Read written marine forecasts and local hydrographic context together; keep automatic point ratings, tide heights and current models distinct.
The written marine forecast is not the point rating
MetService marine pages can show a written coastal or recreational forecast beside automatic wind, wave and boating tables. Read the warning and the forecaster-written text first, then use the point output as supporting model context. A favourable rating cannot overrule a warning or an unsuitable passage stage. If the written bulletin cannot be retrieved, retain that explicit information gap instead of presenting the point table as an equivalent official forecast.
Link regional desks instead of one country-wide map
Use Hauraki Gulf for harbour-to-island and outer-Gulf planning, and Bay of Islands for the anchorage-to-exposed-Northland transition. Cook Strait and Marlborough Sounds add a different inter-island passage, coastal product boundaries and local current context. These are distinct route problems, not interchangeable favourable-weather destinations. A longer offshore continuation needs its own marine coverage and update arrangement; an Auckland or Nelson land forecast does not expand along the track.
Keep LINZ clocks with the actual date
LINZ tide tables distinguish reference and secondary locations and state how daylight saving is handled. Preserve that convention when comparing a tide, departure and ETA; do not add a seasonal hour a second time. A list of high and low waters is not a prediction of slack in all nearby channels. Depth, actual level and current direction remain separate checks, particularly when a delay changes the intended entrance time.
Cook Strait needs a local stream assessment
For a Sounds arrival, distinguish the Cook coastal stage from the selected entrance and the protected interior. The Tory Channel display blends observations and hydrodynamic modelling: it is local guidance, not a direct current measurement at every arrow. Check selected time, input status and coverage, then compare the stream with wind, swell and arrival options. Do not generate a local correction from an unrelated port's tide height.
A sheltered reading does not verify the open crossing
Check what each observation measures and where it sits relative to the route. A harbour wind reading cannot establish the sea state beyond an island or headland, and an old report cannot confirm a forecast improvement. Compare direction, trend and age without silently replacing a missing wave or current observation. Retain a route-relevant written forecast and current warning even when several model tables appear to agree.
Write the slower-passage and harbour handover
Test the outward leg, delayed arrival and return separately, with the crew's real comfort limits and light requirements. Save local names, including Waitematā and Tory Channel / Kura Te Au, so charts, bulletins and harbour advice can be reconciled. Before the next committed stage, verify a practical waiting or diversion option and the current harbour notices. The final decision remains with the skipper, supported by evidence rather than an automatic go signal.
Official products by task
- MetService marine responsibilities and coverage — Understand inshore, coastal and ocean service responsibilities. A responsibility description is not today's bulletin, its warning or an exact route intersection.
- MetService Auckland East Coast marine desk — Locate the applicable Hauraki or Auckland written marine forecast and warnings. Separate forecaster-written text from automatically generated point tables and ratings; script rendering may be required.
- MetService Nelson / Cook coastal product desk — Find the written Cook and other relevant coastal forecasts and warnings for the leg. Point boating ratings are a separate model product and do not establish a Tory Channel stream window.
- LINZ tide predictions and reference locations — Official New Zealand tide tables, including daylight-saving treatment and secondary-port information. High-water time is not slack water in every nearby channel.
- Marlborough Tory Channel current and tide model — Local model blending observation inputs with hydrodynamic information. Check selected time, input/feed status and model coverage; displayed arrows are not measurements at every point.
- Marlborough District Council Harbours — Local harbour limits, navigation material, weather feeds and directions for Marlborough Sounds. Confirm the current document and its applicability to the vessel type.
Waters and onward passages
- New Zealand: Hauraki Gulf
Sheltered gulf legs and offshore exits need different marine products.
- New Zealand: Bay of Islands
Check the exposed Northland coast separately from an island anchorage.
- Cook Strait and Marlborough Sounds
Plan the open Cook Strait leg, chosen Sounds entrance and protected interior separately, with written forecasts and locally qualified current information.
Departure ports and bases
- Auckland, Waitematā Harbour and Hauraki departure
Separate the working harbour, inner Gulf and exposed island leg; read the written marine forecast, local navigation information and correctly timed tide references.
Prepare a passage brief
Bring route timings, vessel and crew profile together with checked sources and reassessment triggers. Personal AI analysis and expert review are in invitation-only closed testing. An editorial geographic page does not extend the calculation service’s actual coverage.