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
no dataupdated 11:35
Carboneras — solo, off the rocks
BEST WINDOW
best weather window · solo, stay careful, run the checklist · calm conditions: swell, wind and visibility all normal
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.
The level here is what it is all along this coast, around half a metre, and it settles nothing. Two things settle it: the cold water rising during a long Poniente, which can pull the surface down several degrees in a day, and the silt from the Carboneras rambla and the río Alías after rain, murky for one to three days.
shelter
Straight up: that place name is not confirmed on any map of this coast, so we are talking about the stretch south of Carboneras in general. There the shore runs under cliffs towards Mesa Roldán, faces east and south-east, and Levante hits it with no defence at all. Shelter appears only with Poniente, right at the foot of the rock.
conditions
Do not come here with a gun in any weather: south of the parallel 36 degrees 57.850 minutes — the Barranco del Hondo mouth by playa del Corral — the Cabo de Gata-Níjar reserve begins, where spearfishing is expressly banned (Orden ARM/1744/2011, art. 5). You shoot only to the north: Algarrobico, the rock by the port, Isla de San Andrés.
hazard
First and foremost, this is a reserve: any spearfishing here is punished, and both the Guardia Civil and the park wardens patrol the shore. Second, the physics: with hard Levante this stretch is reckoned one of the most dangerous on the whole coast, there is no lifeguard, and getting out over rock in surge is heavy work. Plenty of urchins on the slabs.
access
The whole stretch is reached on foot only, by paths from the car parks above — there is no vehicle access down to the water anywhere. In summer you leave the car in the regulated bay or arrive by bus from Carboneras. And remember: access is for swimming and snorkelling, it gives you no right to bring a gun in any month of the year.
Black-sand cove below a cliff; rock at both ends, exposed to the E-SE; edge of the Cabo de Gata reserve.
In the Alborán the level moves about half a metre and does not affect hunting. What works is the flow round the rock: current wraps the islet, nobody has published speed measurements, so you judge it by eye and stay with your buoy. The old power station's warm discharge is gone — it was demolished in 2025 — but the desalination plant still releases brine.
shelter
The whole Carboneras shore faces east and south-east, so Levante comes straight in, worst around 100 degrees. That is exactly what makes the islet worth it: it is round, and with any wind one of its faces sits in the lee. With Levante you work the west side; with Poniente you move to the east one.
conditions
The best day is Poniente: the sea goes mirror flat, but cold greenish water rises from below and the gap with the forecast can be several degrees. With Levante from the 50-170 sector the whole Carboneras front clouds over and there is nothing to work. Around the islet it is volcanic rock and posidonia, from two metres down to thirty.
hazard
Legal first: about 1.3 km to the south runs the northern limit of the Cabo de Gata-Níjar reserve, the parallel of the Barranco del Hondo mouth, 36 degrees 57.850 minutes north. South of it spearfishing is banned. The islet itself is a Monumento Natural — check its access and anchoring rules in advance. Buoy compulsory, scuba banned while hunting.
access
From the La Puntica headland to the islet is under four hundred metres to the south-east — a realistic swim, but it crosses the harbour approach channel, so your buoy has to be visible from far off. You get in over rock inside the town, boots mandatory. The Carboneras dive centres come out by boat; parking is ordinary street parking by the promenade.
Volcanic islet off Carboneras; rocky drop-offs, grouper and dentex, exposed to the easterly (E).
The beach sits right at the mouth of the río Alías, and that is the main factor: after rain the river pushes out a brown plume that lies along the shore for one to three days. The half-metre of tide means nothing here. With a long Poniente the cold water from below is added — you feel the step in the first few metres.
shelter
A wild open beach between Carboneras and Mojácar: it faces east and south-east and has, strictly speaking, no shelter. The only thing that helps is the rocky Punta del Algarrobico at the south end — under it, with Levante, the wave arrives a little weaker. With Poniente the wind runs off the sierra to sea and the whole beach turns to glass.
conditions
You work this one with Poniente or a light northerly. The sand is dark and fine: at the first swell out of the 50-170 sector it lifts and hangs for hours, and over the beach there will be nothing to see. The ground worth working is the rock at Punta del Algarrobico and the ridges to the north; there is no zonal ban here, the reserve ends some seven kilometres south.
hazard
The place is wild: no lifeguard, no shower, no beach bar, and above the sand stands the concrete carcass of the unfinished twenty-one-storey hotel, with rubble and rebar around it — stay out of it. The Cabo de Gata reserve boundary is some seven kilometres south; north of it there is no zonal restriction. Buoy compulsory, scuba banned while hunting.
access
From Carboneras on the AL-5106 and AL-5107 towards Mojácar; the turn to the sea is signed, then a dirt track past the hotel carcass. At the bottom there is a free earth clearing with few spaces, and a bit of ground clearance on the car does not hurt. You enter off the sand, and the rocks of Punta del Algarrobico are a few minutes' walk south.
Wild beach north of the Cabo de Gata reserve boundary; rock at Punta del Algarrobico, rich grounds, very exposed to the easterly.
Old write-ups promise warm water at El Corral from the power station outfall — forget it: the Litoral plant was disconnected in 2021 and the last demolition blast was on 30 October 2025, so that warm plume is gone. What is left is the desalination brine and the ordinary along-shore drift. The half-metre of tide changes nothing.
shelter
The rocky stretch north of the harbour: the moles cut the swell from south and south-east, and in their lee the water stays noticeably calmer than on the open Carboneras beaches. With Levante from 50 to 170 degrees the swell still gets in, but it breaks on rock rather than sand, so the murk clears sooner.
conditions
Come with Poniente and work strictly to the north: playa del Corral is precisely the named landmark for the Cabo de Gata-Níjar reserve boundary — north of it you may hunt, south of it you may not. The bottom here is white cobble and coarse rock, it clouds far less than the sand beaches and clears faster after a blow.
hazard
Legally this is the finest line in the municipality: the reserve boundary runs at playa del Corral, and two hundred metres too far south turns the session into an offence. Then the physics: the cement terminal, ro-ro and tanker approaches work round the clock, and the demolished power station plot is a site full of rebar. Buoy compulsory, stay off the channel.
access
From the Carboneras promenade on the AL-5106, turn towards the old power station plot and park right by the water. You enter over big white cobbles — locals name the place after the red lighthouse. Boots mandatory, the cobbles are round and slippery. The working ridges are a short swim out, but your buoy has to be visible from the channel.
Rocky ground north of the harbour; easy entry, semi-sheltered from the easterly, good for beginners.
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.
Sin prohibición estatal de captura (NO está en el Catálogo Español, RD 139/2011).
common octopus
Octopus vulgaris · Mediterranean · 1 kg
Talla por PESO: mín. 1 kg (RD 560/1995, todos los anexos). No coger hembras con huevos.
Law
✓Spearfishing licence mandatory; the AUTONOMOUS COMMUNITY issues it (not the State) and it is valid in the exterior waters of the whole coast. Free-diving only — scuba is banned (, art. 3).
✓Spearfishing catch may not be sold or traded — it is non-commercial fishing ().
✓Night prohibited: spearfishing only in daylight (sunset to sunrise not allowed) — , art. 16.d.
✓Marker buoy MANDATORY: mark your position with a clearly visible buoy and stay within 25 m of it — , art. 15.
✓Never keep the speargun loaded out of the water — , art. 16.a.
✓Keep at least 300 m from professional fishing vessels that are working — , art. 12.b.
✓The state act (, art. 16) bans, for spearfishing: a loaded gun out of the water; explosive/electric points and lamps (hand torches excepted); underwater scooters; night — from sunset to sunrise. Plus art. 12 b), d), e): 300 m from professional fishing vessels, light as an attractant, poisons/explosives. A ban in a PARTICULAR reserve, port or beach comes from that place's OWN instrument (the reserve's order, the autonomous community's rules, the port authority) — see the no-take zones on the map and your community's rules.
✓Min. sizes by ( + + EU 2019/1241): sea bass 42 cm (rec.) / 36 cm / 25 cm Mediterranean / 22 cm Canaries; gilthead bream 20 cm and white seabream 23 cm in the Mediterranean (EU 2019/1241); grouper 45 cm. See your zone's species card.
✓Only species in Annex I of may be taken; keeping, landing or transporting undersized specimens is prohibited.
✓The licence needs a medical fitness certificate for free-diving and civil-liability insurance (or a federative licence, which includes it). Mandatory in the Basque Country/Murcia/Asturias/Galicia; the federative licence covers it in Galicia/Balearics/Cantabria; the Canaries and Andalusia do NOT require it for the individual licence (a responsible health declaration). Minimum age generally 16 (14 in Andalusia).
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 Carboneras
Where can I spearfish in Carboneras?
Carboneras has rock entry points such as Isla de San Andrés, Cala del Toro and Playa del Algarrobico. Carboneras faces east, on the edge of the Cabo de Gata reserve. Below you'll find each spot (access, shelter and hazards) and today's forecast.
When is the best season in Carboneras?
Long season in the Alborán Sea. Currents off the Strait can pull, and the tide — though weakened — is still felt; the Atlantic inflow keeps it cooler and sometimes greener than the rest of the Med.
How cold is the water in Carboneras?
~15–23 °C: the Alborán Sea is cooler and sometimes greener than the rest of the Med, from the Atlantic mixing. A 3 mm suit in summer, 5 mm in the shoulder months.
Is Carboneras good for a beginner?
Intermediate: currents off the Strait can pull and visibility swings with the Atlantic mixing. Pick a day of weak current and small sea; keep the buoy in sight.
Do I need a licence in Carboneras?
Yes — in Carboneras you need a recreational sea-fishing licence (issued by the autonomous community); breath-hold only (no scuba), with a marker buoy and no night diving. See the guide.
✓There is no fixed national catch cap (, art. 5 delegates it to the communities); the standard is 5 kg/person/day, with 1 specimen allowed not to count (Canaries — Decreto 182/2004, art. 38.3; Murcia; Galicia; Basque Country). Protected species have per-piece quotas.
✓Only a harpoon is allowed — hand-held or mechanically propelled, with one or several points (, art. 14.1). Carrying spearfishing gear and underwater breathing equipment aboard AT THE SAME TIME is prohibited (art. 14.2) — an offence in itself, even if you dived on a breath hold.
✓Spain is not one jurisdiction. The licence is issued by a coastal autonomous community, and you must comply with the rules of the administration on whose littoral you are in the water: «debiendo cumplir la normativa establecida por la administración en cuyo litoral se realice la actividad» (, art. 13). Interior waters — inside the straight baselines: bays, coves, rías, the whole coastal strip — are the community's competence; exterior waters are the State's. So the age, the days of the week, the distances and the are found in your community's act, not in the state one.
•Andalusia: spearfishing licence; requires a medical certificate (NO civil-liability insurance — a responsible health declaration replaces it, ); applied for at the Junta de Andalucía. Confirm the exact procedure page at juntadeandalucia.es.
✓Andalusia: minimum licence age (incl. spearfishing/class 4) — 14; under-14s only surface modalities accompanied by an adult (Decreto 205/2023, art. 4.2/4.3). No civil-liability insurance: a responsible health declaration (, Annex IV).
✓Bans: RMIP Cabo de Gata-Níjar and Alborán island — spearfishing banned (see zones).
✓Andalusia: licence from age 14 (Decreto 205/2023, art. 4.2), minors accompanied (art. 5.3). The cap is 5 kg live weight or 4 kg gutted per licence per day (art. 9.1). Selling the catch (art. 12.a), powder or gas guns (art. 12.l), autonomous equipment and underwater scooters (art. 12.m) are prohibited. Buoy red or orange with the «Alfa» flag (art. 20.2); keep 250 m from people on the beach, bathing places, busy areas, port areas and navigation channels, and the same from set gear and professional vessels (art. 20.3). Allowed every day of the year, but only from sunrise to sunset (art. 22).
⛔ Seahorses (Hippocampus) — protected (RPE).
Rules change and are REGIONAL. Before heading out, check with the competent autonomous community (licence) and the min-size table in force.
Data partners
dive centres that send us real visibility readings
Spain
