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.
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0 m
Surface
Wind, wave and the swell windows — when to go and the best hours.
spearo.app
no dataupdated 04:33
Estepona — 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.
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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.
In summer there is physically no room to work here: this is the busiest beach in Estepona and from June to September it is packed morning to night. The real window is first light in April and May, water at 16–17 degrees, or November at 17.4. Hunting is daylight only, sunrise to sunset; night is off limits anywhere in Spain.
tide
Half a metre of tide in a closed cove only changes the width of the sand strip; it creates no current. What actually gets in your way is different: the sediment stirred by swimmers and by propellers leaving the port stays inside the cove, because the mole stops the water flushing. After a southwesterly blow the murk holds for two or three days.
shelter
A pocket beach wedged between the port mole and the point: the one place in Estepona with calm water in almost any wind. The mole blocks exactly the southwest, the direction that ruins the rest of this coast. Levante (E) only gets in here as a long swell, and that dies against the sand.
conditions
This is a beginner's entry, not a working spot. Sand and low rock, rarely more than four metres of depth anywhere in the cove, 3–5 m of viz on a good day. There is little fish, but you can drill your descents and buoy handling in peace. For real relief go east to Punta de la Plata, or south to Chullera.
hazard
The cove sits right against the port and the harbour mouth is next door: boats cut the corner straight across the beach's water. Swimmers and kids all season, so stay clear of the buoyed area. Grouper may be taken from 45 centimetres; below that size nothing goes in the bag, even if you already shot. The buoy is compulsory, do not go beyond 25 m from it.
access
The beach lies west of the port; the easiest way in is the avenida San Lorenzo, or a twenty-minute walk from the centre along the promenade. There is a small free car park by the restaurant, packed from early morning in summer. Entry over sand, very gentle; the low rock starts at the eastern end of the cove, about seventy metres out.
Sheltered cove by the harbour; sand and low rock, good for beginners.
Estepona's council sets no time windows, and here that is not the deciding factor anyway: in port water it is the port authority's permission that rules, not the hour of day. The national rule is unchanged — sunrise to sunset only. The water is about 15.3 degrees in March and 18.5 in June.
tide
Against the wall the tide reads better than anywhere else on this coast: half a metre of range is marked out by the growth band on the concrete, up to 0.76 m at springs. It barely translates into current — inside the harbour the water is moved by propellers and wind. The real tidal stream starts further west, already inside the Strait.
shelter
A small point right beside the port of Estepona: the mole eats almost everything coming from the southwest, and Levante (E) shows up already broken against the quay wall. It is the calmest water in town and, at the same time, the deadest, because behind the mole it has nowhere to flush.
conditions
The bottom is mixed — stone and sand tangled with the concrete of the mole, and fish sit in the shadow of the blocks. Viz usually runs 2–4 m and drops every time the fleet goes out. Legally this is port water: fishing only with permission from the port authority. No permission, then head east to Punta de la Plata.
hazard
The main danger is traffic: the fishing and leisure fleets leave the port constantly and the channel is narrow. Add nets and mooring lines on the bottom, fuel oil by the wall and snagged line on the blocks. A loaded gun out of the water is forbidden, and on a mole that gets noticed instantly. The buoy is compulsory, but in a channel it will not protect you.
access
Fifteen minutes on foot along the promenade from the centre of Estepona to the port; parking by the fish market is paid and full during the day. Access to the pontoons and the mole is not open everywhere: some stretches sit behind service gates. You enter over the stones at the root of the mole, which are slippery; there are three or four metres of water right at the blocks.
Rocky ground by the harbour; mixed bottom, semi-sheltered from the easterly, easy entry.
We found no municipal by-law capping hours in Estepona — the general rules apply: daylight only, sunrise to sunset. The spearfishing licence is issued by the Junta de Andalucía, and it is worth checking the requirements before you travel. In August the water averages 21.8 degrees, but on an upwelling day it drops to 16 — do not pick your suit off the average.
tide
In Estepona the level swings more than in the rest of the Mediterranean: 0.18 to 0.53 m on a normal day and up to 0.76 at springs, thanks to how close the Strait of Gibraltar is. But there is no flow you need to reckon with on the open shore: what moves you is wind, not tide. What you actually plan around is the swell and the muddy tongue from the stream.
shelter
The Estepona shore faces south-southwest, and the real hit comes not from the east but from the southwest — the worst direction here is around 235 degrees. Poniente (W-SW) arrives almost head-on and with plenty of fetch; Levante (E) comes in obliquely from the left, along the coast, and the east face of the rock outcrop stays in the lee.
conditions
The best days come with Terral, the dry northerly off the hills: mirror sea and 6–10 m of viz over the stones, clearly better than in Málaga bay. Just remember it chills the surface by evaporation: in neighbouring Nerja a drop of 7 degrees in a day was recorded. The 140–260 degree sector shuts the spot, and after rain the Arroyo Vaquero pushes murk straight onto it.
hazard
Since 10 January 2026 catches are declared through the PescaREC app; the daily cap is 5 kilos and selling your catch is banned, while insurance is not required. Physically: Levante brings Pelagia jellyfish in summer, urchins sit on the stones, and pleasure boats run along the shore. Scuba is banned for hunting, and you may not get more than 25 m from your buoy.
access
Off the N-340/A-7 towards the Alcazaba Beach and Arroyo Vaquero developments, then down the inner streets to the front — you park alongside the houses, and we have no data on paid zones for 2026. Five minutes from car to water, entry over stones, so bring boots. The working reef starts about thirty metres off the waterline.
Rocky ground east of Estepona; boulders and low rock, sea bream and gilthead, exposed to the westerly (Poniente, SW).
Work at first light and in the shoulder season: the water is about 17.2 degrees in May and 19.3 in October. The best weather window comes with Terral or a light northerly; the worst is Levante with wave and a strong Poniente, which brings cold and green. Night is banned across Spain: from sunset to sunrise you have no business in the water with a gun.
tide
Here, unlike in Málaga, the level is worth watching: the Strait of Gibraltar is a short hop away and at springs the water moves up to 0.76 m, which you notice on the rocks getting in and out. But there is no tidal flow to reckon with on the open shore: the real stream starts west of the cape, already inside the Strait. Nobody has published speed measurements.
shelter
The only spot on this list with genuine two-sided geometry: Punta Chullera juts southeast and a rocky ridge runs off it under water. With Levante (E) the east face of the cape takes it head-on while the west face, towards Sotogrande, sits in the lee; with Poniente (W) it is exactly the other way round.
conditions
Worth coming whenever the wind is light, whatever the direction: over the ridge you have 12–15 m, rock corridors and gorgonians, and the best viz on this coast. Bad in the 140–260 degree sector, and worst near 235. Rain fouls it: the río Guadiaro two and a half miles west and the Manilva streams leave a plume for a couple of days.
hazard
Traffic to the Duquesa and Sotogrande marinas passes off the cape, and further south runs the Strait shipping lane — the buoy is not a luxury here. Nets and local fishermen's gear snag on the ridge, urchins sit on the stones, jellyfish come in summer. The licence is issued by the Junta de Andalucía, check the requirements in advance; scuba is banned for spearfishing.
access
Off the N-340/A-7 through Manilva and Sabinillas, then dirt tracks down to the shore; your landmark is the old round torre de la Chullera on the cape. Ten to fifteen minutes from the car to the water along the coastal path, entry over stones. We have no current parking data for 2026: in summer it is easier to leave the car in the village and walk.
Rocky ground toward Gibraltar; rock drop-offs, very exposed to the SW.
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.
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≈
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 Estepona
Where can I spearfish in Estepona?
Estepona has rock entry points such as Punta de la Plata / Arroyo Vaquero, Punta Pinillo (puerto) and Sabinillas / Punta Chullera. Estepona looks south-west toward Gibraltar, so the Poniente is its wind. Below you'll find each spot (access, shelter and hazards) and today's forecast.
When is the best season in Estepona?
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 Estepona?
~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 Estepona 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 Estepona?
Yes — in Estepona 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.
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