- window
- tide
- shelter
- hazard
- access
VMRC reef ~14 km NE off Back River (Hampton/Poquoson); low-relief structure — sheepshead, tautog and black sea bass.
Google MapsToday — right on the edge — wave, wind and visibility.
Sources & confidence
Compiled by the spearo sea-state engine
The verdict comes from seven water factors and hard safety gates — not ten tabs. Go or stay.
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.
Safety gates
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
Wind, wave and the swell windows — when to go and the best hours.
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.
Visibility and what drives it — post-storm clearing, river plume, temperature and the thermocline.
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.
See all spotsRelief and bottom type, tides, and the depths of each spot.
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.
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 mapVMRC reef ~14 km NE off Back River (Hampton/Poquoson); low-relief structure — sheepshead, tautog and black sea bass.
Google MapsVMRC reef ~15 km E off Grandview and Back River (lower Chesapeake); tautog, sheepshead, black sea bass and cobia — striped bass spear-legal in VA.
Google MapsSOLO 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.
Cameras, map and reference — to hand as you come up.
US spearfishing law is state-by-state. License, spearable species, powerhead rules and distances vary; federal sanctuaries (Gray's Reef, the Keys, Flower Garden Banks) ban spearfishing. Always confirm with the state agency and local ordinances.
Hampton has rock entry points such as Bluefish Rock Reef and Back River Reef. Hampton fishes the Bluefish Rock and Back River reefs in the lower Chesapeake — tautog, sheepshead, black sea bass and summer cobia. Below you'll find each spot (access, shelter and hazards) and today's forecast.
May–Nov; the CBBT pilings are the classic spot, striped bass is spearable.
18–26 °C; CBBT pilings give structure, viz best on the incoming tide.
Intermediate: CBBT pilings are legendary structure, the most spear-friendly Chesapeake state.
Yes — in Hampton, as everywhere on the mainland, you need a recreational fishing licence (DGRM); breath-hold only (no scuba), with a marker buoy and no night diving. See the guide for the details.
Leave your email — and the moment a window opens at Hampton, we'll send the go / no-go verdict. Email is all we need.
Every covered town has its own live forecast, cameras and entry points. Choose where you're diving.
What's missing? Tell us what you'd like to see — new spots, species, data or features. We read everything.