Cullen PointHavelock
borderline- window
- tide
- shelter
- hazard
- access
Rocky Cullen Point at the Havelock/Pelorus entrance; blue cod and butterfish, clearer than the muddy head.
Google MapsHavelock spearfishing forecast — wind, swell, visibility, tides & live cameras
5.5
wave 0 m head-on
visibility6m
Today — right on the edge — wave, wind and visibility.
Sources: IPMA · NDBC · Copernicus — high confidence · data 08:50
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.
- 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.
- Wind & gusts
- Speed and gusts, hour by hour — wind speed and an onshore push chop the surface and cut visibility.
- Tide phase
- Timing and range of the tide, calibrated per coast — big spring tides pull the verdict toward caution.
- Water temperature
- Sea-surface temperature — sharply cold water vetoes a green verdict.
- Currents & outflow
- Direction and drift of the current — it pushes you, and it drags turbid coastal water across where you dive.
- Rain runoff & air clarity
- Rain muddies the water inshore through land runoff, while fog and haze cut visibility at the surface.
- 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
Surface
Wind, wave and the swell windows — when to go and the best hours.
spearo.app
calmupdated 08:50
Havelock — solo, off the rocks
caution — solo off the rocks is risky, check on site · strong wind 14 km/h, gusts 38 — caution
wave 0 m head-onwind 14, gusts 38 km/hvisibility ~9 mwindow 12:00–18:00
today, best window 15:00–18:00
fish · Visibility 9 m · Water —
confidence high · 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.
Thursday · today2026-07-23
07:41–17:21 · first quarter
Hours (06→20)
06
09
12
15
18
Day's trends
Tide0.00 m
Wave0.00 m
Wind19 km/h
Water0 °C
fish activity: moonset 02:13 · moderate · moon underfoot 07:00 · high · moonrise 11:53 · moderate · moon overhead 19:30 · high
Conditions window06:00–09:00
don't go fish
Hs 0.00 mperiod 0 swind 7→21surge 0viz 7 m
0.00 mup to ~0.00
0 sswell moderate
7→21gusts 21 km/h
0weak surge
—m/s
7 mclear
—no data
—
Atmosphere0 kmovercast
highmoon underfoot
- fog <1 km — no landmarks visible
- dawn/dusk
confidence hightwilight
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.
See all spotsThe 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
French Pass (slack only)Havelock
borderline- window
- tide
- shelter
- hazard
- access
French Pass/Te Aumiti — blue cod and butterfish in clear water, but the pass runs to ~4 kn: SLACK WATER ONLY.
Google MapsOkiwi BayHavelock
borderline- window
- tide
- shelter
- hazard
- access
Rock reef at Okiwi Bay on the Croisilles; blue cod, butterfish and cray in clearer outer-Sound water.
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.
Surfacing
Cameras, map and reference — to hand as you come up.
Live cameras, map & reference
Open the seafloor map →What's in season,
Reference
What's in season,
what the law says.
In season now
- snapper (tāmure)
- yellowtail kingfish (haku)
- blue cod (rāwaru)
- trevally (araara)
- butterfish/greenbone (marari)
- kahawai
- red rock lobster (kōura)⚠️ Crayfish (rock lobster) and pāua — free-diving only; taking them on scuba is PROHIBITED nationwide. Pāua/crayfish are not speared.
Law
- ✓There is NO — you may fish subject to MPI rules (sizes/limits/gear). Rules are REGIONAL (combined finfish daily limit 20, but local notices override stricter). Freshwater trout/salmon may not be speared.
- ✓Crayfish (rock lobster) and pāua — free-diving only; taking them on scuba is BANNED nationwide. Spearfishing is banned in marine reserves. Respect / and (incl. a after a drowning — a cultural/sacred closure).
- ⛔ 🚫 Crayfish (rock lobster) and pāua — taking them on SCUBA is banned nationwide (free-diving only). Combined finfish daily limit 20 (local notices override stricter).
- ⛔ 🚫 Protected under the Wildlife Act 1953: spotted black groper (Epinephelus daemelii), great white shark, giant manta, black/red coral, seahorses/pipefish. Trout/salmon (freshwater) — entirely off-limits to spearguns.
- ⛔ 🚫 Marine reserves (~44) — spearfishing and all fishing banned. Respect / and (incl. a after a drowning — a tapu/cultural closure, not only a fishing rule): don't dive.
Rules change and are regional. Before heading out, check with MPI (regional fishing rules / the NZ Fishing Rules app), DOC (marine reserves) and local notices (rāhui/mātaitai).
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.
Spearfishing in Havelock: spots, seasons and rules
Spearfishing in Havelock is about leaving the muddy head of Pelorus Sound / Te Hoiere and choosing clearer water. Cullen Point is the close rock option, Okiwi Bay offers outer-Sound reef, and French Pass / Te Aumiti is a serious current gate that should be dived only at slack. There is no New Zealand sea-fishing licence, but Havelock sits in the MPI Challenger area, where the combined daily finfish limit is 20 per fisher unless specific local rules are stricter.
TL;DR
- Havelock is a Pelorus Sound launch point, with muddy inner water and clearer options toward Okiwi, the Chetwodes and French Pass.
- Cullen Point, Okiwi Bay and French Pass are the named options, but French Pass is slack-water-only country.
- Blue cod, butterfish and crayfish shape the plan; check the current MPI blue cod rules for the area before taking fish.
- MPI Challenger rules set a 20 finfish combined daily limit, with local mātaitai and seasonal restrictions able to tighten that.
Best spearfishing spots near Havelock
The three entries move progressively away from town and into clearer, more committing water. Current, boat traffic and blue cod closures deserve as much attention as visibility.
| Spot | Type | Depth | Level | Access | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cullen Point | Pelorus entrance rock | Shallow rock and kelp edge | Intermediate | Shore entry near the Havelock / Pelorus entrance | Cullen Point is clearer than the muddy sound head and is named for blue cod and butterfish. It is the closest practical check before driving farther out. |
| Okiwi Bay | Outer-Sound rock reef | Shallow to moderate reef | Intermediate | Shore or small-boat access at Okiwi Bay | Okiwi Bay on the Croisilles brings clearer water, blue cod, butterfish and crayfish. It is a better target when inner Pelorus is coloured. |
| French Pass (slack only) | High-current pass and reef | Clear current-swept water | Advanced, slack only | Boat-supported or very careful shore plan | French Pass / Te Aumiti is named for blue cod and butterfish, but the pass can run to about 4 knots. Treat slack water as a hard requirement. |
Why is Havelock not just a harbour dive?
The town sits at the head of Pelorus Sound, where river and mud influence can reduce visibility. Better spearfishing usually means moving out toward Cullen Point, Okiwi Bay or beyond. The tradeoff is exposure, distance and boat movement. In this area, the first question is not where the fish are, but whether the water has cleared enough to dive safely.
What is special about French Pass?
French Pass is a current feature, not merely another reef. It can run to about 4 knots, so diving it outside slack water is not a reasonable plan. If the tide table, boat handling or buddy experience is uncertain, stay with Okiwi or Cullen Point. Current-swept fish are never worth a forced entry.
What rules apply in the Marlborough Sounds?
MPI Challenger rules set a combined daily bag limit of 20 finfish per fisher. Blue cod, mātaitai restrictions, shellfish rules and rock lobster rules need checking immediately before the trip, because local settings can be tighter than the general limit.
How do crayfish and pāua fit here?
Crayfish and pāua are common legal traps for visiting divers. They are free-dive only for divers, and taking them on scuba is banned nationwide. Crayfish are not speared or punctured, and must meet tail-width and condition rules. Pāua must meet the applicable shellfish size and daily limit, and local closures override a general plan.
FAQ
Do you need a licence to spearfish in Havelock?
No sea-fishing licence is required, but MPI Challenger rules and local closures still apply.
What is the Challenger finfish limit?
MPI lists a combined daily limit of 20 finfish per fisher in the Challenger area, with stricter mātaitai settings in some places.
Can you dive French Pass anytime?
No. Treat it as slack-water-only because the pass can run to about 4 knots.
Is blue cod always open in the Marlborough Sounds?
Not always. Blue cod rules can change by area and season, so check the current MPI Challenger blue cod limits and any local closure before taking fish.
Where is the clearest Havelock water?
Look away from the muddy head toward Okiwi Bay and the outer Sound, with Cullen Point as the closer check.
Sources
Nearby towns
Coming soon
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