Umkomaas spearfishing forecast — wind, swell, visibility, tides & live cameras

spearo.app / South Africa / Umkomaas
PTPortuguêsRUРусскийESEspañolITItalianoELΕλληνικάFRFrançaisTRTürkçeHRHrvatski
Forecast refreshing in the background — reload the page in a minute for the latest read.
◈Umkomaas · South Africa
2.5
💧 Water looks set to clear by Monday (~1d) — tentative
visibility~1m

Nottoday

Today — sit it out — wave, wind and surge pounding. 💧 Water looks set to clear by Monday (~1d) — tentative

Sources: Open-Meteo · Copernicus — high confidence · data 06:07

Sources & confidence

Sources
Open-Meteo · Copernicus
Method
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.

Entry pointsNo-take zones

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.

Coming soon

Get the go / no-go verdict for Umkomaas by email

Leave your email — and the moment a window opens at Umkomaas, we'll send the go / no-go verdict. Email is all we need.

Optional: city, channel, phone
What to send
Where to send it
More spots

Spots in South Africa

🇿🇦South Africa

South Africa map →

Nearby towns

  • Scottburgh
  • Durban
  • Umhlanga
  • Port Shepstone
  • Shelly Beach

KwaZulu-Natal

  • Margate
  • Ballito
  • Richards Bay
  • St Lucia
  • Sodwana Bay

Wild Coast

  • Port St Johns
  • Coffee Bay

Eastern Cape

  • East London
  • Port Alfred
  • Gqeberha
  • Jeffreys Bay
Feedback

Help us make it better

What's missing? Tell us what you'd like to see — new spots, species, data or features. We read everything.

spearo.app · a private marine instrument · Umkomaas · a planner, not a safety guaranteePrivacy
Today
Notify me
Map
Download on theApp Store
GET IT ONGoogle Play
Google Play — QR code
point your camera
0 m

Surface

Wind, wave and the swell windows — when to go and the best hours.

spearo.app
updated 06:07
Umkomaas — solo, off the rocks
DON'T GO
don't go · wave 1.4 m (occasionally up to ~2.8 m)
wave 1.4 mwind 22, gusts 32 km/hsurge pounding the rocksvisibility ~1 m
today, best window 09:00–12:00
fish · Visibility 1 m · Water 23.3°C
confidence medium · verdict for the selected day
Best window · next 3 days
borderlinetomorrow · 06:00–09:00
you can see ~2 m ahead fish

💧 Water looks set to clear by Monday (~1d) — tentative

↓ low tide 08:19 · slack water ~07:34–09:04 bite times: 10:00–12:00 · 17:11–18:11

Tell me when it's on

Just your email — nothing else needed.

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.

Sunday · today2026-10-25
05:08–18:14 · full moon
▲ 02:00▼ 08:00▲ 15:00▼ 21:00 · 1.9 m
Hours (06→20)
06
09
12
15
18
Day's trends
Tide-0.32 m
Wave1.52 m
Wind10 km/h
Water23 °C
fish activity: moon overhead 00:00 · high · moonset 04:16 · moderate · moon underfoot 11:00 · high · moonrise 17:41 · moderate
Conditions window09:00–12:00
don't go fish
Hs 1.42 m · roughperiod 7.9 swind 22→32surge 7.1viz 1 m
1.42 mrough · up to ~2.84 · 167° at an angle
7.9 sswell moderate
22→32gusts 32 km/h
7.1pounding the rocks
0.19m/s
1 mrecent swell
23.3°C5 mm + hood
▲15:00tide rising
Atmosphere19 kmlandmarks visible
highmoon underfoot
  • wave 1.4 m (occasionally up to ~2.8 m)
  • steep wind-wave — choppy surface, careful on entry
  • first hours of the flood — fish moving in
confidence mediumday
Open the seafloor map with entry points →

Your best window — with you. Forecast in your pocket.

Download on theApp StoreGET IT ONGoogle Play
Google Play — QR code
point your camera
−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.

See all spots →
−20 m

The 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 →
Aliwal CrownUmkomaas
dangerous
⛔ Banned here
swell on the quarter today
window
—

The Crown pinnacle on Aliwal Shoal — inside the MPA restricted (no-take) zone. Dive/look only, no spearfishing.

Google Maps
Aliwal ShoalUmkomaas
dangerous
swell on the quarter today
window
—

Fossilised dune reef ~5 km offshore — BOAT ONLY. King mackerel, tuna, raggies. Much of the shoal is MPA-zoned — spearfishing only where permitted.

Google Maps

One morning glance — and you know.

Download on theApp StoreGET IT ONGoogle Play
Google Play — QR code
point your camera
≈

Surfacing

Cameras, map and reference — to hand as you come up.

Live cameras, map & reference
Open the seafloor map →
Reference

What's in season,
what the law says.

In season now
  • yellowtail
    Seriola lalandi · 3–40 m · legal
  • garrick / leervis
    Lichia amia · 1–20 m · legal
  • geelbek (Cape salmon)
    Atractoscion aequidens · 5–40 m · legal
  • galjoen (national fish)
    Dichistius capensis · 0–12 m · ⚠️ closed season/limit
    National fish but NOT no-take: legally spearable (35 cm, bag 2), closed 15 Oct–end Feb.
  • kob / kabeljou
    Argyrosomus japonicus · 2–30 m · legal
  • red roman
    Chrysoblephus laticeps · 5–40 m · legal
  • king mackerel (couta/cuda)
    Scomberomorus commerson · 1–25 m · legal
  • elf / shad
    Pomatomus saltatrix · 1–20 m · ⚠️ closed season/limit
    ⚠️ Closed 1 Sep–30 Nov (spawning). Don't take it then.

Garden Route

  • Plettenberg Bay
  • Knysna
  • Mossel Bay
  • Stilbaai

Western Cape

  • Arniston
  • Struisbaai
  • Gansbaai
  • Hermanus
  • Gordon's Bay
  • Muizenberg
  • Cape Town
  • Simon's Town
  • Hout Bay
  • Langebaan
  • Saldanha

spearo.app — All countries

Umkomaas Beach reefUmkomaas
dangerous
swell on the quarter today
window
—

Shore reef seaward of the Mkomazi mouth; garrick, couta. The Mkomazi estuary is no-spear — stay on the open coast.

Google Maps

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.

  • white musselcracker
    Sparodon durbanensis · 3–30 m · legal
  • hottentot
    Pachymetopon blochii · 2–25 m · legal
    • Law
    • ✓You need a endorsed for SPEARFISHING (MLRA 18/1998). Buy it online (fishing.dffe.gov.za) or at an authorised office (SAPO branch) — check the current fee there. Own use only — sale is banned.
    • ✓Breath-hold + snorkel only — scuba/hookah are BANNED (reg 8). Spearfishing in is FULLY BANNED (reg 16, no exceptions). Daily cap of 10 fish total. Inside an obey the managing authority; in several you can't even CARRY a speargun.
    • •NIGHT — the recreational spearfishing brochure (MLRA 18/1998) carries no time-of-day restriction: diving at night is legal. The permit, breath-hold-only, the blanket ban and conditions all apply around the clock; shark risk is worse after dark — that is safety, not law.
    • ⛔ 🚫 Table 3 (zero possession): brindle bass (Epinephelus lanceolatus), potato bass (E. tukula), seventy-four (moratorium since 1998), great white / whale / basking sharks, sawfishes, coelacanth, Natal wrasse.
    • ⛔ 🚫 All hard corals, sea fans and sea pens (Scleractinia/Gorgonacea/Pennatulacea) — protected. Seahorses/pipefish (Syngnathidae) — no-take.
    • ⛔ 🚫 Spearfishing in is FULLY BANNED (reg 16 — no exceptions). Inside an obey the managing authority's conditions; in several you can't even CARRY a speargun (Sardinia Bay, Bird Island, Robben Island etc.). Abalone (perlemoen) — recreationally closed until further notice.

    Rules change. Before heading out, check with the DFFE (Marine Recreational Fishing brochure / permit) and the MPA managing authority (SANParks / CapeNature / Ezemvelo KZN / ECPTA / iSimangaliso).

    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.

    FAQ — spearfishing in Umkomaas

    Where can I spearfish in Umkomaas?

    Umkomaas has rock entry points such as Umkomaas Beach reef, Aliwal Shoal and Aliwal Crown. Umkomaas — the launch (~5 km off) for Aliwal Shoal, a world-class reef with the MV Produce and SS Nebo wrecks; king mackerel, dorado and tuna in warm Agulhas water. Below you'll find each spot (access, shelter and hazards) and today's forecast.

    When is the best season in Umkomaas?

    Winter (May–Sep) — drier and clearer, the Sardine Run; summer warm but rainy. Shark nets, Sodwana is an MPA.

    How cold is the water in Umkomaas?

    22–27 °C — 2–3 mm suit; warm Agulhas, tropical north (Sodwana).

    Is Umkomaas good for a beginner?

    Moderate: warm water, gamefish; shark nets + Sodwana MPA zoning, mind the current.

    Do I need a licence in Umkomaas?

    Yes — in Umkomaas, as everywhere on the mainland, you need a recreational fishing licence (DGRM); breath-hold only (no scuba), with a marker buoy and no night diving. See the guide for the details.

    Full guide: spearfishing in South Africa →
    Data partners
    dive centres that send us real visibility readings
    Águas VivasMilfontes · Sagres