Ocean Swells

Surfers have enjoyed wonderful conditions at Goat Island. Others days have been calm and clear attracting many snorkellers. Water is nice and warm now and the fish are more plentiful than before Christmas. 

November

Taurepo (NZ gloxinia)

It's the time of year for the little taurepo to flower. Hard to spot but once you do you realise there are lots of plants around the Matheson Bay Bush Walk. Other walks in the area include the Leigh Harbour Walk, Goat Island Walkway, Ti Point and of course lots of Leigh Coast options.
The water is warming and plenty of visitors and locals have been swimming and snorkelling on these warmer days.

Summer

Warmer days and cooler days, but definitely warmer water and had our first snorkel of the season. The last couple of weeks the wildlife in the area has been amazing - orca, dolphins, humpback whales and even a leopard seal. 

Spring 2015

We are looking forward to spring-like days and summer too. Visitors should think about staying a night or two to enjoy our lovely area. Our Bed and Breakfast room has a comfy bed, ensuite bathroom, outside access and is just a short walk or drive to the Sawmill Cafe, the fish and chip shop, bar and Matheson Bay Beach. Five mins drive to the marine reserve -  Goat Island

The most amazing summer

2015 will be remembered as the best summer ever. So many beautiful blue sky days, calm seas etc. Great news for all our visitors who come to enjoy the beach, snorkelling, walking or just the scenery.
Although we no longer do our guided snorkelling trips, we occasionally will take our guests out diving or snorkelling off our boat. Just has to fit in with our plans and of course the weather.

Summer 2015

Snorkelling at Goat Island can be a great experience and gear can be hired at several places locally. We have bed & breakfast accommodation in Leigh, 400m from the Sawmill Cafe. The room has its own bathroom and outside access, comfortable bed and FREE WIFI. Guests are welcome to use our sit-on kayaks to paddle the local coast. Email to book on enderby@discovergoatisland.co.nz 

End of Summer

Our guided snorkelling experiences have now finished but we can still offer a rocky shore exploration. Echinoderm Reef at Goat Island has a large variety of marine inhabitants just waiting for you to discover with us. Can do an hour each side of low tide. 

Summer 2014

We have taken numerous people snorkelling, either couples, friends or families. No experience is necessary and we enjoy teaching people the basics on how to snorkel. Price is $69 for adults and $49 for children and includes all snorkelling gear plus wetsuit hire.
Several schools have also visited and we have taken them out onto Echinoderm Reef, to explore the rockpool life. Just $7 per student (incl. GST)
We highly recommend a visit also to the Goat Island Marine Discovery Centre.

New Year

Did you make a New Year resolution to do something that scares you every day?  If you've always wanted to go snorkelling why not book a guided snorkel experience with us? Our priority is your safety while teaching you the fundamentals of snorkelling. Don't wait for another year to go by! Just do it now.
Here we are out having fun in our boat on a beautiful blue day!

Summer's Here!

We just had our first snorkel for the season off the beach at Goat Island. Nice calm conditions and good visibility. Wearing a nice warm wetsuit kept us cosy as we viewed snapper, red moki, banded wrasse, mackerel and much more. Interesting chain salps and other things in the water. Learn more about these interesting animals at the Goat Island Marine Discovery Centre.

McLeans College

Almost 60 students from McLeans College came snorkelling at Goat Island on Monday. Our first school group for 2013. Almost all the students could snorkel with some able to dive down exceptionally well. We saw dozens of snapper, red moki, trevally, blue maomao, sweep and a few eaglerays. The rarest fish seen was a giant boarfish that hovered over the sand near Alphabet Bay.
We followed the snorkel with a walk over the rocky shore where we saw seashells, crabs, triplefins, barnacles, seaweeds, decorator crabs and much more.

Toku Mapihi Maurea Kura Kaupapa Maori School

Students from Hamilton arrived in Leigh to stay at the Omaha Marae and enjoy the activities in the area. They were all very good at the snorkelling and saw some huge snapper plus other fishes.  The parents and teachers who helped did a wonderful job too.