Today — right on the edge — wave, wind and surge pounding.
Sources:MetService · Open-Meteo · Copernicus · Sentinel-2 — high confidence · data 16:59
Sources & confidence
Sources
MetService · 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.
01
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.
02
Wind & gusts
Speed and gusts, hour by hour — wind speed and an onshore push chop the surface and cut visibility.
03
Tide phase
Timing and range of the tide, calibrated per coast — big spring tides pull the verdict toward caution.
04
Water temperature
Sea-surface temperature — sharply cold water vetoes a green verdict.
05
Currents & outflow
Direction and drift of the current — it pushes you, and it drags turbid coastal water across where you dive.
06
Rain runoff & air clarity
Rain muddies the water inshore through land runoff, while fog and haze cut visibility at the surface.
07
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.
point your camera
0 m
Surface
Wind, wave and the swell windows — when to go and the best hours.
spearo.app
MetService no dataThis information is made freely available by MetService. Despite this, MetService is not associated with, and does not endorse, spearo.app or have involvement in how this information is presentedupdated 16:59
Bruce Bay — solo, off the rocks
BORDERLINE
caution — solo off the rocks is risky, check on site · wave 1.2 m (occasionally up to ~2.5 m)
wave 1.2 m head-onwind 7 km/hsurge pounding the rocksvisibility ~2 m
today, best window 18:00–21:00
fish · Visibility 2 m · Water 14.3°C
confidence low · verdict for the selected day
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.
Sunday · today2026-10-25
06:34–20:17 · full moon
▼ 04:00▲ 11:00▼ 17:00▲ 23:00 · 2.4 m
Hours (06→20)
06
09
12
15
18
Day's trends
Tide1.32 m
Wave1.22 m
Wind10 km/h
Water14 °C
fish activity: moon overhead 00:00 · high · moonset 05:36 · moderate · moon underfoot 12:20 · high · moonrise 19:19 · moderate
Conditions window15:00–18:00
don't go fish
Hs 1.26 m · roughperiod 10.6 s head-onwind 9→17surge 2.5viz 2 m
What's missing? Tell us what you'd like to see — new spots, species, data or features. We read everything.
Your best window — with you. Forecast in your pocket.
point your camera
−10 m
The water column
Visibility and what drives it — post-storm clearing, river plume, temperature and the thermocline.
What it is
A marine instrument, go / no-go for solo hunting.
spearo.app folds wind, wave, swell period, visibility, tides, water temperature and risk into a single verdict — go to the spot or not. It computes 7 days ahead from open marine models (Open-Meteo, IPMA), with no sign-up and no accounts. Built for solo spearfishing off the rocks, where any mistake costs dearly.
Now live: 3016 spots across 406 stretches of coast — mainland Portugal, Madeira and the Azores.
Legal notice: Paringa Mātaitai Reserve: the Makaawhio bylaws apply (from 1 October 2025) — combined daily limit 10 finfish, no more than 5 blue cod, 5 snapper and 1 kingfish; seaweed other than karengo may not be taken. · (Pacific/Auckland) · Scope: Paringa Mātaitai Reserve (South Westland), seaward of mean high water · Fisheries (Makaawhio Mātaitai Reserves Bylaws) Notice 2025 (Notice No. MPI 1944) (as of 2026-10-11)
swell on the quarter today
window
—
Seabed depth of the selected area
no data (coarse grid)
Awataikato Point, Bruce Bay: headland. Entry from the shore. Published sources behind this mark: 1. Object type: headland; the name is from the LINZ place-name register. Check the seabed and conditions on site before entering the water.
Buttress Point — headland by Bruce Bay. Entry from the shore. Published sources behind this mark: 1. Object type: headland; the name is from the LINZ place-name register. Check the seabed and conditions on site before entering the water.
Heretaniwha Point — headland by Bruce Bay. You walk in from the shore. Published sources: 1. Object type: headland, official place name. Check the seabed and conditions on site before entering the water.
Legal notice: Paringa Mātaitai Reserve: the Makaawhio bylaws apply (from 1 October 2025) — combined daily limit 10 finfish, no more than 5 blue cod, 5 snapper and 1 kingfish; seaweed other than karengo may not be taken. · (Pacific/Auckland) · Scope: Paringa Mātaitai Reserve (South Westland), seaward of mean high water · Fisheries (Makaawhio Mātaitai Reserves Bylaws) Notice 2025 (Notice No. MPI 1944) (as of 2026-10-11)
swell on the quarter today
window
—
Seabed depth of the selected area
no data (coarse grid)
Otitia Rock — rocks by Bruce Bay. You walk in from the shore. Published sources: 1. Plan the session on the Bruce Bay swell and tide forecast. Object type: rocks; the name is from the LINZ place-name register. Check the seabed and conditions on site before entering the water.
Legal notice: Paringa Mātaitai Reserve: the Makaawhio bylaws apply (from 1 October 2025) — combined daily limit 10 finfish, no more than 5 blue cod, 5 snapper and 1 kingfish; seaweed other than karengo may not be taken. · (Pacific/Auckland) · Scope: Paringa Mātaitai Reserve (South Westland), seaward of mean high water · Fisheries (Makaawhio Mātaitai Reserves Bylaws) Notice 2025 (Notice No. MPI 1944) (as of 2026-10-11)
swell on the quarter today
window
—
Seabed depth of the selected area
no data (coarse grid)
Piakatu Point — headland by Bruce Bay. You walk in from the shore. Published sources: 1. Plan the session on the Bruce Bay swell and tide forecast. Object type: headland; the name is from the LINZ place-name register. Check the seabed and conditions on site before entering the water.
SOLO is the biggest risk: underwater you can black out from lack of oxygen silently and fatally, with no one around. Solo is never truly «safe». Below are the best weather windows; carry a buoy, tell someone your plan and exit time, and any doubt — don't go.
One morning glance — and you know.
point your camera
≈
Surfacing
Cameras, map and reference — to hand as you come up.
Rules as of now — 25.10.2026 17:37 (Pacific/Auckland)
In season now
blue cod (rāwaru)
Parapercis colias · 5–40 m · ⚠️ closed season/limit
min 33 cm · bag 15 a day · inside the combined limit 20 (10 inside Paringa, Popotai Taumaka/Open Bay Islands, Okahu/Jacksons Bay, Tauneke/Barn Bay mātaitai) · 🚫 The Marlborough Sounds are CLOSED 1 Sep – 10 Jan every year (the window was extended in Aug 2025, so older advice is wrong). Landed whole or gutted only.
snapper (tāmure)
Chrysophrys auratus · 3–40 m · ⚠️ closed season/limit
min 25 cm · bag 10 a day · inside the combined limit 20 (10 inside Paringa, Popotai Taumaka/Open Bay Islands, Okahu/Jacksons Bay, Tauneke/Barn Bay mātaitai) · Challenger area: 10 a day, min 25 cm. Inside the Marlborough Sounds: 3 a day, same 25 cm minimum.
butterfish / greenbone (marari)
Odax pullus · 2–20 m · legal
min 35 cm · inside the combined limit 20 (10 inside Paringa, Popotai Taumaka/Open Bay Islands, Okahu/Jacksons Bay, Tauneke/Barn Bay mātaitai)
blue moki
Latridopsis ciliaris · 5–40 m · legal
min 40 cm · inside the combined limit 20 (10 inside Paringa, Popotai Taumaka/Open Bay Islands, Okahu/Jacksons Bay, Tauneke/Barn Bay mātaitai)
red moki (nanua)
Cheilodactylus spectabilis · 3–25 m · ⚠️ closed season/limit
min 40 cm · inside the combined limit 20 (10 inside Paringa, Popotai Taumaka/Open Bay Islands, Okahu/Jacksons Bay, Tauneke/Barn Bay mātaitai)
tarakihi
Nemadactylus macropterus · 10–60 m · legal
min 25 cm · inside the combined limit 20 (10 inside Paringa, Popotai Taumaka/Open Bay Islands, Okahu/Jacksons Bay, Tauneke/Barn Bay mātaitai) · Almost always sits below safe breath-hold depth — on this coast it is information, not a target.
red / spiny rock lobster (kōura)
Jasus edwardsii · 3–30 m · ⚠️ closed season/limit
tail width ≥ 54 mm (♀ 60 mm) · bag 6 a day · 🚫 no spear · 🚫 possessing a speared one is an offence · ✋ by hand or hand-operated loop (spring-loaded loops banned) · The six is spiny and packhorse combined, of which at most 3 packhorse. · Measure tail WIDTH: male 54 mm, female 60 mm; berried, soft-shell and unmeasurable ones go straight back. (Fisheries (Amateur Fishing) Regulations 2013, reg. 29(2), reg. 46; MPI 7281.)
pāua (blackfoot abalone)
Haliotis iris · 0–10 m · ⚠️ closed season/limit
min 125 mm (shell) · bag 10 a day · ✋ by hand · tool: pāua knife (blunt; MPI: never use sharp objects) · Tasman, Nelson and Marlborough: 5 blackfoot (125 mm) + 5 yellowfoot (80 mm). Elsewhere in Challenger — 10 and 10. · 🚫 Pāua is free-diving only: with underwater breathing apparatus you may neither take nor possess it — having a tank in the vehicle or on the boat while holding pāua is already an offence (Fisheries (Amateur Fishing) Regulations 2013, reg. 48). A snorkel does not count as apparatus. · ⚠️ Before taking any shellfish check the NZ Food Safety biotoxin warnings — they change constantly and are separate from the fishing rules.
kina (sea urchin)
Evechinus chloroticus · 1–15 m · legal
no minimum size · bag 50 a day · ⚠️ Before taking any shellfish check the NZ Food Safety biotoxin warnings — they change constantly and are separate from the fishing rules.
trumpeter (kohikohi)
Latris lineata · 10–60 m · legal
min 35 cm · inside the combined limit 20 (10 inside Paringa, Popotai Taumaka/Open Bay Islands, Okahu/Jacksons Bay, Tauneke/Barn Bay mātaitai) · Almost always sits below safe breath-hold depth — on this coast it is information, not a target.
banded wrasse (tāngahangaha)
Notolabrus fucicola · 2–20 m · legal
no minimum size · inside the combined limit 20 (10 inside Paringa, Popotai Taumaka/Open Bay Islands, Okahu/Jacksons Bay, Tauneke/Barn Bay mātaitai)
hāpuku / bass (groper)
Polyprion oxygeneios · 30–120 m · ⚠️ closed season/limit
no minimum size · bag 2 a day · inside the combined limit 20 (10 inside Paringa, Popotai Taumaka/Open Bay Islands, Okahu/Jacksons Bay, Tauneke/Barn Bay mātaitai) · Almost always sits below safe breath-hold depth — on this coast it is information, not a target.
yellowfoot pāua
Haliotis australis · 0–8 m · ⚠️ closed season/limit
min 80 mm (shell) · bag 10 a day · ✋ by hand · tool: pāua knife (blunt; MPI: never use sharp objects) · 🚫 Pāua is free-diving only: with underwater breathing apparatus you may neither take nor possess it — having a tank in the vehicle or on the boat while holding pāua is already an offence (Fisheries (Amateur Fishing) Regulations 2013, reg. 48). A snorkel does not count as apparatus. · ⚠️ Before taking any shellfish check the NZ Food Safety biotoxin warnings — they change constantly and are separate from the fishing rules.
scallop (tipa)
Pecten novaezelandiae · 5–30 m · ⚠️ closed season/limit
min 90 mm (shell) · bag 50 a day · closed 15 Feb – 14 Jul · 🚫 The southern scallop fishery SCA 7 — Marlborough Sounds, Tasman Bay, Golden Bay and Port Underwood — has been closed since 15 July 2018 until further notice. No take, no possession.
green-lipped mussel (kūtai)
Perna canaliculus · 0–15 m · legal
no minimum size · bag 50 a day · ⚠️ Before taking any shellfish check the NZ Food Safety biotoxin warnings — they change constantly and are separate from the fishing rules.
Law
✓There is no in New Zealand: MPI states plainly that you do not need one to fish in the sea — only fresh water needs a licence. The rules are REGIONAL, though: MPI divides the country into seven fishing areas with their own sizes and limits, and the Kaikōura Marine Area has rules of its own on top. Buying, selling or swapping recreationally caught seafood is an offence under the Fisheries Act 1996.
✓Three species may not be taken with a SPEAR anywhere in the country: rock lobster, salmon and trout. For rock lobster it is an express rule — using a spear to take one, and possessing a speared lobster, are both prohibited, with a fine up to NZ$10,000 (Fisheries (Amateur Fishing) Regulations 2013, reg. 29(2)). Salmon and trout are freshwater sports fish managed by Fish & Game.
✓AN IMPORTANT CORRECTION to a common belief: no nationwide scuba ban for spearfishing was found in the MPI rules. The only breathing-apparatus prohibition is for PĀUA: it may be neither taken nor possessed while you have apparatus, even if the tank is merely in the car or on the boat (Fisheries (Amateur Fishing) Regulations 2013, reg. 48). A snorkel is not apparatus, and what forbids rock lobster is the SPEAR, not the tank. An absence of prohibition is not a permission: ask MPI before you go.
✓: MPI describes spearfishing as catching fish with rubber-powered spearguns and slings or compressed-gas pneumatic spearguns, and its rules say neither yes nor no about or explosive tips. Treat the question as UNRESOLVED and do not carry a as permitted gear. No time-of-day restriction was found in the MPI rules or in the Fisheries (Amateur Fishing) Regulations 2013.
✓How to measure and where to check: a finfish is measured from the tip of the nose to the end of the middle ray of the tail fin — the 'V' of the tail, not its tips (Fisheries (Amateur Fishing) Regulations 2013). Rock lobster is measured by tail WIDTH; pāua along the flat face of the shell in a straight line, not over the curve. Rules change often: MPI asks you to check them each time before you go fishing, for example in the NZ Fishing Rules app. Poaching: 0800 4 POACHER.
✓Challenger: combined finfish limit 20. Blue cod 2 a day at 33 cm in Tasman (Farewell Spit – Clarence), and the Marlborough Sounds are CLOSED to it 1 Sep – 10 Jan every year. Snapper 10 in the Challenger area and only 3 inside the Sounds, min 25 cm. Rock lobster 6 combined (max 3 packhorse), possession max 18 bagged and tagged by day; telson clipping is compulsory from Bush End Point to Clarence Point. Scallop SCA 7 has been closed since 2018 (MPI; Fisheries (Recreational Management Controls) Notice No. 1 2026).
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 Bruce Bay
Where can I spearfish in Bruce Bay?
Bruce Bay has rock entry points such as Heretaniwha Point, Buttress Point and Awataikato Point. About 0.1 km south-west of Bruce Bay begins the Mahitahi/Bruce Bay mātaitai reserve, a customary fisheries area with its own local rules; it is not marked as a ban, so the question is what those rules allow. Below you'll find each spot (access, shelter and hazards) and today's forecast.
When is the best season in Bruce Bay?
Summer (Dec–Mar) — open coast under Tasman-Sea swell; murkier water, rare windows.
How cold is the water in Bruce Bay?
Summer 12–16 °C — 7 mm suit; Tasman swell.
Is Bruce Bay good for a beginner?
Very hard: open Tasman swell, murk — rare windows.
Do I need a licence in Bruce Bay?
No — New Zealand has no recreational sea-fishing licence, so anyone may spearfish at Bruce Bay; MPI's size, bag and gear rules still apply and they are set per MPI fishing area: Bruce Bay is in the Challenger area, where the combined finfish daily limit is 20 (10 inside Paringa, Popotai Taumaka/Open Bay Islands, Okahu/Jacksons Bay, Tauneke/Barn Bay mātaitai). Pāua is free-dive only — having underwater breathing apparatus while taking pāua is banned nationwide — crayfish (rock lobster) may be taken only by hand or a hand-held loop, never speared — MPI's rules set no scuba ban for crayfish; spearfishing is banned inside every marine reserve, and mātaitai, taiāpure and rāhui must be respected. See the guide.
•Weather: MetService coastal forecasts and gale warnings — metservice.com/marine/coastal, areas: stephens, abel, grey, conway. Fishing rules change: check MPI or the NZ Fishing Rules app before every trip.
⛔ 🚫 Absolutely protected under the Wildlife Act 1953: white, basking, whale, oceanic whitetip and smalltooth sandtiger sharks, oceanic manta and spinetail devil rays, giant grouper and spotted black grouper, plus black corals, gorgonians, stony corals and hydrocorals. Marine mammals sit under the Marine Mammals Protection Act 1978. Penalty up to NZ$250,000 and six months.
⛔ 🚫 Marine reserves (Marine Reserves Act 1971) are total no-take by any method, spearfishing included; so are areas protected under the Conservation Act 1987. and run on their own bylaws, and a is a temporary closure under the Fisheries Act 1996 with a real fine as well as a tapu. Check local bylaws and current before you go — they change several times a year.
⛔ 🚫 The Marlborough Sounds are closed to blue cod 1 Sep – 10 Jan every year. The southern scallop fishery (SCA 7) in the Sounds, Tasman Bay, Golden Bay and Port Underwood has been closed since 15 July 2018 indefinitely. On the West Coast the bylaws of the nine Makaawhio apply — several of them are no-take.
Rules change and are regional. Before heading out, check with MPI (regional fishing rules / the NZ Fishing Rules app), DOC (marine reserves) and local notices (rāhui/mātaitai).
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