Live Ocean: Jono Ridler checks into Auckland on Tuesday at 5.00pm
by Jodie Bakewell-White - Live Ocean Racing 26 Jan 18:59 PST
Jono Ridler - Swim4TheOcean - January 26, 2026 © Joshua McCormack
Jono Ridler departed from Te Hawere-a-Maki Goat Island Marine Reserve north of Auckland Monday morning at 10:55am as his epic Swim4TheOcean continues to track down the east coast of the North Island of Aotearoa New Zealand.
Now taking a straight line towards Colville at the northern tip of the Coromandel Peninsula, on Monday Ridler started to swim across the Hauraki Gulf and Firth of Thames putting five hours in and getting another 16.7kms under his belt.
Today came with significant milestones:
Jono has now logged more than 100 hours across 28 swim legs since starting on 5 January at Waikuku Beach, North Cape.
Jono has now swum more than 300km during Swim4TheOcean – the equivalent of around 12 Cook Strait crossings.
More than 6,000 people have signed the Swim4TheOcean call for an end to bottom trawling.
The weather forecast over the coming days is favourable, but currents are another key factor the crew continuously monitor in order to optimise Ridler’s progress – and they’re less predictable. He’ll swim to the south of Te Hauturu-o-Toi Little Barrier Island and Aotea Great Barrier Island, aiming to round Colville by late Wednesday or early Thursday. (NZT)
The swim to Colville is around 54km, making it one of the longer open-water legs of the Swim4TheOcean mission, and it will be completed across multiple swim stints, and will involve an additional support vessel, and include a pause for further community engagement.
On the afternoon of Tuesday 27 January, Ridler will travel by boat between swim stints for an all-welcome community event in Tamaki Makaurau, at the Hyundai Akarana Marine Events Centre in Okahu Bay. Public supporters should arrive by 5pm for his expected arrival soon after.
When: Arrive by 5pm sharp, Tuesday 27 January
Jono is expected to arrive at 5:05pm, with formalities starting soon after.
Where: Hyundai Marine Sports Centre, Royal Akarana Yacht Club
8-10 Tamaki Drive, Okahu Bay, Auckland
(On the turf outside Akarana Eatery)
Jono’s endurance effort is driven by a clear purpose: calling for an end to bottom trawling. New Zealand is still bottom trawling seamounts in our own waters and is the only nation continuing to bottom trawl seamounts on the South Pacific high seas.
Swim4TheOcean is calling on the New Zealand Government to end bottom trawling on all seamounts - at home and on the high seas - by the end of 2027, and to activate a rapid transition away from bottom trawling entirely.
Total distance covered to date: 305.4km
Today’s swim — at a glance
Swim Start: 10:55am
Time: 5 hours 1 minute
Distance: 16.7km
Average speed: 3.3km/h
People can follow the swim via live tracker and sign the call for an end to bottom trawling at swim4theocean.org
About Swim4TheOcean
Jono Ridler, a 36-year-old from Auckland, is attempting to go further than anyone has before in an unassisted staged swim, using his epic effort to shine a light on ocean health.
Ridler is partnering with Live Ocean, the marine conservation charity founded by champion sailors Peter Burling and Blair Tuke. As Ridler pushes south, he will carry a clear message to decision makers: it’s time for New Zealand to make a quick transition away from bottom trawling, with the first priority being an end to bottom trawling on seamounts and other vital marine ecosystems.
More than 120 rest stops (between swim shifts), and community stopovers are planned along the route, giving coastal towns the chance to welcome Ridler ashore and show their support for a healthy ocean.
The term ‘unassisted’ is significant in Ridler’s world-record attempt. Defined by the Marathon Swimmers Federation, it means he swims without a wetsuit - wearing only togs, goggles and a swim cap.
Swim4TheOcean is backed by Platinum sponsor TMNZ alongside supporting swim sponsors including APL, Forsyth Barr, Generate KiwiSaver, and StabiX.
Follow the mission at Swim4TheOcean.org and on Live Ocean’s channels @itsliveocean.
View at www.Swim4TheOcean.org
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Website: liveocean.org/swim4theocean Follow Jono's progress on the live tracker.
The Swim4TheOcean project is heavily reliant on PredictWind for forecasting of both weather and currents as well as data transmission on progress using a PredictWind Datahub.
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