Vero Beach spearfishing forecast — wind, swell, visibility, tides & live cameras

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◈Vero Beach · United States
2.5
🌫 Murky all week after the storm — the water isn't settling
visibility~1m

Nottoday

Today — sit it out — wave, wind and surge pounding. 🌫 Murky all week after the storm — the water isn't settling

Sources: NWS · NDBC · Open-Meteo · Copernicus — high confidence · data 17:15

Sources & confidence

Sources
NWS · NDBC · 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.

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spearo.app · a private marine instrument · Vero Beach · a planner, not a safety guaranteePrivacy
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0 m

Surface

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

spearo.app
Small Craft Advisory · NWSupdated 17:15
Offshore marks — solo, off the rocks
DON'T GO
don't go · wave 2.8 m (occasionally up to ~5.6 m)
wave 2.8 m head-onwind 23, gusts 45 km/hsurge pounding the rocksvisibility ~1 m
today, best window 06:00–09:00
fish · Visibility 1 m · Water 26.1°C
confidence low · verdict for the selected day
Best window · next 3 days

Next 3 days — not divable: wave up to 3.5 m

🌫 Murky all week after the storm — the water isn't settling

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
07:27–18:42 · full moon
▼ 00:00▲ 07:00▼ 13:00▲ 19:00 · 1.3 m
Hours (06→20)
06
09
12
15
18
Day's trends
Tide-0.02 m
Wave2.92 m
Wind23 km/h
Water26 °C
fish activity: moon overhead 00:10 · high · moonset 06:49 · moderate · moon underfoot 12:30 · high · moonrise 18:14 · moderate
Conditions window06:00–09:00
don't go fish
Hs 2.78 m · roughperiod 8.8 s head-onwind 23→45surge 32.6viz 1 m
2.78 mrough · up to ~5.56 · 33° head-on
8.8 sswell moderate
23→45gusts 45 km/h
32.6pounding the rocks
0.42m/s
1 mrecent swell
26.1°C5 mm + hood
▼13:00tide turn near
Atmosphere1 kmovercast
moderatemoonset
  • wave 2.8 m (occasionally up to ~5.6 m)
  • steep wind-wave — choppy surface, careful on entry
  • just after high water
confidence lowtwilight
Open the seafloor map with entry points →

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

Download on theApp StoreGET IT ONGoogle Play
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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 →
Mitigation Rocks Reef #1Nearshore marks
no data
window
—
Seabed depth of the selected area
≈2.2–6.0 m (bathymetry NOAA CUDEM/CoNED, 3 m)

Mitigation Rocks Reef #1: a nearshore reef of placed mitigation boulders about 16 m off the Vero Beach shoreline. Florida 68B-20.003(2)(a): no spearfishing within 100 yards (91 m) of a public bathing beach. The boulders lie in about 4 m; good for short freedives.

Google Maps
Wabasso Fishing ReefNearshore marks
no data
window
—
Seabed depth of the selected area
≈17–18 m (bathymetry NOAA CUDEM, 3 m)

Concrete patch reef in 14–17 m off Wabasso. Snapper and grouper; remember that Florida bans powerheads and bangsticks for taking fish in state waters.

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
Open the seafloor map →
Reference

What's in season,
what the law says.

In season now
  • sheepshead
    Archosargus probatocephalus · 2–15 m · legal
    Year-round. Min FL 12″ (30 cm), NC/SC 14″, GA 10″. Bag FL 8/person (50/trip vessel limit in Mar–Apr), NC 5, SC 10/person and 30/boat, GA 15. FL expressly allows spearing.
  • mangrove/mutton snapper
    Lutjanus griseus · 5–35 m · legal
    Year-round in FL state waters on both coasts. Min 10″ (25 cm), 5/person — but the real constraint is FL's 10-snapper daily aggregate. NC/SC handle it inside the snapper-grouper complex, not as a standalone line.
  • mutton snapper
    Lutjanus analis · 5–40 m · legal
    A core Keys / SE-Florida target. Year-round in FL state waters on both coasts and in SC. Min 18″ (46 cm), bag 5/person inside the 10-snapper daily aggregate.
  • yellowtail snapper
    Ocyurus chrysurus · 3–30 m · legal
    The Keys' bread-and-butter reef fish. Year-round in FL state waters on both coasts. Min 12″ (30 cm), up to 10/person/day — but inside the 10-snapper aggregate, i.e. that is the whole snapper bag.
  • black sea bass
    Centropristis striata · 5–40 m · legal
    A staple on every NC/SC/GA nearshore ledge and artificial reef. Year-round in FL, NC south of Hatteras, SC and GA. Min 13″ (33 cm) FL Atlantic / NC-south / SC, 12″ GA, 10″ FL Gulf. Bag 7/person (GA 15).
Punta Gorda
  • Fort Myers Beach
  • Miami
  • Boca Grande
  • Venice (FL)
  • Laurel
  • Coral Gables
  • Naples
  • Bayshore Gardens
  • Sarasota
  • Key Biscayne
  • St. Petersburg
  • Cutler Bay
  • Safety Harbor
  • Gulfport
  • Marco Island
  • Tarpon Springs
  • Hudson
  • Clearwater
  • Crystal River
  • St. Augustine
  • Key Largo
  • Islamorada
  • Cedar Key
  • Jacksonville Beach
  • Marathon
  • Big Pine Key

    • All 367 spots → · spearo.app — All countries

    transparency ~4 m · satellite, 2 days agosatellite estimate · may differ right at the shore

    Atlantic hurricane season (Jun–Nov) — check the NHC forecast

    buoy Canaveral, FL: wave 2.6 m/11 s · 1 h ago

    Google Maps
    Bethel ShoalOffshore marks
    no data
    window
    —

    Natural offshore bar north-east of town in about 5 m over coquina ledge. Hogfish and snapper; natural structure, unlike the county's concrete reefs.

    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.

    gray triggerfish
    Balistes capriscus · 10–50 m · ⚠️ closed season/limit
    FWC lists 'hook and line, spears, gigs' as legal gear, so it is NOT covered by the FL ornamental-triggerfish spearing ban. FL Atlantic year-round, min 12″ (30 cm), 10/day; FL Gulf open Mar 1–May 31 and Aug 1–Dec 31, min 15″ (38 cm), 1/day.
  • lionfish
    Pterois volitans / P. miles · 1–60 m · invasive — target
    Invasive: no season, size or bag limit. No licence needed with a pole spear, Hawaiian sling, hand-held net or a lionfish-specific device. The SPEAR bans still apply: 100 yd from swimming beaches/piers/fishing bridges, 100 ft from a jetty's above-water part, Monroe County from Long Key north to the Miami-Dade line, and any DEP park water — hand-held nets only there.
  • great barracuda
    Sphyraena barracuda · 1–30 m · legal
    Year-round. The trap is county-scoped: Collier, Monroe, Miami-Dade, Broward, Palm Beach and Martin run a 15–36″ (38–91 cm) slot, 2/person and 6/vessel plus one fish over 36″. Rest of the state: no size limit, 2 fish or 100 lb, whichever is more.
    • Regulated — check your state
    • gag/red grouper📋 season by state
      Not merely 'state-set': the windows are tiny. FL Gulf state waters 2026 are OPEN SEP 1–30 ONLY; FL Atlantic May 1–Aug 1; SC closed Aug 2 2026–Apr 30 2027. Min 24″ (61 cm); bag sits inside the grouper aggregate.
    • hogfish📋 season by state
      One species, two regimes. FL Atlantic and the Keys (all water south of Cape Sable): open May 1–Oct 31, min 16″ (41 cm), 1 fish/day. FL Gulf north of Cape Sable: year-round, 14″ (36 cm), 5/day. SC 17″ (43 cm), 2/day.
    • cobia📋 season by state
      GEAR WARNING: in SC state waters cobia 'may only be taken by rod & reel and gig' — a speargun is not named as legal gear. FL year-round, GA Mar 1–Oct 31, NC by DMF proclamation. Min 36″ (91 cm), bag 1/person.
    • flounder📋 season by state
      NC is the trap: the 2026 recreational season was SEP 1–14 ONLY; from Sep 15 possession is unlawful. FL closed Oct 15–Nov 30, min 14″ (36 cm), 5/day; SC 16″ (41 cm), 5/person and 10/boat; GA 12″, 15/day. FL lists spears and gigs as legal gear.
    • red snapper📋 season by state
      FL Gulf state waters 2026: May 22–Jul 31 daily, then Sep 1–Jan 4 (partly weekends only). Min 16″ (41 cm) on the Gulf side, 20″ (51 cm) FL Atlantic, SC and GA. Bag 2/person inside the 10-snapper aggregate.
    • red grouper📋 season by state
      The most commonly landed grouper on the FL Gulf shelf: state waters year-round (federal closed Feb 1–Mar 31 seaward of 20 fathoms). FL Atlantic May 1–Dec 31; SC closed Jan 1–May 31. Min 20″ (51 cm); bag inside the grouper aggregate.
    • black grouper📋 season by state
      The trophy grouper of the Keys and SE-Florida ledges. FL Gulf state waters year-round; FL Atlantic May 1–Dec 31; SC closed Jan 1–Apr 30 2027. Min 24″ (61 cm). Atlantic trap: one gag OR one black, never both.
    • scamp grouper📋 season by state
      Deep ledge, 25–45 m — the classic FL Panhandle and Carolinas spear target. FL Gulf state waters year-round, min 16″ (41 cm); FL Atlantic May 1–Dec 31, min 20″ (51 cm). SC federal waters: 1 scamp or yellowmouth (not both) per person/day.
    • greater amberjack📋 season by state
      The signature wreck and rig fish of the whole façade. FL Gulf (state and federal) OPEN SEP 1–OCT 13 2026 only, min 34″ (86 cm); FL Atlantic closed in April only, min 28″ (71 cm), same in SC and GA. Bag 1/person everywhere.
    Law
    • ✓Florida: saltwater licence $17 res / $47 non-res; reef fish need the free State Reef Fish Angler (SRFS) designation. NC: CRFL; SC/GA: saltwater licence.
    • ✓Distances (FL): 100 yd from beaches/piers/bridges, 100 ft from the above-water part of a jetty. banned in FL and SC; rebreathers are illegal for spearfishing in FL.
    • ✓SC: gamefish (red drum/seatrout/cobia/tarpon/striped bass) hook-and-line only (§50-5-1700). GA: speargun doubtful in state water — real hunting on federal reefs.
    • ⛔ 🚫 FLORIDA's full no-spear list (FWC, FAC 68B-20.005): snook, bonefish, tarpon, goliath and Nassau grouper, red drum, spotted seatrout, weakfish, pompano, African pompano, permit, tripletail, spiny lobster, blue crab and stone crab, all billfish, sharks, manta ray and spotted eagle ray, sturgeon — plus any species whose harvest is prohibited by law.
    • ⛔ 🚫 Florida also bans spearing in fresh water, within 100 yards (91 m) of a public swimming beach, a commercial or public fishing pier or any part of a bridge from which public fishing is allowed, and within 100 ft (30 m) of the above-water part of a jetty; ornamental reef fish may not be speared. Federal Gulf waters follow the federal list instead.
    • ⛔ 🚫 Spiny lobster/stone crab — hand-take only (no puncturing). banned in FL and SC. Monroe County (Long Key north to the Miami-Dade line — incl. Key Largo): spearfishing banned; the lionfish licence exemption does NOT override it — hand-held nets only there.

    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.

    FAQ — spearfishing in Vero Beach

    Where can I spearfish in Vero Beach?

    Vero Beach has rock entry points such as Mitigation Rocks Reef #1, Bethel Shoal and Wabasso Fishing Reef. Vero Beach has shallow nearshore worm-rock — Mitigation Rocks and Bethel Shoal — and the Wabasso patch reef for hogfish and snapper. Below you'll find each spot (access, shelter and hazards) and today's forecast.

    When is the best season in Vero Beach?

    Year-round; the best US regime — snappers/groupers/hogfish, lionfish encouraged.

    How cold is the water in Vero Beach?

    Warm year-round, 22–29 °C; the Keys and reefs are gin-clear.

    Is Vero Beach good for a beginner?

    Beginner-friendly on the reefs/Keys; mind the Upper Keys ban and the 100-yard rule.

    Do I need a licence in Vero Beach?

    Yes — in Vero Beach almost certainly, but the licence is the STATE's, not a federal one: nearly every coastal state requires its own saltwater fishing licence, and several add a free registration or an extra endorsement on top (Florida's free State Reef Fish Survey for reef fish, Texas's saltwater endorsement, California's Ocean Enhancement Validation). Hawaii asks nothing of residents and charges visitors the NRMFL. What may be speared, and with what gear, is state law too — the price and the details depend on the state, so read the «Law» block below.

    Full guide: spearfishing in Florida & the Gulf →
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