Cartagena spearfishing forecast — wind, swell, visibility & live cameras

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⚠ Spearfishing banned here. Reserva Marina de Interés Pesquero de Cabo Tiñoso — Spearfishing banned throughout this protected zone (Comunidad Autónoma de la Región de Murcia (aguas interiores) / MAPA (aguas exteriores)). Legal only outside its boundaries. Boundaries approximate — check the official source.
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◈Cartagena · Spain
8.5
wave 0.2 m
visibility~7m

Cleartodive

Dive today — wave, wind and visibility.

Sources: AEMET/MeteoAlarm · buoys · Open-Meteo · Copernicus · Sentinel-2 — high confidence · data 20:59

Sources & confidence

Sources
AEMET/MeteoAlarm · buoys · 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.

Entry pointsNo-take zonesLive cams

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.

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Surface

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

spearo.app
no dataupdated 20:59
Cartagena — solo, off the rocks
BEST WINDOW
⛔ Banned here
best weather window · solo, stay careful, run the checklist · calm conditions: swell, wind and visibility all normal
wave 0.2 mwind 5 km/hvisibility ~7 mwindow 06:00–21:00
today, best window 06:00–09:00
fish · Visibility 7 m · Water 24.8°C
confidence high · verdict for the selected day
Best window · next 3 days
goTuesday · 09:00–12:00
you can see ~7 m ahead fish

〜 tide is minor here

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Before entering, check the camera and the surge
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
08:22–19:14 · full moon
▲ 03:00▼ 08:00▲ 16:00▼ 21:00 · 0.2 m
Hours (06→20)
06
09
12
15
18
Day's trends
Tide-0.53 m
Wave0.42 m
Wind6 km/h
Water25 °C
fish activity: moon overhead 00:40 · high · moonset 07:29 · moderate · moon underfoot 13:00 · high · moonrise 18:34 · moderate
Conditions window06:00–09:00
best weather window · solo, stay careful, run the checklist fish
Hs 0.20 m · calmperiod 4 swind 5→6surge 0.1viz 7 m
0.20 mcalm · up to ~0.40 · 81° at an angle
4 sswell moderate
5→6gusts 6 km/h
0.1weak surge
0.19m/s
7 mrecent swell
24.8°C5 mm + hood
▼08:00tide turn near
Atmosphere24 kmlandmarks visible
moderatemoonset
  • calm conditions: swell, wind and visibility all normal
  • dawn/dusk
confidence hightwilight
Open the seafloor map with entry points →

Your best window — with you. Forecast in your pocket.

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−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.

See all spots →
−20 m

The seabed

Relief and bottom type, tides, and the depths of each spot.

On the rock

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

The models set the window. Whether you go in is read only at the water: count the sets, watch the surge on the entry. If in doubt, you don't get in.

Entry points

Where to get in
off the rocks.

Scouted entries, coloured by today. The colour is the sea state at the spot, not a guarantee: the wash and a slippery entry you judge on site.

⛔ Banned here

Open the seafloor map →
Cabo TiñosoCartagena
no data
window
—
tide
The tide moves 10–20 cm and does not count: this coast has no tidal stream at all. What works is the water wrapping the point itself, where the wall drops past 50 m and two kilometres offshore the bottom falls below a thousand. After a few days of settled wind a clear flow runs by Cabo Falcón.
shelter
The cape is the southern spur of the Sierra de la Muela, 546 m, and it drops almost sheer. The western flank, towards Cala del Bolete and La Azohía, sits in the lee with Levante (E); the eastern one, facing El Portús, blocks Lebeche and Poniente (SW-W). Punta de la Azohía is the second screen.
conditions
The gun is off here in any weather: the whole water around the cape is reserve, and no wind changes that. For the picture: with N and NW the water goes glassy and you see 15–25 m; with the southern sector 110–230 the swell slams the wall. To shoot, drive to El Portús, 8 km east, outside the cells.
hazard
The main hazard here is legal. Outer waters: Orden APM/844/2017, art. 2 — the whole area is declared a reserva integral, only authorised science allowed. Inner waters: Decreto 81/2016, art. 4.1 — recreational fishing banned in cells A, B and C. Above the cape sit the Castillitos and Atalayón batteries, and Monte Roldán is a live military range.

One morning glance — and you know.

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≈

Surfacing

Cameras, map and reference — to hand as you come up.

Live cameras, map & reference
Cameras · live

Look at the water
right now.

Check the cam BEFORE you leave. Foam, brown/green murk, or waves washing the entry rocks = No-go. At night/in fog the cam is useless — treat it as «unknown», NOT «green».

more: Cartagena — La Manga del Mar Menor ↗
Open the seafloor map →
Reference

What's in season,
what the law says.

Minimum sizes by caladero (in the table below). Season depends on the species and place.

In season now
  • European seabass
    Dicentrarchus labrax · Mediterranean · UE 2019/1241
  • gilthead seabream
    Sparus aurata · Mediterranean · UE 2019/1241
  • white seabream
    Diplodus sargus · Mediterranean · UE 2019/1241
  • two-banded seabream
    Diplodus vulgaris · Mediterranean · UE 2019/1241
  • sharpsnout seabream
    Diplodus puntazzo · Mediterranean · UE 2019/1241
  • salema / saupe
    Sarpa salpa · Mediterranean · RD 560/1995 Anexo II
    ⚠️ Do NOT eat the head/guts (ichthyosarcotoxism).
  • bogue
    Boops boops · Mediterranean · RD 560/1995 Anexo II
Burriana
  • Benicàssim
  • Peñíscola

    • Balearics

    • Formentera
    • Sant Antoni (Ibiza)
    • Palma
    • Alcúdia
    • Ciutadella
    • Maó

    Catalonia

    • L'Ametlla de Mar
    • Tarragona
    • Sitges
    • Barcelona
    • Arenys de Mar
    • Tossa de Mar

    Andalusia (Atlantic)

    • Algeciras
    • Tarifa
    • Conil de la Frontera
    • Cádiz
    • Chipiona
    • Isla Cristina

    All 73 spots → · Region: Murcia · spearo.app — All countries

    transparency ~22 m · satellite, 2 days agosatellite estimate · may differ right at the shore

    Cartagena buoy: wave 0.4 m · 1 min ago

    access
    The approach is the RM-E22 Cartagena–Isla Plana–Mazarrón, then the RM-E23 to La Azohía and the narrow climb to the Castillitos battery, with traffic controlled in summer. Getting down to the water at the cape means paths and rock; most people arrive by boat from La Azohía or Puerto de Mazarrón. With a gun there is no reason to come.

    Cape with deep drop-offs to the SW; grouper, dentex and sea bream, very exposed to the S; a renowned ground.

    Google Maps
    Cala SalitronaCartagena
    no data
    window
    —
    tide
    The level moves 10–20 cm and this coast has no tidal stream at all. Nobody has published current measurements for the cove itself — treat it as weak and do not build the day around it. What you do feel is a light slide of water along the limestone walls towards Cala Cerrada after a few days of settled Poniente.
    shelter
    The cove sits on the western flank of Cabo Tiñoso, in the limestone stretch between La Azohía and El Portús, next to Cala Cerrada and Cala del Pozo de la Avispa. The bulk of the cape keeps it in the lee with Levante, which is the whole point of coming. It faces west and south-west, so Poniente and above all Lebeche kill it.
    conditions
    Rocky shore, no sand beaches and no watercourse draining into the cove — the water stays clean on almost any day. It buys you nothing: longitude −1.1268 falls inside cell B, a reserva integral, and shooting is off in any wind. Take the gun some five kilometres east along the coast, to El Portús, outside the cells.
    hazard
    First and decisive: Decreto 81/2016, art. 4.1 bans recreational fishing in cells A, B and C of the Cabo Tiñoso reserve, and this cove lies in cell B, declared a reserva integral. Then the physics: phone coverage fails in places, the entry is over rock, depth starts right at the shore and evacuation means the same long path back up.
    access
    On foot only, 30–45 minutes. The long way starts at the Torre de Santa Elena in La Azohía along the GR-92; the short one drops from the dirt tracks running above the cove. By car it is about 29 km and forty-three minutes from Cartagena: RM-E22, then RM-E23. No 4x4 needed, but you park on the verge of the track with no room to turn.

    Rocky coves below Cabo Tiñoso; tricky entry, exposed to S swell.

    Google Maps
    🔒 El Peñón (Puerto de Mazarrón)Cartagena
    no data
    Pro · subscribers
    window
    —

    The full spot briefing is part of the subscription: entry, bottom, hazards, tide window.

    Open in the app →
    El PortúsCartagena
    no data
    window
    —
    tide
    The tide is 10–20 cm here, nothing to reckon with. Inside the cove the water is almost still, no current; past the entrance points of La Muela, though, it pulls along the shore once the wind has been settled for days. The other late-summer story is Cotylorhiza, the fried-egg jellyfish: harmless, but they fill the top layer and block the view.
    shelter
    The cove cuts deep and faces south to south-south-east, wedged between the Sierra de la Muela and the Cabezo de la Aguja. The range covers it from N and NW, and La Muela screens the Levante — Cartagena as a whole sits a resguardo de Levante. It is open to the south: Lebeche and southern swell walk in and stir the shingle.
    conditions
    Come with Levante or northerlies: the cove lies flat and shingle, unlike sand, barely clouds — in calm you see 15 m or more. With the 110–230 sector, worst around 135, the swell walks in and leaves you two or three metres. Cartagena's ordinance: from 1 June to 30 September you cannot shoot in the bathing zone between 10:00 and 21:00.
    hazard
    The ban starts to the west: past Cabo Tiñoso come the reserve cells, and right east of the cove sits cell A, 500 m around Isla de Las Palomas. Cartagena's ordinance, art. 7, closes the approach channels to the ports and to the Mar Menor; eight kilometres east lies the naval base. A buoy with the Alfa flag is compulsory, and you stay within 25 m of it.
    access
    From Cartagena it is 11–12 km on the RM-E22 and Calle Mayor, about seventeen minutes. Parking is unguarded, fifty to a hundred spaces that fill up in summer; ALSA line 4 runs there, plus the summer BUS PLAYA line 12. The main beach is public shingle; access to Cala Morena ran through the campsite, and a public right of way was declared in January 2026.

    Rocky cove west of Cartagena, outside the Cabo Tiñoso reserve; rock drop-offs, sea bream and octopus, semi-sheltered, easy entry.

    Google Maps

    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.

  • striped seabream
    Lithognathus mormyrus · Mediterranean · UE 2019/1241
  • grey mullet
    Mugil / Chelon spp. · Mediterranean · RD 560/1995 Anexo II
  • red porgy
    Pagrus pagrus · Mediterranean · UE 2019/1241
  • striped red mullet
    Mullus surmuletus · Mediterranean · UE 2019/1241
  • dusky grouper
    Epinephelus marginatus · Mediterranean · UE 2019/1241
    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).
    • ✓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.
    • •Murcia: Law 2/2007; the spearfishing licence is processed separately at the CARM. Confirm the exact procedure page at carm.es.
    • ✓Bans: RMIP Cabo de Palos–Islas Hormigas and Cabo Tiñoso — spearfishing banned (see zones).
    • ✓Murcia (Decreto 72/2016, internal waters): the spearfishing licence requires being of FULL AGE — 18 (art. 11.2.a; the surface licence is 14, art. 7.2) — a medical certificate of physical fitness for spearfishing specifically, and accident + third-party liability insurance covering the whole licence period; it lasts 1 year (art. 11.2–3). Only a harpoon is allowed, hand-held or mechanically propelled, with one or several points (art. 12). A clearly visible buoy with the Alfa flag is mandatory and you may not go more than 25 m from it (art. 13). Prohibited: carrying spearfishing gear and underwater breathing equipment aboard at the same time, spearfishing within 250 m of beaches used by bathers, night — sunset to sunrise, a loaded gun out of the water, any autonomous or semi-autonomous diving equipment, explosive/electric points and lamps (hand torches excepted) and underwater scooters (art. 14). General bans: no invertebrates other than the cephalopods of the state decree's Annex I (art. 5.c); 200 m from professional set gear, aquaculture polygons and fishing vessels (art. 5.i); no recreational fishing at all in marine reserves and in navigable and port-access channels (art. 5.k).
    • ⛔ 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.

    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.
    Local guide · Cartagena

    Spearfishing in Cartagena: spots, seasons and rules

    Updated 2026-07-09 · By Oleksandr, spearfisher

    Cartagena is legality-first. The Cabo Tiñoso marine reserve is listed as closed to spearfishing, so Cabo Tiñoso and Cala Salitrona are boundary warnings, not open recommendations. El Portús is the clearest usable entry because it is outside the reserve boundary, semi-sheltered and easy. Isla de las Palomas sits under the Cabo Tiñoso reserve hard warning: treat it as a no-go unless a current boundary check proves otherwise. The legal split is Murcia plus Mediterranean sizes.

    TL;DR

    • Do not treat Cabo Tiñoso reserve water as a spearfishing area.
    • Best practical start: El Portús, outside the reserve boundary and semi-sheltered.
    • Main weather risk: S-SE swell, with southeast worst for the city setup.

    Best legal spearfishing spots near Cartagena

    These shore-entry zones should only be used with settled sea, a visible buoy and confirmed local limits.

    SpotTypeDepthLevelAccessNotes
    El PortúsRocky cove west of Cartagena, outside the Cabo Tiñoso reserveRock ledges and drop-offsCareful beginnerEasy shore entryOutside-reserve rocky cove, semi-sheltered, easy entry. Use in clean sea. Murcia licence required.
    Cabo TiñosoCape with deep drop-offs to the SWDeep rocky ledgesAdvancedShore entry with a clear exit routeDeep ledges, but reserve caution. Very south-exposed. Closed inside reserve boundaries.
    Cala SalitronaRocky coves below Cabo TiñosoShore rock in shallow waterIntermediateDifficult rock entryRocky coves below Cabo Tiñoso. Tricky entry, south swell. Boundary check required.

    Conditions and season essentials

    The bad sector runs from E-SE to SW, with southeast worst. El Portús has rocky ledges, sargo and octopus, and is listed outside the Cabo Tiñoso reserve. Isla de las Palomas toward Isla Plana is rocky ground with moderate SE exposure. Cabo Tiñoso has deep ledges and fish, but the marine reserve ban means it cannot be framed as open water. Cala Salitrona has tricky entry and south swell exposure. Murcia processes the spearfishing licence separately through CARM. The caladero is Mediterranean: seabass 25 cm, gilthead 20 cm, sargo 23 cm, grouper 45 cm, octopus 1 kg.

    FAQ

    Is Cabo Tiñoso reserve open to spearfishing?

    No. Spearfishing is banned throughout the marine reserve.

    Which spot is listed outside the reserve?

    El Portús.

    What conditions are worst?

    Southeast sea, within the E-SE to SW bad sector.

    What licence applies?

    A Murcia spearfishing licence processed separately through CARM.

    What is the local caladero?

    Mediterranean.

    Sources

    • Region of Murcia (CARM)
    • BOE, RD 347/2011 recreational sea fishing

    Nearby towns

    • Spearfishing in Cabo de Palos
    • Spearfishing in Águilas
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    • Formentera conditions today
    • Palma: forecast and spots
    Data partners
    dive centres that send us real visibility readings
    Águas VivasMilfontes · Sagres