- window
- tide
- shelter
- hazard
- access
Farthest rocky bank (~50 min run), 19–23 m, top biodiversity. Boat-access, certified divers only.
Google MapsTomorrow — right on the edge — wave, wind and surge pounding.
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 mapFarthest rocky bank (~50 min run), 19–23 m, top biodiversity. Boat-access, certified divers only.
Google MapsMid rocky bank, 19–23 m; mero, salmón, besugo. Boat-access.
Google MapsYear-round fishing bank, ~20 m; mero, besugo, pez palo. Boat-access.
Google MapsEnglish wreck (1949) on restinga south of Punta Mogotes lighthouse; boiler 5 m down. Huntable in principle. GPS not published.
Google MapsCoastal restinga north of MdP; tide-pools and shallow rock. Shore access; sudestada dirties it.
Google MapsRock restinga 4–12 m; hole-hunting for mero and salmón. Coords approx.
Google MapsWreck park (Cristo Rey, Kronomether…) ~3 nm off lighthouse, 25–30 m. Dive-only — penetration banned; spearfishing goes to the restingas.
Google MapsRocky point at Playa Grande; restinga 4–8 m, hole-hunting mero and salmón. Shore access.
Google MapsRestinga ~500 m off the lighthouse, 7–12 m; the best bottom in MdP — mero, salmón, besugo. W/NW window; sudestada = no-go.
Google MapsOffshore rocky bank, ~22 m; structure and schooling fish. Boat-access, experienced divers.
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.
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».
Rules are PROVINCIAL and vary. Before heading out, check with your province's authority (Chubut — free licence; Río Negro; Buenos Aires — Ciudadano Digital / Flora y Fauna); sea spearfishing is allowed, banned only in inland waters.
Spearfishing in Mar del Plata is a Buenos Aires story, not a Patagonia story. It has schools, shore access, green water outside the Plata plume and real restingas when a W/NW window cleans the coast. La Restinga at Cabo Corrientes, Punta Cantera, La Perla and Restinga del Faro are the shore map; Banco del Medio, Banco de Afuera, El Pozo del Tío and Tres Cúpulas are boat territory. The legal part is cautious: the sport-fishing licence goes through Ciudadano Digital and Flora y Fauna is named, but Buenos Aires spearfishing is recorded as not regulated. Verify the provincial text before taking native fish.
Mar del Plata has real grounds, but the provincial grey zone matters. Use this table to locate restingas, banks and wreck-related bottoms, not as permission to take native fish.
| Spot | Type | Depth | Level | Access | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| La Restinga (Cabo Corrientes / Bahía Varese) | Rock restinga | 4-12 m | Intermediate | Urban shore | Hole-hunting bottom for mero and salmón. It needs clear green water and swell judgment, not just proximity to town. |
| Restinga del Faro (Punta Mogotes) | Coastal restinga | 7-12 m | Intermediate | About 500 m off the lighthouse | One of the strongest MdP bottoms for mero, salmón and besugo. W/NW window; sudestada is no-go. |
| Punta Cantera / Playa Grande | Rocky point | 4-8 m | Accessible to intermediate | Shore | Hole bottom for mero and salmón. Useful when you want a shore entry rather than an offshore bank. |
| James Clunies | Wreck on restinga | Boiler at 5 m, bottom to 12 m | Intermediate, unpublished location | South of Punta Mogotes lighthouse | English wreck from 1949 on restinga. Huntable in principle, but GPS is not published and legal verification comes first. |
| Banco del Medio | Rocky bank | 19-23 m | Advanced, boat | Boat | Mero, salmón and besugo on the middle bank. A different level of exposure and equipment. |
Mar del Plata is outside the strongest Plata plume, but not fixed blue water. The record calls it green and seasonally clear, with meso tide around 1-1.7 m. SE sudestada dirties the coast; W/NW makes restingas readable.
The province is Buenos Aires. The pack points to sport-fishing licence through Ciudadano Digital and spearfishing under Flora y Fauna. It also says the modality is not clearly regulated, with no published spearfishing size or quota. Check before hunting natives.
Sea salmon, mero and besugo repeat across Restinga del Faro, Punta Cantera and the banks. Because of the Buenos Aires grey zone, confirm licence and current text before taking native fish. If unclear, dive and observe.
A beginner should think La Perla or Punta Cantera before offshore banks. Even then, swell, people, structures and SE dirt matter. A nearby restinga is not safe when the bottom or exit is unreadable.
Known grounds include Cabo Corrientes, Punta Mogotes, Punta Cantera, La Perla and boat banks. Verify provincial legality before taking fish.
It is green and seasonally clear. W/NW helps; SE sudestada brings groundswell and dirt.
Mero, sea salmon, besugo, pez palo and croaker appear in the record, but native harvest requires a Buenos Aires check.
The record emphasizes wind window more than season: W/NW and dropping sea, not sudestada.
Yes, and it is provincial. Mar del Plata is Buenos Aires, with sport-fishing licensing via Ciudadano Digital.
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transparency ~4 m · satellite, 2 days agosatellite estimate · may differ right at the shore