Cape Chiniak pinnaclesKodiak
borderlinein the headland's lee today — swell from the quarter/behind
- window
- tide
- shelter
- hazard
- access
Submerged rock piles and pinnacles holding lingcod and rockfish.
Google MapsKodiak spearfishing forecast — wind, swell, visibility, tides & live cameras
5.2
wave 0.6 m head-on
visibility2m
Today — right on the edge — wave, wind and visibility.
Sources: IPMA · NDBC · Copernicus — high confidence · data 15:20
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 15:20
Kodiak — solo, off the rocks
caution — solo off the rocks is risky, check on site · murky water (visibility ~2 m)
wave 0.6 m head-onwind 8 km/hvisibility ~3 mwindow 15:00–18:00
today, best window 15:00–18:00
fish · Visibility 3 m · Water 11.1°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.
Wednesday · today2026-07-22
05:45–22:47 · first quarter
▼ 02:00▲ 08:00▼ 14:00▲ 20:00mid-range tides · 1.9 m
Hours (06→20)
15
18
Day's trends
Tide0.56 m
Wave0.62 m
Wind4 km/h
Water11 °C
fish activity: moonset 00:15 · moderate · moon underfoot 08:50 · high · moonrise 17:46 · moderate · moon overhead 21:10 · high
Conditions window15:00–18:00
caution — solo off the rocks is risky, check on site fish
Hs 0.58 mperiod 4.3 s head-onwind 8→22surge 0.4viz 2 m
0.58 mup to ~1.16 · 173° head-on
4.3 sswell moderate
8→22gusts 22 km/h
0.4weak surge
0.08m/s
2 mrecent swell
11.1°Cthicker suit + hood
▲20:00tide rising
Atmosphere7 kmovercast
moderatemoonrise
- murky water (visibility ~2 m)
- northerly wind picks up after midday
- first hours of the flood — fish moving in
confidence lowday
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
Fort Abercrombie / Miller PointKodiak
borderlinein the headland's lee today — swell from the quarter/behind
- window
- tide
- shelter
- hazard
- access
Rocky coast and kelp in a state park; black rockfish and kelp greenling.
Google MapsMonashka BayKodiak
borderlinein the headland's lee today — swell from the quarter/behind
- window
- tide
- shelter
- hazard
- access
Protected N-facing rocky/kelp bay just north of town; greenling and black rockfish.
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
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».
Reference
What's in season,
what the law says.
In season now
- rockfish
- lingcodLingcod: in SE Alaska spear/diving-gear closed in certain periods (e.g. from Dec 1).
- Pacific halibut
Law
- ✓ADF&G sport fishing licence. Spear/speargun (no explosive charge) — legal gear for halibut/rockfish/lingcod.
- ✓Lingcod: in SE Alaska spear/diving-gear closed in certain periods (e.g. from Dec 1).
- ✓In-season Emergency Orders override the printed regs — check the regional summary. Cold, low-viz water: expert level.
- ⛔ 🚫 Sea turtles and mammals, closed waters, refuges and seasonal closures (in-season Emergency Orders override print) — check the regional summary.
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.
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 Kodiak: spots, seasons and rules
Kodiak is not a casual reef stop. The useful window is cold, kelpy and short: small seas, weak current, enough visibility to find the exit, and a same-day legal check. Monashka Bay is the more protected north-facing option near town. Fort Abercrombie adds rocky state-park coastline and kelp lanes. Cape Chiniak is for experienced freedivers with a boat, not a backup when town is rough. If an Alaska emergency order, refuge line or lingcod period is unclear, do not enter with a loaded gun.
TL;DR
- Spearfishing Kodiak is cold-water kelp hunting, with Fort Abercrombie and Monashka Bay as the realistic shore entries near town.
- Cape Chiniak is the outer-pinnacle option for lingcod, rockfish and halibut, but it needs settled weather and boat support.
- Kodiak water visibility changes quickly with swell, tide and fog; pair the Raspberry Island cam with NOAA Station 46080.
- Alaska requires an ADF&G sport fishing license, allows non-explosive spear gear, and emergency orders override printed seasons.
Best spearfishing spots in Kodiak
These Kodiak spots are not listed as protected no-take zones, but Alaska closures can change the plan. Treat every entry as a cold-water route back to the same rock, beach or boat.
| Spot | Type | Depth | Level | Access | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fort Abercrombie / Miller Point | Rocky kelp shore | Shallow rock and kelp edge | Intermediate cold-water freediver | Shore entry near the state park coast | Good for black rockfish and kelp greenling when the sea is small. Avoid surge, fog and any swell pushing into the northeast-facing coast. |
| Monashka Bay | Protected rocky bay | Shallow kelp and reef fingers | Intermediate, better with a buddy | Shore approach just north of town | The most sheltered Kodiak option in the record. It still has cold water, kelp drag and variable visibility, so keep the dive short. |
| Cape Chiniak pinnacles | Outer rock piles and pinnacles | Pinnacles and deeper rock piles | Advanced boat-based freediving | Boat support only | This is the lingcod and rockfish structure. If the offshore forecast is uncertain, fail closed and stay off the pinnacles. |
When does Kodiak water visibility make sense?
Kodiak water visibility follows swell angle, tide stage and recent weather. The record flags northeast-to-east energy as the bad sector, so an easterly sea can close familiar rock lines. A light window after several settled tides is the one to watch. Use NOAA Station 46080 for offshore trend and a camera for surface texture. If either source shows building energy, freediving Kodiak becomes scouting only.
What fish are realistic around Kodiak?
The local mix is cold Pacific rather than tropical reef. Black rockfish and kelp greenling fit the shallow kelp lanes. Lingcod belongs on pinnacles and rock piles but carries Alaska season and emergency-order risk. Pacific halibut is possible with legal spear gear, usually on deeper sand edges. Sea turtles, marine mammals, refuges and seasonal closures are off limits.
What Alaska rules matter before diving?
An Alaska sport fishing license is the baseline. Spear and speargun gear are allowed for listed sport species only without explosive charge. Printed rules can be displaced by in-season emergency orders, which matters in a place where weather already narrows the decision. If a closure boundary or lingcod rule is doubtful, treat the water as closed.
FAQ
Do I need a license to spearfish in Kodiak?
Yes. Use an Alaska sport fishing license and check emergency orders before the trip.
Is Fort Abercrombie legal for spearfishing?
It is not marked no-take here, but state park access and ADF&G orders still need checking.
Can I spear lingcod in Kodiak?
Only when Alaska rules and emergency orders allow it. Treat lingcod conservatively.
What suit do I need for freediving Kodiak?
Use true cold-water exposure protection. The hazards are cold, kelp, low visibility and exit difficulty.
Which NOAA station is useful for Kodiak?
NOAA NDBC Station 46080 is the offshore reference used for this Kodiak check.
Sources
Nearby towns
Coming soon
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