Coquimbo spearfishing forecast — wind, swell, visibility, tides & live cameras

spearo.app / Chile / Coquimbo
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◈Coquimbo · Chile
5.1
wave 1.4 m head-on
visibility~1m

Marginal

Today — right on the edge — wave, wind and surge pounding.

Sources: Open-Meteo · Copernicus — high confidence · data 00:16

Sources & confidence

Sources
Open-Meteo · Copernicus
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 zones

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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0 m

Surface

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

spearo.app
updated 00:16
Coquimbo — solo, off the rocks
BORDERLINE
caution — solo off the rocks is risky, check on site · wave 1.4 m (occasionally up to ~2.8 m)
wave 1.4 m head-onwind 3 km/hsurge pounding the rocksvisibility ~1 m
today, best window 06:00–09:00
fish · Visibility 1 m · Water 17.1°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
06:56–20:02 · full moon
▼ 04:00▲ 10:00▼ 16:00▲ 22:00mid-range tides · 1.3 m
Hours (06→20)
06
09
12
15
18
Day's trends
Tide0.70 m
Wave1.42 m
Wind3 km/h
Water18 °C
fish activity: moon overhead 00:30 · high · moonset 06:14 · moderate · moon underfoot 13:00 · high · moonrise 19:48 · moderate
Conditions window06:00–09:00
caution — solo off the rocks is risky, check on site fish
Hs 1.42 m · roughperiod 5.5 s head-onwind 3→7surge 2.7viz 1 m
1.42 mrough · up to ~2.84 · 231° head-on
5.5 sswell moderate
3→7gusts 7 km/h
2.7pounding the rocks
0.08m/s
1 mrecent swell
17.1°C5 mm + hood
▲10:00tide rising
Atmosphere18 kmlandmarks visible
moderatemoonset
  • wave 1.4 m (occasionally up to ~2.8 m)
  • murky water (visibility ~1 m)
  • flood — water rising
confidence lowtwilight
Open the seafloor map with entry points →
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spearo.app · a private marine instrument · Coquimbo · a planner, not a safety guaranteePrivacy
Today
Notify me
Map
Best window · next 3 days
borderlinetomorrow · 06:00–09:00
you can see ~1 m ahead fish

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

↓ low tide 03:38 · slack water ~02:53–04:23 bite times: 12:00–14:00 · 19:18–20:18

Tell me when it's on

Just your email — nothing else needed.

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.

Open the seafloor map →
La HerraduraCoquimbo
borderline
in the headland's lee today — swell from the quarter/behind
window
—

North-sheltered bay, rock and kelp 0–15 m, shore; pescasub home. Coords approx.

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.

One morning glance — and you know.

Download on theApp StoreGET IT ONGoogle Play
Google Play — QR code
point your camera
≈

Surfacing

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

Live cameras, map & reference
Open the seafloor map →
Reference

What's in season,
what the law says.

In season now
  • Chilean sandperch (vieja)
    Graus nigra · 3–40 m · ⚠️ closed season/limit
    ⚠️ Limit 1 fish/day, no minimum size. Heavily speared — better to release.
  • Chilean sheephead
    Semicossyphus darwini · 3–30 m · ⚠️ closed season/limit
    ⚠️ Limit 1 fish/day, no minimum size. Heavily speared — better to release.
  • Peruvian grunt
    Anisotremus scapularis · 1–20 m · legal
    Limit 5 fish/day (overall cap ≤10/jornada). No minimum size.
  • Chilean sandperch (rollizo)
    Pinguipes chilensis · 2–30 m · legal
    Limit 5 fish/day (overall cap ≤10/jornada). No minimum size.
  • Peruvian morwong
    Cheilodactylus variegatus · 1–25 m · legal
    Limit 5 fish/day (overall cap ≤10/jornada). No minimum size.
  • Lorna drum
    Sciaena deliciosa · 2–25 m · legal
    Limit 5 fish/day (overall cap ≤10/jornada). No minimum size.
  • snoek
    Thyrsites atun · 0–30 m · legal
  • yellowtail amberjack
    Seriola lalandi · 3–40 m · legal
  • corvina drum
    Cilus gilberti · 2–30 m · ⚠️ closed season/limit
    ⚠️ Biological closure 1 Oct–30 Nov. Min 40 cm (TL), limit 3/day.
  • palm ruff
    Seriolella violacea · 3–40 m · ⚠️ closed season/limit
    ⚠️ Closed 1–31 Aug. Min 30 cm (Atacama–Coquimbo).
  • Chilean jack mackerel
    Trachurus murphyi · 0–40 m · legal
  • jerguilla
    Aplodactylus punctatus · 1–20 m · legal
  • apañado
    Hemilutjanus macrophthalmos · 5–40 m · legal
  • rock bass
    Paralabrax humeralis · 3–30 m · legal
  • flounder
    Paralichthys sp. · 2–30 m · legal
  • elephant fish
    Callorhinchus callorhynchus · 5–40 m · ⚠️ release
    Mandatory release (catch-and-release). Do not keep.
  • humpback smoothhound
    Mustelus whitneyi · 5–40 m · ⚠️ release
    Mandatory release (catch-and-release). Do not keep.
  • Chilean abalone (loco)
    Concholepas concholepas · 1–20 m · 🚫 no-take
    🚫 Permanent extraction ban to 31 Dec 2028 (Arica→Aysén). Benthos — by hand by the AMERB org, not speargun; no recreational take.
Law
  • ✓A SERNAPESCA recreational-fishing licence is required — it explicitly covers spearfishing (defined as capture by sport diving, apnea and spearguns). Online at pescarecreativa.sernapesca.cl. Free for 65+/under-12/disabled. Sale prohibited.
  • ✓Unlike continental Argentina, scuba is not banned: the legal definition includes 'sport diving', so both apnea and scuba are legal. Respect RAV closed seasons (conger, corvina) and regional sizes.
  • ⛔ 🚫 Loco (Concholepas) — permanent ban to 31 Dec 2028 (Arica→Aysén). Only by hand by the AMERB org; outsiders/recreational barred.
  • ⛔ Elephant fish (Callorhinchus) and smoothhounds (Mustelus) — mandatory release. Don't shoot.
  • ⛔ AMERB areas (hundreds of polygons): benthos (loco/lapa/erizo) — exclusive to fisher orgs, don't take; fish by speargun — grey zone, check locally.
  • ⛔ Marine mammals, sea turtles, penguins — protected; do not touch.

Rules change. Before heading out, get the recreational licence (SERNAPESCA, pescarecreativa.sernapesca.cl) and respect the RAV closed seasons and regional sizes.

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 · Coquimbo

Spearfishing in Coquimbo: spots, seasons and rules

Updated 2026-07-09 · By Oleksandr, spearfisher

Coquimbo centres on La Herradura and shared bay use. The mark has north shelter, rock, kelp and 0-15 m shore access. Signal clearly and leave room for boats inside the bay. Local spearfishing culture never replaces the national licence or closures. Good water is settled inside the bay, with kelp moving gently rather than surging.

TL;DR

  • La Herradura combines shelter, rock, kelp and local spearfishing culture.
  • North and northwest can still disturb the bay.
  • Local tradition never replaces licence, closures or boat awareness.

Where can you spearfish in Coquimbo?

La Herradura is the Coquimbo mark: sheltered water, kelp structure, shore access and boat awareness in the same package.

SpotTypeDepthLevelAccessNotes
La HerraduraRock and sand bay0-15 mAccessible to intermediateShore entryNorth-sheltered bay, rock and kelp 0-15 m, shore; pescasub home. Coords approx. Check the exit.

When is La Herradura a good call?

It is best when southwest energy stays outside and north or northwest weather is absent. Without a listed camera, inspect the bay before suiting up. Chile requires the SERNAPESCA recreational licence and recognises sport diving, apnea and spearguns. RAV closures for conger and corvina, AMERB benthos limits, release-only fish and the recreational loco closure still apply. Make the buoy easy to see and keep the swim close to shore. La Herradura opens north and shelters from the big SW, which is why it can stay flatter while exposed coast breaks. Use that shelter inside the bay instead of stretching the route across traffic or users. The marked bottom is shore-access rock and kelp in 0-15 m. Rollizo, vieja negra and pejeperro are the local fish mix, and the cold clear water is listed around 14-17 °C. Much of La Herradura, Guanaqueros and Tongoy sits under AMERB management. Recreational spearfishing is allowed with a licence, but benthic resources under the local organisation are not for visitors. There are no listed webcams or buoy for Coquimbo, so the sheltered bay still needs a direct shore read. A 5-7 mm suit, visible float and conservative exit line fit the Humboldt window. The bay is listed as sheltered and upwelling-influenced, with a bad sector from 280 to 20 degrees. If that sector starts to matter, the close shore route is the stronger choice.

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    FAQ

    What is the Coquimbo mark?

    La Herradura.

    Why is it useful?

    Shelter, rock, kelp and shore access.

    How deep?

    0-15 m.

    What traffic matters?

    Boats in the bay.

    Do local habits change rules?

    No. National rules remain.

    Sources

    • SERNAPESCA, Recreational Fishing
    • SERNAPESCA, permitted fishing gear and methods
    • SUBPESCA, official fisheries regulations
    • BCN Ley Chile, Recreational Fishing Law 20.256

    Nearby towns

    • La Serena spearfishing guide
    • Caldera: forecast and spots
    • Dive spots near Vina del Mar
    • Valparaiso spearfishing guide
    • Algarrobo spearfishing guide
    Data partners
    dive centres that send us real visibility readings
    Águas VivasMilfontes · Sagres