The weather system that is bringing floods to Hawke's Bay is also pushing gale force south easterly winds through Cook Strait and keeping kayaker Tim Taylor in Opunake.

Bad weather had kept him south of Cape Egmont for nearly two weeks. He made it as far as Opunake on April 21, but he's not staying on the beach in a tent.

Tim Taylor.

'I would say the tent would have got ripped to shreds over the last few days,” says Tim.

'I'm hanging out in New Plymouth with my uncle at the moment, but I will have to go back down to Opunake when it's flattened out at some stage.

'There's that dirty low hanging out over Northland – it's a mental game.

'I'm hoping maybe Saturday might be alright.

'I just don't know if there's going to be six metres heading into the shore that's all.

'I might be able to sneak out, then once I'm around past Cape Egmont the conditions seem to change quite rapidly, so I will keep an eye on that over today and tomorrow.”

Meanwhile Tim is surfing the net shopping for white water gear and getting his winter paddling planned while he has nothing else to do.

'I like my gear so I can spend a lot of hours on the internet going over different brands and models and stuff, trying to find the right places and getting that sorted.

'I'm going to do a Coastguard coastal skipper's course by correspondence, so I've ordered that.

'Hopefully that might turn up today or tomorrow, so I can at least be doing some studying during these days off.”
There's a gale warning in force for the south Taranaki Bight today. South Easterlies at 45 knots are expected to ease to 35 knots this evening. The six metre southeast swell is expected to ease later. The outlook is for the wind to ease gradually to 20 knots on Friday.

From Opunake to New Plymouth is a big day on the water with nowhere to hide if the weather turns sour.

As Tim explains in his blog on nzkayaker.com – from Opunake onwards there are very few safe landing spots for when things don't go to plan.

Most of the Taranaki coastline is either rock or cliffs – big, sharp rocks that barricade the shoreline and cliffs that drop vertically down, often over 30m straight into the ocean.

Safe landing spots are few and far between but with a swell they are even less.

'It's a place you don't want to take chances with and forecasts that are anything less than perfect are a clear sign to stay off the water,” says Tim.