spearo sea-state engine: consensus of up to 6 models + satellite clarity (ZSD) + buoy-bias checks
Freshness
Re-read every hour, per coast
Compiled by the spearo sea-state engine · How it works →
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.
01
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.
02
Wind & gusts
Speed and gusts, hour by hour — wind speed and an onshore push chop the surface and cut visibility.
03
Tide phase
Timing and range of the tide, calibrated per coast — big spring tides pull the verdict toward caution.
04
Water temperature
Sea-surface temperature — sharply cold water vetoes a green verdict.
05
Currents & outflow
Direction and drift of the current — it pushes you, and it drags turbid coastal water across where you dive.
06
Rain runoff & air clarity
Rain muddies the water inshore through land runoff, while fog and haze cut visibility at the surface.
07
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 — where night spearfishing is banned by law the window is forced red; where it is legal (Australia outside NSW, New Zealand, South Africa) it is capped at yellow, never green.
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
This verdict — in your pocket. Open the app for the week's window.
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0 m
Surface
Wind, wave and the swell windows — when to go and the best hours.
spearo.app
no dataupdated 03:32
Sanxenxo — solo, off the rocks
DON'T GO
don't go · wave 1.8 m (occasionally up to ~3.7 m)
wave 1.8 m head-onwind 14, gusts 26 km/hsurge pounding the rocksvisibility ~1 m
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Your best window — with you. Forecast in your pocket.
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−10 m
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: 3016 spots across 406 stretches of coast — mainland Portugal, Madeira and the Azores.
Do not forget: in Galicia the permitted days are Saturday, Sunday and public holidays, with the exception of the daily period between Maundy Thursday and Easter Sunday and the one running from 1 May to 30 September (Orden 17.09.2009, art. 13.2). On this beach the practical slot is dawn, before the breeze fills in and while the sand is empty.
tide
Here the three-and-a-half-metre spring tide really runs the show: at low water a huge sand platform is uncovered and the northern stones sit almost dry, while the flood covers them again and brings the stream that runs parallel to the beach. That longshore current is the one to watch when you get out.
shelter
The northern end of A Lanzada, the one with the chapel and the old tower, faces west from the isthmus joining O Grove to the mainland: there is no shelter at all, the whole 190°-265° arc comes straight in and 240° lifts the entire shoreline. Only an easterly or northeasterly land wind flattens the beach enough to consider going in.
conditions
Sea bass are worked right at the edge of the foam, between sand tongues and loose stones, and that forces you to go only with very little sea. Half a metre of shore break is enough to fill the water with suspended sand and leave you blind. The good days are flat sea, light wind and, if possible, after a week without storms.
hazard
This beach has well-known rip currents and a shore break that tumbles you: if in doubt, do not go in, because getting out on the north side against the undertow is hard work. Stay well clear of the bathing area and of surfers, and keep the buoy in sight at all times. Ons island is a little over four kilometres west and spearfishing there is banned.
access
You park in the lay-bys along the isthmus road, level with the chapel, and cross the boardwalk over the dune down to the sand. The least bad entry is the northern corner, using the lull the stones create, and you have to time the sets so the break does not catch you. Swim short: there is no need to go far from the shoreline.
Large W-facing beach; classic sea-bass ground, only with a low swell and light wind.
Permitted days are the usual ones in Galicia: Saturday, Sunday and public holidays, plus the daily freedom from Maundy Thursday to Easter Sunday and that of 1 May to 30 September (Orden 17.09.2009, art. 13.2). On this cape aim for the slack water at the turn of the tide and always finish in daylight: the day closes at sunset.
tide
At the mouth of the ría the tidal range is around three and a half metres on springs, and here it turns into current sweeping the cape from one side to the other: on the ebb the ría pulls seaward and you feel the push as you round the point. At low water blocks emerge that serve as landmarks for finding your entry again.
shelter
Udra is the granite cape of the Morrazo that separates the Ría de Pontevedra from the Ensenada de Aldán, so it has two faces: the northwest one takes whatever comes up from the open sea, while the eastern one, towards Aldán, is screened by the cape itself. With west and northwest loaded you work the Aldán side; with northeast, the other way round.
conditions
The bottom is big granite blocks with a kelp forest on top, and good-sized bream and ballan wrasse move between the fronds. It holds up better than the beaches because there is almost no sand, but the weed swaying in a running sea blocks your view and makes the shot awkward. In summer upwelling leaves the water cold and greenish for days on end.
hazard
Udra is a protected natural area and that is not decorative: check what specific restrictions apply before you go, because protection of the land and sea surroundings can affect access and uses. Ons island, where spearfishing is banned outright, lies some seven and a half kilometres to the west. And respect the sizes: grouper is not below 45 cm.
access
You get there on the Bueu-to-Aldán road and leave the car at the cape viewpoint car park; from there a path through pines and gorse drops to the boulder coves. The comfortable entry is in the eastern cove, hopping from stone to stone in calm water. Never exit on the northwest face when there is sea: the granite is slippery and unforgiving.
Protected rocky cape on the Ría de Pontevedra; rock with boulders and kelp, bream and ballan wrasse; respect the protected zone.
The regional calendar applies here too: Saturdays, Sundays and official public holidays (state and Galician) are the allowed days, with a daily free run over Easter, from Maundy Thursday to Easter Sunday, and between 1 May and 30 September (Orden 17.09.2009, art. 13.2). In July and August the only gap left is first thing in the morning.
tide
With the Rías Baixas springs, in the order of three and a half metres, the beach changes size a lot: at low water you walk a good stretch of firm sand to reach the sea and can get to the rocky ends on foot, while at high water you have to swim to them. The current here is weak; what matters is how much sand is exposed.
shelter
Montalvo is a sandy beach facing south-southwest with a rocky patch at each end, and Punta Faxilda cuts off a good part of what comes from the west. It is still sensitive to the 190°-265° sector, above all to 240°, but with north and northeast winds it sits sheltered and the shoreline goes almost lake-like.
conditions
What you hunt here is on the two rocky patches at the ends, not on the sandy middle. The water clouds quickly with any wave because the bottom is fine sand, so you want the beach quiet and several days without a storm. In summer the temperature can drop several degrees overnight once the upwelling kicks in.
hazard
The risk here is not the sea but the people: in summer Montalvo is a flagged bathing beach and you cannot shoot near swimmers or near anyone fishing from the shore, so work only at the ends and keep the buoy visible at all times. Ons island, with its blanket ban, lies about five kilometres to the west.
access
Wide parking behind the dune and a direct walk down to the sand, no steps and no jumps: it is one of the easiest accesses in the area. You get in through the middle and swim to one side or the other, two or three hundred metres out to the stones. With a southwesterly sea the shore break slams hard and it is better to exit at the eastern end.
Sand with rock at both ends; easy entry, semi-sheltered from the W.
The Galician regime rules: weekends and public holidays only, except the daily window from Maundy Thursday to Easter Sunday and the long season from 1 May to 30 September, when any day is allowed (Orden 17.09.2009, art. 13.2). On this point the afternoon pays better, when the sun lights up the southwest wall.
tide
The Rías Baixas move about three and a half metres on springs, and on a headland like this the tide mostly turns into current sweeping the drop-off. At low water rock platforms appear that let you walk in, and at high water you have to find a higher exit because those same platforms end up in the wash.
shelter
Faxilda is the rocky elbow separating Montalvo from A Lanzada and it is wide open to the 190°-265° arc, with 240° the worst heading: that is where the ground swell coming up from the mouth of the Ría de Pontevedra arrives. With a northeasterly, though, the headland casts its own shadow and the eastern side goes flat.
conditions
The good part of Faxilda is the southwest drop-offs, where the rock falls away in steps and bream and ballan wrasse cross over. The water holds up well against silt because there is little loose sand, but two days of heavy sea leave a white layer at the surface that takes time to clear. Summer upwelling comes in cold and green with steady northeasterlies.
hazard
Ons island, together with its surrounding waters, is part of the Illas Atlánticas National Park and spearfishing there is not permitted under any circumstances; from Faxilda it lies a little over three kilometres to the west. The spot itself is outside the park, but the border runs across the sea and nobody marks it, so do not head off towards the island.
access
There is parking by the Faxilda viewpoint on the Montalvo-to-A Lanzada road, and a short path drops to the rocks on the eastern side. You can get in there without drama even with a bit of movement, because the elbow of the cape shelters it; the southwest face, the one with the drop-offs, is reached by swimming and is no place to try to exit.
Rocky point between Montalvo and A Lanzada; drop-offs to the SW, sea bream and ballan wrasse, exposed to swell.
The regional calendar applies inside the ría just the same: Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays, plus daily in the stretch from Maundy Thursday to Easter Sunday and in the long one from 1 May to 30 September (Orden 17.09.2009, art. 13.2). Early morning the harbour is quiet; from midday boats come and go non-stop.
tide
The range is the same as everywhere in the Rías Baixas, around three and a half metres on springs, but in here it translates into very little: the current is gentle and the change shows mainly in how much stone is uncovered. At low water the reef turns almost into a pool and you dive in very little water, which suits a beginner.
shelter
The Cabicastro reef already lies inside the Ría de Pontevedra, in the lee of the point that closes Portonovo to the west, and that strips away most of the energy from the 190°-265° sector. What does get in is a southerly, blowing up the ría and raising a short slop; with north and northeast winds it is one of the calmest places around.
conditions
Mixed bottom of stone, sand and a little seagrass at shallow depth: this is a learning spot, more for getting used to breath-hold work than for chasing a big fish. Visibility depends on two things: whether it has rained, because the ría clouds up with fresh water, and boat traffic, which stirs the soft bottom near the harbour.
hazard
Watch two things. First, Portonovo harbour is right next door: constant traffic, moorings and working boats, and you must respect the 300 m from professional vessels at work. Second, Anexo VI of Orden 17.09.2009 closes inner waters with lines we have not mapped: check the closing line for the Ría de Pontevedra.
access
The usual thing is to leave the car in Portonovo and walk the promenade out to Cabicastro point, getting in over the low stones on the western side, well clear of the harbour entrance. You do not need to swim far: the reef starts a few metres off the shore. Avoid entering by the quay, where boats manoeuvre blind.
Mixed bottom sheltered inside the ría; good for beginners.
SOLO 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.
One morning glance — and you know.
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≈
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».
✓Spearfishing licence mandatory; the AUTONOMOUS COMMUNITY issues it (not the State) and it is valid in the exterior waters of the whole coast. Free-diving only — scuba is banned (, art. 3).
✓Spearfishing catch may not be sold or traded — it is non-commercial fishing ().
✓Night prohibited: spearfishing only in daylight (sunset to sunrise not allowed) — , art. 16.d.
✓Marker buoy MANDATORY: mark your position with a clearly visible buoy and stay within 25 m of it — , art. 15.
✓Never keep the speargun loaded out of the water — , art. 16.a.
✓Keep at least 300 m from professional fishing vessels that are working — , art. 12.b.
✓The state act (, art. 16) bans, for spearfishing: a loaded gun out of the water; explosive/electric points and lamps (hand torches excepted); underwater scooters; night — from sunset to sunrise. Plus art. 12 b), d), e): 300 m from professional fishing vessels, light as an attractant, poisons/explosives. A ban in a PARTICULAR reserve, port or beach comes from that place's OWN instrument (the reserve's order, the autonomous community's rules, the port authority) — see the no-take zones on the map and your community's rules.
✓Min. sizes by ( + + EU 2019/1241): sea bass 42 cm (rec.) / 36 cm / 25 cm Mediterranean / 22 cm Canaries; gilthead bream 20 cm and white seabream 23 cm in the Mediterranean (EU 2019/1241); grouper 45 cm. See your zone's species card.
✓Only species in Annex I of may be taken; keeping, landing or transporting undersized specimens is prohibited.
✓The licence needs a medical fitness certificate for free-diving and civil-liability insurance (or a federative licence, which includes it). Mandatory in the Basque Country/Murcia/Asturias/Galicia; the federative licence covers it in Galicia/Balearics/Cantabria; the Canaries and Andalusia do NOT require it for the individual licence (a responsible health declaration). Minimum age generally 16 (14 in Andalusia).
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.
Local guide · Sanxenxo
Spearfishing in Sanxenxo: spots, seasons and rules
Updated 2026-07-09 · By Oleksandr, spearfisher
Spearfishing in Sanxenxo sits between exposed beach ground and Ría de Pontevedra shelter. Punta Faxilda and A Lanzada depend on SW or W exposure, swell and light wind; Montalvo has sand, rock at both ends and easy entry; Portonovo/Cabicastro is sheltered and good for starting out. Ons is not a fallback spot: it is in the Atlantic Islands National Park, where spearfishing is banned. For legal entry, Galicia uses PE405A.
TL;DR
Sanxenxo mixes open beaches and Ría de Pontevedra shelter: A Lanzada and Punta Faxilda face W or SW, while Portonovo is sheltered.
Roquedo de Portonovo (Cabicastro) is the beginner ground; Praia de Montalvo has easy entry and partial W shelter.
Ons is Atlantic Islands National Park no-take; Punta Faxilda and Cabo Udra carry Natura 2000 advisory notes.
Where can you spearfish in Sanxenxo?
Separate open beach from ría shelter. Punta Faxilda has SW drop-offs, bream and ballan wrasse, but takes swell. Montalvo is sand with rock at both ends and easy entry. A Lanzada is W-facing, only for low swell and light wind. Portonovo/Cabicastro is sheltered mixed bottom and good for starting out. Cabo Udra is protected rocky cape with boulders, kelp, bream and ballan wrasse.
Spot
Type
Depth
Level
Access
Notes
Punta Faxilda
Rocky point between Montalvo and A Lanzada
SW drop-offs
-
-
Bream and ballan wrasse in the source, but exposed to swell. Also flagged as Natura 2000 advisory in Complexo Ons - O Grove.
Praia de Montalvo
Sand with rock at both ends
Rock at the beach ends
-
Easy entry
Semi-sheltered from the W. The source states easy entry, not a safety score.
A Lanzada (extremo norte)
Large W-facing beach
Shore break and nearby rock
-
-
Classic sea bass ground, only with low swell and light wind.
✓There is no fixed national catch cap (, art. 5 delegates it to the communities); the standard is 5 kg/person/day, with 1 specimen allowed not to count (Canaries — Decreto 182/2004, art. 38.3; Murcia; Galicia; Basque Country). Protected species have per-piece quotas.
✓Only a harpoon is allowed — hand-held or mechanically propelled, with one or several points (, art. 14.1). Carrying spearfishing gear and underwater breathing equipment aboard AT THE SAME TIME is prohibited (art. 14.2) — an offence in itself, even if you dived on a breath hold.
✓Spain is not one jurisdiction. The licence is issued by a coastal autonomous community, and you must comply with the rules of the administration on whose littoral you are in the water: «debiendo cumplir la normativa establecida por la administración en cuyo litoral se realice la actividad» (, art. 13). Interior waters — inside the straight baselines: bays, coves, rías, the whole coastal strip — are the community's competence; exterior waters are the State's. So the age, the days of the week, the distances and the are found in your community's act, not in the state one.
✓Galicia: «Clase C» licence (submarina), procedure PE405A on the Xunta portal; minimum age 16, medical certificate required. Galicia recognises spearfishing licences from other communities and the EU. sede.xunta.gal (PE405A).
✓No-take zone: Atlantic Islands National Park (Cíes, Ons, Sálvora, Cortegada) — spearfishing banned (see zones on the map).
✓Galicia is the only community that closes weekdays: spearfishing is allowed only on Saturdays, Sundays and state or regional holidays, and from Maundy Thursday to Easter Sunday and from 1 May to 30 September, every day (Orden 17.09.2009, art. 13.2). Daylight only, orto to ocaso (art. 13.3). The cap is 5 kg per licence per day, and 2 octopus per fisher per day (art. 12.3). The zones closed to spearfishing are listed in (art. 11.2). The licence needs an official medical fitness certificate, insurance and an arms licence or a federation card (art. 3.b).
⛔ Seahorses (Hippocampus) — protected (RPE).
Rules change and are REGIONAL. Before heading out, check with the competent autonomous community (licence) and the min-size table in force.
-
The source marks it sheltered inside the ría and good for starting out.
Cabo Udra
Protected rocky cape
Rock with boulders and kelp
-
-
Bream and ballan wrasse in the description. Respect the protected zone; the source flags Natura 2000 advisory, not automatic no-take.
Can you spearfish near Ons island?
The Galicia legal block is hard on the Atlantic Islands National Park: Cíes, Ons, Sálvora and Cortegada are closed to spearfishing. Do not present Ons as a Sanxenxo spot. Punta Faxilda in Complexo Ons - O Grove and Cabo Udra carry Natura 2000 advisory notes. Check local rules and boundaries; those notes are not automatic bans outside the park.
What fish can you spearfish in Sanxenxo?
The Sanxenxo spots name bream, ballan wrasse and sea bass. The Cantabrian-NW list also includes European seabass, gilthead seabream, salema, bogue, black seabream, grey mullet, red porgy, striped red mullet, octopus, conger and pollack. Legal sizes include seabass at 42 cm, gilthead bream at 19 cm and octopus at 1 kg.
When is the best time to spearfish in the Ría de Pontevedra?
The source gives no month window for Sanxenxo. It gives Atlantic tide regime, upwelling coast and a bad SW to W sector. Use that as a sea-state filter: A Lanzada and Punta Faxilda need little sea, Montalvo has partial W shelter, and Portonovo/Cabicastro is sheltered. The Silgar webcam reads surface conditions, not underwater visibility.
Do I need a license to spearfish in Galicia?
Yes. The Galicia item says Clase C spearfishing licence, PE405A on the Xunta portal, minimum age 16 and a required medical certificate. Galicia recognises spearfishing licences from other Spanish autonomous communities and the EU. National rules still apply: freediving only, no scuba, daylight only, visible buoy within 25 m, no loaded speargun out of water, and no catch sale.
FAQ
Where can you spearfish in Sanxenxo?
The source lists Punta Faxilda, Praia de Montalvo, A Lanzada north end, Roquedo de Portonovo/Cabicastro and Cabo Udra. Portonovo is sheltered beginner ground. Faxilda and A Lanzada need little sea.
Can you spearfish near Ons island?
Ons is inside the Atlantic Islands National Park, closed to spearfishing in the source. Check charts and local rules near those limits. Natura 2000 advisory notes are not whole-area bans.
What fish can you spearfish in Sanxenxo?
The spot text names bream, ballan wrasse and sea bass. The Cantabrian-NW list also includes gilthead bream, salema, black seabream, grey mullet, red porgy, red mullet, octopus, conger and pollack.
When is the best time to spearfish in the Ría de Pontevedra?
The source gives no month window for Sanxenxo. It marks Atlantic upwelling coast and poor SW to W exposure. Use little sea for Faxilda and A Lanzada.
Do I need a license to spearfish in Galicia?
Yes. Galicia uses the Clase C spearfishing licence through Xunta PE405A, with minimum age 16 and a medical certificate. The rule is regional.
Spain
