Mala Wharf reefLahaina
borderlineswell on the quarter today
- window
- tide
- shelter
- hazard
- access
Collapsed-wharf pilings and reef; papio, uku and reef fish by the Lahaina ramp.
Google MapsLahaina spearfishing forecast — wind, swell, visibility, tides & live cameras
5.3
wave 1.1 m
visibility3m
Today — right on the edge — wave, wind and surge pounding.
Sources: IPMA · NDBC · Copernicus — high confidence · data 13:27
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 13:27
Lahaina — solo, off the rocks
caution — solo off the rocks is risky, check on site · wave 1.1 m + swell period 9 s
wave 1.1 mwind 17, gusts 44 km/hsurge pounding the rocksvisibility ~5 m
today, best window 18:00–21:00
fish · Visibility 5 m · Water 27.5°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
05:57–19:09 · first quarter
▼ 03:00▲ 11:00 · 0.5 m
Hours (06→20)
12
15
18
Day's trends
Tide0.46 m
Wave1.08 m
Wind14 km/h
Water27 °C
fish activity: moonset 00:20 · moderate · moon underfoot 07:00 · high · moonrise 13:53 · moderate · moon overhead 19:30 · high
Conditions window12:00–15:00
caution — solo off the rocks is risky, check on site fish
Hs 1.12 mperiod 9.8 swind 18→46surge 2.8viz 2 m
1.12 mup to ~2.24 · 184° at an angle
9.8 sswell moderate
18→46gusts 46 km/h
2.8pounding the rocks
0.42m/s
2 mrecent swell
27.6°C5 mm + hood
▼04:00tide falling
Atmosphere8 kmovercast
moderatemoonrise
- wave 1.1 m + swell period 10 s
- strong wind 18 km/h, gusts 46 — caution
- ebb — weaker inshore
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
Olowalu (Mile Marker 14)Lahaina
borderlineswell on the quarter today
- window
- tide
- shelter
- hazard
- access
Extensive reef; uku, omilu and goatfish, viz drops after rain runoff.
Google MapsHonolua-Mokule'ia Bay MLCDLahaina
closedswell on the quarter today
- window
- tide
- shelter
- hazard
- access
PROTECTED no-take MLCD ~16 km N — do NOT spear.
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
- uhu (parrotfish)Uhu (parrotfish), Maui: ≤2/day, 10–14″ min; taking blue (terminal) males is PROHIBITED.
- ulua (giant trevally)
- kumu (goatfish)
- roi (peacock grouper)Invasive — removal encouraged, no limit. Roi can carry ciguatera — a health caution.
- ta'ape (bluestripe snapper)Invasive — removal encouraged, no limit. Roi can carry ciguatera — a health caution.
Law
- ✓No licence for residents; non-residents need the Nonresident Recreational Marine Fishing License ().
- ✓MLCDs — no-take. West Hawai'i — scuba-spear banned. Uhu (Maui): ≤2/day, no blue males. Roi/ta'ape invasive — removal encouraged.
- ⛔ 🚫 Marine Life Conservation Districts (Hanauma/Molokini/Pupukea etc.) — no-take: spear nothing. West Hawai'i — scuba-spear banned.
- ⛔ 🚫 Sea turtles, monk seal and cetaceans — protected, don't disturb. Uhu: blue terminal males (Maui) may not be taken.
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 Lahaina: spots, seasons and rules
Lahaina's useful spearfishing sits on open West Maui reef. Olowalu and Mala Wharf are the two practical open West Maui reef entries. Honolua-Mokuleia Bay Marine Life Conservation District, north of town, is protected no-take water and cannot be used as a hunting backup. Spearfishing Lahaina works best after dry weather, small west swell and clean morning water. Expect uku, omilu, goatfish, papio and invasive roi or taape, with protected-species rules always in force.
TL;DR
- Spearfishing Lahaina is about West Maui reef edges at Olowalu and Mala Wharf, not protected Honolua-Mokuleia Bay MLCD.
- Olowalu offers broad reef and runoff-sensitive visibility; Mala Wharf adds collapsed-piling structure near the Lahaina ramp.
- Lahaina water visibility usually favors light wind and dry weather, while rain can dirty Olowalu almost immediately.
- Hawaii residents do not need a marine license, nonresidents need the NRMFL, and MLCD water is no-take.
Best spearfishing spots in Lahaina
Only open spots are listed. Honolua-Mokuleia Bay MLCD is excluded because it is marked hard no-take. Both entries are shallow reef plans where runoff, surf and boat traffic decide the day.
| Spot | Type | Depth | Level | Access | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Olowalu (Mile Marker 14) | Extensive West Maui reef | Shallow reef flats and edges | Intermediate | Shore entry from the highway reef area | Good for uku, omilu and goatfish when the water is clean. Rain runoff can cut visibility quickly. |
| Mala Wharf reef | Collapsed wharf and reef structure | Piling rubble, reef pockets and nearby sand | Intermediate with traffic awareness | Entry near the Lahaina ramp area | Papio, uku and reef fish use the broken structure. Boat movement makes a float, flag and conservative route essential. |
Why is Honolua not a spearfishing spot?
Honolua-Mokuleia Bay MLCD is marked as a hard protected zone. Hawaii Marine Life Conservation Districts are managed for protection, and spearing is not the activity to bring there. If Lahaina is too rough or dirty for Olowalu or Mala, the answer is not to move into Honolua. If an MLCD boundary is uncertain, do not enter with spearing gear.
What conditions help Lahaina water visibility?
The Lahaina coast is sheltered, but west swell and runoff still matter. Olowalu is the sensitive one after rain because stained water spreads over the reef. Morning light wind, lower surf and a dry stretch give the best chance of readable bottom. NOAA Station 51205 gives the offshore signal, while a Kaanapali camera can show surface texture up the coast.
What Hawaii rules should visitors know?
Hawaii residents do not need a marine fishing license for ordinary recreational marine fishing, but nonresidents need the Nonresident Recreational Marine Fishing License. Sea turtles, monk seals and cetaceans are protected. Roi and taape are invasive targets, though roi carries a ciguatera caution. On Maui, uhu rules include limits and a ban on blue terminal males.
FAQ
Can you spearfish Honolua Bay from Lahaina?
No. Honolua-Mokuleia Bay MLCD is no-take for this plan.
Do visitors need a Hawaii fishing license?
Yes, nonresidents need the NRMFL. Residents do not need it for ordinary marine fishing.
What fish are realistic near Lahaina?
Uku, omilu, goatfish, papio, roi and taape are realistic, subject to current rules.
When is Olowalu clearer?
After dry weather and small surf. Rain runoff can dirty the reef quickly.
Which NOAA station fits Lahaina?
NOAA NDBC Station 51205 is the nearby ocean reference for West Maui.
Sources
Nearby towns
Coming soon
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