Sea Conditions at Goat Island

Sea conditions at Goat Island
Avoid disappointment by knowing what to expect
www.seafriends.org.nz/fcl/sea.htm

Swimming at Goat Island has become hugely popular, drawing many hundreds of thousands of visitors each year. But the visit can become disappointing in the wrong sea conditions. By means of this page we hope to give uptodate information about the weather and sea at Goat Island and around Leigh. Please make sure to verify that the information is current, by checking the date of last update. Bookmark this page and tell others about it. Please note that you may need to reload the page in order to obtain the latest update.

**This table contains daily changing information**
Date: Saturday 7 November 2009. 08:00 NZ summer time. High spring tide at 11:30, 23:50 (0.3-3.3m). Condition: UNSAFE, BAD, POOR, FAIR, GOOD, VERY GOOD, EXCELLENT Goat Island: Clear blue sky. Mild S wind. Visibility very good to excellent (7-15m). No swell. Water calm. Sea temperature 16.5ºC much warmer than last year. Harmless salps in the water. Glorious weather all weekend. DoC has begun digging a new parking, so expect reduced visibility after heavy rains. However, utmost care is applied under constant DOC supervision. Water temperature 14ºC "cold", the warm surface layer has disappeared. A snorkeldiver lasts for 10-20 minutes without, but for 2-3 hours in our comfortable double 5mm wetsuits with hood. $30 all gear all day 9AM-7PM! Discover Goat Island. On Christmas day 2008, a young man drowned while not wearing a protective suit. 12 January a 12-year old girl drowned in the Pakiri surf. Don't underestimate the cold as cramp can cripple you unexpectedly. Wear the Seafriends' safety suits! Be safe rather than sorry. You are in the Pacific Ocean; not in the Hauraki Gulf! Matheson Bay: Not monitored Whangateau estuary: Snorkel in the Whangateau estuary around high tide, sheltered from easterlies and northerlies. Visibility at high tide 3-10m. Not monitored Outlook: Not monitored. Snorkel hire: cheapest, cleanest, huge choice and optical masks for short- and long-sightedness. Visit Seafriends at the top of the Goat Island Rd for the best deals, most choice and cleanest gear. The sea is still cold and most snorkel pleasure can be attained by wearing our fully covering 5mm wetsuits. A complete set is only $25 for the day! Stay warm, stay safe, stay out of the sun, stay comfortable in a single long safety wetsuit (unisuit). Additional hoods are free. Take a warm shower after the dive, at Seafriends. Use our SCUBA gear for beach diving and fill your tanks here for the best rates. No need to starve or go thirsty because the Seafriends Café is open 9-7 with great coffees and fresh food. Lots of information and marine aquariums to explore. Bring family and friends to camp nearby. Help our education centre and help our local community! Remember, we are the people fighting to save our seas - YOUR sea, your children's sea. Find out why, on this web site. Seafriends: 7 Goat Island Rd, Leigh RD5. Ph 094226212. At the top of the Goat Island Road.

Disclaimer
We attempt to keep this page uptodate with accurate information, but may not always succeed.

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Interesting links on this web site

Swim with the fishes at Goat Island: a short introduction with links
Snorkelling without fear: an essential snorkel course for beginner and advanced.
About Seafriends: do more with Seafriends: dive & snorkel hire, café, camping, information, aquariums, schools and more.
Dive rental prices: an updated price list for the cheapest, cleanest and best snorkel gear.

The Goat Island marine reserve: a large chapter containing everything you want to know, with many images.
Seafriends home page: from here you can browse all of the Seafriends web site, over 3500 pages of discovery and learning!
Sitemap: a complete overview with links of the entire Seafriends web site. Many months of browsing and learning. Help save our seas!

Interesting external links

weather prediction: the excellent weather site of METVUW, Victoria University, Wellington

7-day forecast for NZ, 3-day forecast, satellite photos.

Bureau of Meteorology (Australia): synoptic chart, what the weather was.
YAHOO (was XTRA) NZ weather and coastal forecast for COLVILLE.
marine weather prediction and swell, with predictions for Goat Island. Note! Swell forecast for Leigh is usually wrong.
tidal charts: the LINZ Land Information tidal charts. Note that they do not reflect daylight savings time. Choose standard ports tide table, then Auckland, and the desired month Output is a single PDF page.

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