Awana Bay RocksGreat Barrier Island
borderlineswell on the quarter today
- window
- tide
- shelter
- hazard
- access
Exposed east-coast reef bay; kingfish and cray off the boulders, some of the clearest water near Auckland.
Google MapsGreat Barrier Island spearfishing forecast — wind, swell, visibility, tides & live cameras
8.2
wave 0.3 m head-on
visibility5m
Dive today — wave, wind and visibility.
Sources: IPMA · NDBC · Copernicus — high confidence · data 08:39
Sources & confidence
- Sources
- IPMA · NDBC buoys · Copernicus Marine
- Method
- Model consensus, read per window
- Freshness
- Re-read every hour, per coast
Compiled by the spearo sea-state engine
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.
- 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.
- Wind & gusts
- Speed and gusts, hour by hour — wind speed and an onshore push chop the surface and cut visibility.
- Tide phase
- Timing and range of the tide, calibrated per coast — big spring tides pull the verdict toward caution.
- Water temperature
- Sea-surface temperature — sharply cold water vetoes a green verdict.
- Currents & outflow
- Direction and drift of the current — it pushes you, and it drags turbid coastal water across where you dive.
- Rain runoff & air clarity
- Rain muddies the water inshore through land runoff, while fog and haze cut visibility at the surface.
- 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 — forced red; the window is closed after dark.
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
Surface
Wind, wave and the swell windows — when to go and the best hours.
spearo.app
calmupdated 08:39
Great Barrier Island — solo, off the rocks
best weather window · solo, stay careful, run the checklist · calm conditions: swell, wind and visibility all normal
wave 0.3 m head-onwind 5 km/hvisibility ~8 mwindow 06:00–18:00
today, best window 12:00–15:00
fish · Visibility 8 m · Water 15.7°C
confidence medium · verdict for the selected day
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.
Thursday · today2026-07-23
07:22–17:27 · first quarter
▲ 01:00▼ 07:00▲ 14:00▼ 20:00 · 1.5 m
Hours (06→20)
06
09
12
15
18
Day's trends
Tide0.32 m
Wave0.32 m
Wind4 km/h
Water16 °C
fish activity: moonset 01:52 · moderate · moon underfoot 07:00 · high · moonrise 12:00 · moderate · moon overhead 19:20 · high
Conditions window06:00–09:00
caution — solo off the rocks is risky, check on site fish
Hs 0.36 mperiod 9.7 s head-onwind 5→13surge 0.1viz 4 m
0.36 mup to ~0.72 · 105° head-on
9.7 sswell moderate
5→13gusts 13 km/h
0.1weak surge
0.11m/s
4 mrecent swell
15.6°Cthicker suit + hood
▲14:00tide turn near
Atmosphere1 kmlandmarks visible
highmoon underfoot
- light fog ~1.1 km
- first hours of the flood — fish moving in
confidence mediumtwilight
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: 1152 spots across 189 stretches of coast — mainland Portugal, Madeira and the Azores.
See all spotsThe 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
Medlands / OruawharoGreat Barrier Island
borderlineswell on the quarter today
- window
- tide
- shelter
- hazard
- access
Rock reef at the ends of Medlands Beach; snapper, kingfish and cray in Aotea's clear east water.
Google MapsTryphena Harbour EntranceGreat Barrier Island
borderlineswell on the quarter today
- window
- tide
- shelter
- hazard
- access
Rocky entrance points of Tryphena on Aotea's SW; sheltered snapper and cray, clear ocean water.
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.
Surfacing
Cameras, map and reference — to hand as you come up.
Live cameras, map & reference
Open the seafloor map →What's in season,
Reference
What's in season,
what the law says.
In season now
- snapper (tāmure)
- yellowtail kingfish (haku)
- blue cod (rāwaru)
- trevally (araara)
- butterfish/greenbone (marari)
- kahawai
- red rock lobster (kōura)⚠️ Crayfish (rock lobster) and pāua — free-diving only; taking them on scuba is PROHIBITED nationwide. Pāua/crayfish are not speared.
Law
- ✓There is NO — you may fish subject to MPI rules (sizes/limits/gear). Rules are REGIONAL (combined finfish daily limit 20, but local notices override stricter). Freshwater trout/salmon may not be speared.
- ✓Crayfish (rock lobster) and pāua — free-diving only; taking them on scuba is BANNED nationwide. Spearfishing is banned in marine reserves. Respect / and (incl. a after a drowning — a cultural/sacred closure).
- ⛔ 🚫 Crayfish (rock lobster) and pāua — taking them on SCUBA is banned nationwide (free-diving only). Combined finfish daily limit 20 (local notices override stricter).
- ⛔ 🚫 Protected under the Wildlife Act 1953: spotted black groper (Epinephelus daemelii), great white shark, giant manta, black/red coral, seahorses/pipefish. Trout/salmon (freshwater) — entirely off-limits to spearguns.
- ⛔ 🚫 Marine reserves (~44) — spearfishing and all fishing banned. Respect / and (incl. a after a drowning — a tapu/cultural closure, not only a fishing rule): don't dive.
Rules change and are regional. Before heading out, check with MPI (regional fishing rules / the NZ Fishing Rules app), DOC (marine reserves) and local notices (rāhui/mātaitai).
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.
Spearfishing in Great Barrier Island: spots, seasons and rules
Spearfishing at Great Barrier Island is less urban and more weather-led than Auckland mainland diving. Aotea sits on the outer Hauraki Gulf, with Tryphena and the western bays offering shelter while Medlands and Awana face clearer, more exposed ocean water. Kingfish, snapper and crayfish are the draw. New Zealand has no recreational sea-fishing licence, but the island remains under MPI Auckland/Kermadec rules, and Hauraki Gulf closures or marine reserve boundaries must be checked before moving spots.
TL;DR
- Great Barrier Island is remote Hauraki Gulf spearfishing, with clearer water, boat logistics and both sheltered and exposed sides.
- Tryphena, Medlands / Oruawharo and Awana Bay are the three named Aotea entries for snapper, kingfish and crayfish.
- The three listed spots have no no-take spot named for these entries, but Hauraki Gulf closures and DOC reserve rules still need checking.
- Auckland/Kermadec MPI rules apply, including a 20 finfish combined daily limit and free-dive-only crayfish and pāua rules.
Best spearfishing spots on Great Barrier Island
Great Barrier gives three different moods: sheltered harbour entrance, east-coast beach reef and exposed boulder bay. Each one needs a transport and weather plan before a fish plan.
| Spot | Type | Depth | Level | Access | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tryphena Harbour Entrance | Sheltered rocky entrance | Shallow harbour-mouth rock | Intermediate | Shore or small-boat access around Tryphena | Tryphena is the sheltered south-west option, with snapper and crayfish in clearer ocean-influenced water than a mainland harbour. Watch boat traffic at the entrance. |
| Medlands / Oruawharo | East-coast rock reef | Reef at the beach ends | Intermediate | Beach and rock access at Medlands | Medlands is the kingfish and snapper option when the east side has settled. It can be clear and productive, but exposure builds quickly when swell returns. |
| Awana Bay Rocks | Exposed boulder reef | Nearshore boulder and reef edge | Experienced intermediate | Shore entry in Awana Bay | Awana is one of the clearest-water options near Auckland, with kingfish and crayfish off the boulders. It needs a modest swell window. |
How do you choose between Tryphena and the east coast?
Use Tryphena when the island needs shelter and Medlands or Awana when the east coast has genuinely flattened. Aotea can make one side look calm while the other is working hard. The best plan is flexible transport, enough daylight to change bays, and a refusal to swim exposed boulders just because the water looks blue.
What legal checks matter around Aotea?
The three named Great Barrier spots are not marked as protected, but that is not permission to ignore boundaries. Hauraki Gulf marine reserves and temporary closures can be specific. MPI Auckland/Kermadec rules set the fisheries baseline, and DOC reserve water anywhere in the gulf is no-take. If a chart or app shows a closed area, fish elsewhere.
What are the key species and limits?
The named targets are kingfish, snapper and crayfish. MPI Auckland/Kermadec rules set a combined 20 finfish daily limit, with individual species limits inside it such as a 30 cm snapper minimum and a 75 cm kingfish minimum. Crayfish cannot be speared, and crayfish or pāua taken by divers must be free-dived.
What makes Great Barrier more demanding?
Distance changes the safety margin. A short shore dive on the mainland can become a logistics problem on Aotea if weather, ferry timing, fuel or reception turns. Carry conservative gear, tell someone the bay and return time, and keep catches modest. The clearest water is usually the least sheltered, so do not let visibility talk you into a poor exit.
FAQ
Do you need a licence to spearfish on Great Barrier Island?
No sea-fishing licence is required, but MPI Auckland/Kermadec rules and Hauraki Gulf closures apply.
Which side of Aotea is more sheltered?
Tryphena and the western bays are the sheltered side; Medlands and Awana are clearer but more exposed.
What is the finfish bag limit?
MPI Auckland/Kermadec rules list a combined daily limit of 20 finfish per fisher.
Can you take crayfish on scuba?
No. Crayfish and pāua are free-dive only for divers, and crayfish are not speared.
Are there listed no-take spots in the three entries?
No no-take spot is named for those three entries, but marine reserve and closure checks remain essential around the Hauraki Gulf.
Sources
Nearby towns
Coming soon
Get the go / no-go verdict for Great Barrier Island by email
Leave your email — and the moment a window opens at Great Barrier Island, we'll send the go / no-go verdict. Email is all we need.
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