Today — right on the edge — wave, wind and visibility.
Sources:IPMA · NDBC · Copernicus — high confidence · data 17:09
Sources & confidence
Sources
IPMA · NDBC buoys · Copernicus Marine
Method
Model consensus, read per window
Freshness
Re-read every hour, per coast
Compiled by the spearo sea-state engine
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 — forced red; the window is closed after dark.
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.
Android: the public release is in Google Play review — leave your email and we'll send beta access today.
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: 1152 spots across 189 stretches of coast — mainland Portugal, Madeira and the Azores.
Best window is early morning, before the afternoon sea breeze and the swimmers. Best visibility in summer and early autumn.
tide
Little tidal dependence (depth drops away fast off the point); low water makes the slippery-rock entry trickier.
shelter
Madeira's south coast is sheltered from the prevailing N/NE trades by the island mass; the cove at Ponta da Cruz is further screened by the rocky headland. Open to S and SW swell.
hazard
Main danger is the exit over sharp volcanic rock in shorebreak: as swell builds it's easy to get cut or slammed against the wall. Swimmers and snorkelers around — keep the gun unloaded at the entry. Deep water right off the shore — a solo blackout with no buddy is fatal.
access
Rua da Ponta da Cruz 66, western Funchal seafront (between the Lido and Praia Formosa). Steps down to the natural-pool complex, then direct access to open sea over the rocks. Showers, changing rooms and parking up top.
The westernmost Funchal entry — clearly OUTSIDE the Garajau reserve (whose west edge is Ponta do Lazareto, east of the city), so hunting is legal here. But it's a guarded bathing complex — don't shoot near the entry; move off the pools onto the rock reef.
Clube Naval do Funchal reef (Lido)Lido / Gorgulho · Reef do Clube Naval do Funchal (Lido)
closed
exposed head-on to the swell today
window
Early morning only — by day it's a busy bathing frontage. Best visibility in calm summer water.
tide
Weak tidal dependence; at low water the entry reef is very shallow, easier to snag or cut yourself.
shelter
Urban Lido/Gorgulho seafront, sheltered from N/NE by the island. The reef runs east–west along the shore; little protection from southerly swell.
hazard
The biggest issue is crowds and lifeguards: this is a surveilled bathing frontage by the Clube Naval/Lido where hunting is inappropriate and draws attention. Sharp reef on the exit in surge. Enter as a scout only — read the structure and fish, shoot further west.
access
Water access by the Clube Naval do Funchal / Lido complex, Rua do Gorgulho. Steps and platforms straight onto the reef, showers and changing rooms alongside. The easiest reef entry in the city.
A documented dive-school 'home reef' (east–west reef off the Clube Naval, plenty of fish) — but a public, surveilled swim zone. Use it for scouting/freediving and hunt on the Ponta da Cruz rocks to the west.
Early morning outside bathing season only — by day and in summer the beach is packed. Visibility is best in calm summer water, but urban runoff after rain kills it.
tide
Cleaner entry at high tide; low water exposes more slippery pebble and a stronger backwash.
shelter
Long pebble-and-dark-sand beach on the south coast, sheltered from N/NE wind by the island. Almost no protection from southerly swell — an open arc of shore.
hazard
Shorebreak and backwash on coarse pebble — knocks you off your feet on exit. City runoff clouds the water. It's a guarded bathing beach with buoys and lifeguards — effectively a no-hunt zone; treat it as a calm-day fallback entry, not a shooting spot.
access
Central Funchal, São Martinho; the promenade links to the Lido and Doca do Cavacas. Ramps to the beach, showers, changing rooms, parking and cafes. The easiest walk-in entry in the city.
Madeira's largest beach and a guarded swim zone — works as a flat-calm fallback entry for freediving/scouting; for actual hunting move west to the Ponta da Cruz rocks. ⚠️ Longitude -16.943 is ~750m too far east (true ~-16.951, OSM beach 32.6392,-16.9512; -16.943 lands between Cavacas and Clube Naval, not at Formosa). Hazard downplayed: omits the documented strong undertow/under-currents that make Praia Formosa locally known as one of the most dangerous places to swim, plus frequent red-flag closures (spring tides/rough surf) and documented drownings (e.g. body found Jan 2024). Framing it as a benign 'calm-day fallback entry' sugar-coats a known dangerous-current beach for a solo diver.
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.
Android: the public release is in Google Play review — leave your email and we'll send beta access today.
point your camera
≈
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».
Funchal Marina (Madeira-Web)YouTube live — Funchal marina harbour water, open sea on the horizon. Embeddable under YouTube's terms (owner left embedding on). Read the water and surf before you go.camera: youtube ↗
✓Hand-gathering shellfish with NO gear — no licence; but if a speargun is on the dive, a spearfishing licence is required.
✓Night prohibited: spearfishing only in daylight (sunset→sunrise not allowed). Artificial light as a means of finding/attracting fish is banned — a torch for safety only.
✓Signalling buoy MANDATORY for spearfishing: buoy/float with an «Alfa» flag (red/orange/yellow, ≥8 L), no more than 30 m from the diver.
✓Spearfishing daily limit: fish + cephalopods — 15 kg (excluding the largest specimen). General rod-and-line recreational fishing — 10 kg.
Rules change. Before heading out, check with DGRM / ICNF / Capitania and the defeso table.
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. At Cabo Raso/Arriba a 0.5 m rise in swell makes a boulder exit impossible — getting pinned/unable to climb out is the main killer here.
Headland rip: at Cabo Raso there is 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.
Nortada (Jun–Sep): wind builds from midday — be out of the water by ~11:00; 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 · Funchal
Spearfishing in Funchal: spots, seasons and rules
Updated 2026-07-09 · By Oleksandr, spearfisher
Spearfishing in Funchal is an island plan, not a mainland beach plan. Madeira's south coast is sheltered from the dominant N/NE winds by the island, with blue water and quick volcanic drop-offs close to shore. Doca do Cavacas is the usable hunting entry, but only with a calm sea and small southerly swell. Praia Formosa and the Lido/Clube Naval reef are busy urban bathing areas, better kept for apnea practice or reconnaissance. Deep water close in makes solo risk serious.
TL;DR
Treat Funchal as Madeira island diving: sheltered south coast, volcanic rock and deep water close to shore.
The defensible hunting entry is Doca do Cavacas at Ponta da Cruz, west of the city and outside the Garajau reserve limit noted locally.
Praia Formosa and the Lido/Clube Naval reef are urban bathing or training areas, not spearfishing recommendations.
Best spearfishing entry in Funchal
Only one Funchal entry belongs in the hunting table. The other urban references have bathing-zone, crowd or protection issues. Doca do Cavacas still needs distance from swimmers and a clean rock exit.
Spot
Type
Depth
Level
Access
Notes
Doca do Cavacas
Volcanic rock entry at Ponta da Cruz
Depth increases quickly beside the promontory
Intermediate
Rua da Ponta da Cruz 66; steps to the natural-pool complex, then access to open water over the rocks.
Sheltered from N/NE by Madeira, but exposed to S and SW swell. Enter only in calm sea with small southerly swell, keep the speargun unloaded near the pools and move away to the reef.
Conditions and season essentials
Doca do Cavacas is best at first light, before the afternoon sea breeze and before swimmers arrive. The local window is calm sea with southerly swell around 0.8 m or less. SW swell stirs the water by the rocks and makes the volcanic exit hazardous. Tide is less critical because depth builds fast, although low water makes the rocks more slippery. Summer and early autumn bring the best visibility. National rules apply: licence from age 16, apnea only, daylight only, Alfa buoy within 30 m, and protected grouper/mero left untouched.
FAQ
Where can you spearfish in Funchal?
Doca do Cavacas is the main defensible shore entry. Move away from the pool entrance and only use it in calm sea.
Can you spearfish at Praia Formosa?
It should not be treated as a hunting spot. It is an urban bathing beach with cobbles, undertow risk and turbid water after rain.
Is the Lido reef good for spearfishing?
It is useful for apnea and terrain reading, but it is a public bathing front with lifeguards and crowds. Do not frame it as a hunting mark.
When is visibility best in Funchal?
Summer and early autumn are the best visibility window noted locally, especially early morning with small southerly swell.
Is Funchal mainland-style spearfishing?
No. It is island geography: sheltered south coast, volcanic rock and deep water very close to shore, so partner safety matters.
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