and drift of the current — it pushes you, and it drags turbid coastal water across where you dive.
Rain runoff & air clarity: Rain muddies the water inshore through land runoff, while fog and haze cut visibility at the surface.
Coast shape & exposure: How the coast faces the swell — a sheltered cove keeps the water clean; an exposed, head-on point takes a penalty.

Safety gates

Thunderstorm forecast — an instant red, no exceptions.
An official warning (MeteoAlarm / IPMA) — yellow, or red for the higher ranks.
Missing input data — a would-be green is capped to yellow rather than overstated.
Strong disagreement between forecast models — a green day is pulled back to yellow.
Night hours — where night spearfishing is banned by law the window is forced red; where it is legal (Australia outside NSW, New Zealand, South Africa) it is capped at yellow, never green.

It all folds into a single 0–10 score and one verdict: go or stay.

A forecast, not a guarantee — the sea has the last word.

Where to get in, where to hunt

Entry points with coordinates

Seabed relief — promising ground

This verdict — in your pocket. Open the app for the week's window.

Google Play — QR code — point your camera

0 m

Surface

Wind, wave and the swell windows — when to go and the best hours.

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updated 02:59

Barra de Navidad — solo, off the rocks

Day is over

That is it for today — the day's windows have closed.

Tomorrow, best window 06:00–09:00

Whole week — tap a day. is driving swell right now.

Solo risk: carry a float · tell someone your plan and exit time · doubt = don't go. A model-based planner; the call is made on site.

Selected day

Windows, hours
and the day's trends.

The day is picked above, in the hero. Here are that day's windows, the hour-by-hour map and the trends. Tap a window to break down the conditions.

Saturday · today2026-10-24

06:56–18:29 · full moon

▼ 01:00▲ 07:00▼ 14:00▲ 20:00 · 0.9 m

Hours (06→20)

Day's trends

Tide0.70 m

Wave2.18 m

Wind6 km/h

Water30 °C

fish activity: moonset 05:23 · moderate · moon underfoot 11:20 · high · moonrise 17:24 · moderate · moon overhead 23:50 · high

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What's in season,
what the law says.

In season now

dog snapper / pargo
Lutjanus novemfasciatus · 3–15 m · tide change — moving water · dusk/night
Hard-fighting reef snapper around rocky points & pinnacles; ambush on the tide change, best at dusk/night. Peaks in the warm months. Mexican rule sets no minimum size.
leopard grouper
Mycteroperca rosacea · 5–25 m · tide change — moving water · daytime
Leopard grouper on rocky reef, by day. Forms spawning aggregations in spring (Apr–Jun) — very vulnerable then, take sparingly. No minimum size in the rule.
California sheephead
Semicossyphus pulcher · 3–20 m · tide change — moving water · daytime
California sheephead on rocky reef, by day; resident, best in the warm months. Roots the bottom — approach slowly. No minimum size in the rule.
yellow snapper
Lutjanus argentiventris · 3–15 m · tide change — moving water · dusk/night
Yellow snapper by rocks & estuary edges; warm months, best at dusk/night on the tide change. No minimum size in the rule.

off season: yellowtail (Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May) · Pacific sierra (Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr) · white seabass (Mar Apr May Jun Jul)

Not a target — don't shoot

mahi-mahi / dorado⚠️ release / rod-only
⚠️ Reserved for rod-and-reel in the 50-mile belt — conservatively DON'T spear it (the exact DOF wording isn't quoted).
roosterfish⚠️ release / rod-only
⚠️ Reserved for rod-and-reel in the 50-mile belt — conservatively DON'T spear it (the exact DOF wording isn't quoted).
totoaba🚫 no-take
🚫 Totoaba — permanent no-take (moratorium since 1975, NOM-059 'P', CITES I). Do not take, release.

Law

✓Spearfishing needs an INDIVIDUAL permit of its own: «la pesca subacuática … requerirá de permiso individual» (, art. 4.3). /SADER issue it online through E5CINCO (day/week/month/year). You must carry the permit and show it whenever you are asked (art. 4.14). Apnea only — spearing on scuba is banned (art. 4.5).
✓One speargun per fisher — band, spring or pneumatic; hooks (ganchos), gaffs (fisgas) and light lures are prohibited (, art. 4.5). The spearfishing bag is 5 specimens per person per day, of any marine or freshwater fish (art. 4.9.4). You may not fish within 250 m of working commercial vessels and set gear, nor within 250 m of the shore of beaches used by bathers (art. 4.10).
✓Reserved to rod-and-reel sport fishing (do NOT spear, conservative rule): marlin, sailfish, swordfish, tarpon, roosterfish and dorado. Lobster, conch and octopus are outside sport fishing.
✓Grouper (mero) closed season to 31 Mar (Gulf/Yucatán focus). Marine ANPs (APFF Islas del Golfo — Espíritu Santo, Balandra) are no-take cores: do not shoot.
✓Only FISH may be taken. Crustaceans and molluscs are prohibited — with a single exception for squid; marine mammals, reptiles and amphibians are out too (, art. 4.2). Lobster, conch and octopus fall under that ban.
✓The catch belongs to the permit holder and MAY NOT be traded (, art. 4.11). Filleting ashore is not allowed — only aboard and only for eating during the trip (billfish excepted); gutting is fine (art. 4.12).
✓Nets, multi-hook longlines, explosives and toxic substances may not merely be used — they may not even be CARRIED on a sport-fishing vessel (, art. 4.16). Anchoring closer than 15 m to the perimeter of a coral reef is prohibited, and on the reef itself never.
✓The federal rules are a FLOOR, not a ceiling. You may not fish in closed zones and seasons, and in refuge zones, reserves and ANPs fishing «is permitted only on the terms and conditions laid down by the instruments applicable in that zone», plus the express authorisation of the Secretariat (, art. 4.10). So inside a protected area read its own Reglas Administrativas — they can ban the speargun outright.

Safety protocol

Sets: watch the wave trains ≥15 min before entering; Hmax ≈ 2×Hs, the wash can run 50 m past the foam line. A lull >10 min with period >12 s = a big set «overdue», do NOT enter; enter right after a full set passes and re-check at minute 30.
Exit FIRST: find your exit AND a backup before entering. On a rocky/boulder shore a 0.5 m rise in swell can make the exit impossible — getting pinned/unable to climb out is the main killer.
Headland rip: prominent points often have a permanent topographic rip regardless of the model — locate it, enter/exit on the windward side, never swim against it.
Cold: wetsuit per the SST chip; the first shiver = a metabolic surge and a drop in breath-hold → get out at the first steady shiver. Cap the session at 45–60 min below 15 °C.
Solo discipline: buoy up; tell someone the spot and exit time; conservative breath-hold (never push it in cold/murky/surfy water); visibility <3 m — don't enter.
Afternoon wind: on many coasts the wind builds from midday — plan to be out of the water by midday; the chop builds — get out.
UV 11:00–15:00 (UVI ≥6): sunscreen and cover up on the surface interval.
Solo is a fundamental risk (hypoxic blackout with no buddy). Any doubt = No-go.

FAQ — spearfishing in Barra de Navidad

Where can I spearfish in Barra de Navidad?

Barra de Navidad has rock entry points such as Arrecifes de Barra, Isla Navidad / Punta Graham and Roca Blanca / Melaque. Barra de Navidad–Melaque is a bay and lagoon of southern Jalisco: sheltered rock reefs, warm water and easy shore access. Below you'll find each spot (access, shelter and hazards) and today's forecast.

When is the best season in Barra de Navidad?

Warm water year-round; best in the dry, calm windows. In the SE (Tehuantepec) winter nortes shut the water down; murky near the rivermouths.

How cold is the water in Barra de Navidad?

Warm, ~24–29 °C — rashguard or 2–3 mm. Rivers murk the shore after rain; clearer off the rocky points.

Is Barra de Navidad good for a beginner?

Intermediate: warm water, but hunting is off rocky points in swell; murky at rivermouths.

Do I need a licence in Barra de Navidad?

In Barra de Navidad spearfishing is legal but breath-hold only (freediving — NOM-017-PESC-1994 §4.5; no scuba/hookah), and an individual CONAPESCA permit is ALWAYS required, including from shore (the "from-the-beach, no permit" idea is a myth). Fish only (no lobster, conch or octopus — squid is the one exception), max 5 fish/day, and keep 250 m off swimmers and boats. Dorado, marlin, sailfish and roosterfish are reserved for rod-and-reel in the 50-mile belt — better not to spear them. Yucatán grouper closed season 1 Feb–31 Mar; totoaba is permanent no-take. See the guide.

Full guide: hurricanes and Nortes: seasonal spearfishing safety in Mexico →

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The water column

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go / no-go for solo hunting.

The seabed

The forecast is the plan.
The call is on the rock.

Where to get in
off the rocks.

Surfacing

What's in season,
what the law says.

FAQ — spearfishing in Barra de Navidad

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Barra de Navidad spearfishing forecast — wind, swell, visibility, tides & live cameras

Windows, hours and the day's trends.

Get the go / no-go verdict for Barra de Navidad by email

Spots in Mexico

🇲🇽Mexico

Nearby towns

Pacific Mainland

Sea of Cortez

Help us make it better

A marine instrument, go / no-go for solo hunting.

The forecast is the plan.The call is on the rock.

Where to get in off the rocks.

What's in season, what the law says.

FAQ — spearfishing in Barra de Navidad

Baja Pacific

Gulf of Mexico

Windows, hours
and the day's trends.

A marine instrument,
go / no-go for solo hunting.

The forecast is the plan.
The call is on the rock.

Where to get in
off the rocks.

What's in season,
what the law says.