Can you snorkel in Port Stephens today?

Conditions look marginal right now. No good model window is forecast in Port Stephens over the next 72 hours. Check the hourly table and local advisories.

What is the best time of day to snorkel in Port Stephens?

Snorkel in daylight, if possible in the morning before the wind picks up. Currents are often weaker near high slack tide. SnorkelForecast scores each daylight hour for Port Stephens.

What is the best tide for snorkeling?

High slack tide, within about an hour of the high-tide peak, often has weaker currents. Strong low tides and tidal flow near channels or headlands reduce the score.

Port Stephens Snorkel Report Today

Australia · Updated Wed 11:46 (AEST) · Source: Snapshot

The skinny

Marginal Report Wed 21:59

Port Stephens looks marginal today. The least-bad daylight window is around Fri 10:00, but waves is limiting the forecast.

Score: 4.5/10

Best time: Fri 10:00

Main risk: Waves

No useful morning window is showing yet.

No useful afternoon window is showing yet.

Email me when it is good

Sunrise

06:32

Sunset

17:21

Water

18.5°C

Max air

12.9°C

Sky

Clear

0% cloud

No good model window in the next 72 hours

Use the best-available section for the least-bad times.

3-day planner Best available Show data

3-day planner

Wednesday

❌ Poor conditions

Main blocker: Waves

Thursday

⚠️ Fair conditions

Main blocker: Waves

Friday

⚠️ Fair conditions

Main blocker: Waves

Best available hours

Fri 00:00: Fair (0.49) · still limited by waves, sea temperature
Fri 05:00: Fair (0.48) · still limited by waves, sea temperature
Fri 01:00: Fair (0.47) · still limited by waves, sea temperature

Why this verdict

Main blockers across the next 72 hours:

Waves (71 hours)
Sea temperature (71 hours)
Tide/current (57 hours)

Jellyfish drift risk

Drift estimate from wind, swell, current and warm water.

Low · 16/100

Low drift risk now.

surface drift/current is noticeable; local shoreline exposure is not mapped yet.

Sightings override the model: if you see small purple jellyfish with long trailing tentacles, treat them as sting-capable and give them space.

Upcoming high tides

Next early morning high tide: Wed 22:00

Wed 22:00, Thu 10:00, Thu 23:00, Fri 11:00

Nearby alternatives in Australia

Jervis Bay

294 km away

❌ Poor

Byron Bay

477 km away

❌ Poor

Lord Howe Island

669 km away

❌ Poor

Lady Elliot Island

959 km away

❌ Poor

Advanced forecast data

Viewing current forecast

Wed 11:00 – Sat 11:00 (AEST)

Previous day Yesterday

Snorkel Score (next 24h)

Best snorkel score is 0.45 around Thu 16:00; 8 of 24 hours are good, fair, or excellent.

Score trend, higher is better. Excellent ≥ 0.72, good 0.55–0.72, fair 0.35–0.55.

Conditions (24h trends)

Tap a chart to load just that series.

0/24 sampled hours stay at or below 0.36m (range 1.28m to 1.86m).

Wind is at or below 5.4m/s in 21/24 sampled hours (range 1.32 to 5.89m/s).

Tides range from -0.6m to 1.13m; 2 of 24 hours are in or near peak slack windows.

72-hour forecast overview

Wed 12:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Wed 13:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Wed 14:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Wed 15:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Wed 16:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Wed 17:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Wed 18:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Wed 19:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Wed 20:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Wed 21:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Wed 22:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Wed 23:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Thu 00:00 Fair ⚠️ Fair

Thu 01:00 Fair ⚠️ Fair

Thu 02:00 Fair ⚠️ Fair

Thu 03:00 Fair ⚠️ Fair

Thu 04:00 Fair ⚠️ Fair

Thu 05:00 Fair ⚠️ Fair

Thu 06:00 Fair ⚠️ Fair

Thu 07:00 Fair ⚠️ Fair

Thu 08:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Thu 09:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Thu 10:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Thu 11:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Thu 12:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Thu 13:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Thu 14:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Thu 15:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Thu 16:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Thu 17:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Thu 18:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Thu 19:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Thu 20:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Thu 21:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Thu 22:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Thu 23:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Fri 00:00 Fair ⚠️ Fair

Fri 01:00 Fair ⚠️ Fair

Fri 02:00 Fair ⚠️ Fair

Fri 03:00 Fair ⚠️ Fair

Fri 04:00 Fair ⚠️ Fair

Fri 05:00 Fair ⚠️ Fair

Fri 06:00 Fair ⚠️ Fair

Fri 07:00 Fair ⚠️ Fair

Fri 08:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Fri 09:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Fri 10:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Fri 11:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Fri 12:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Fri 13:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Fri 14:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Fri 15:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Fri 16:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Fri 17:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Fri 18:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Fri 19:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Fri 20:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Fri 21:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Fri 22:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Fri 23:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Sat 00:00 Fair ⚠️ Fair

Sat 01:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Sat 02:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Sat 03:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Sat 04:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Sat 05:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Sat 06:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Sat 07:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Sat 08:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Sat 09:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Sat 10:00 Poor ❌ Limited

Scoring methodology (for technical users)

We score each hour from 0 to 1 using daylight and these weighted components:

Wave height (35%): best below 0.36m, then decreases as it rises.
Wind speed (25%): best below 5.4m/s, lower is better.
Sea surface temperature (15%): best within 20.6°C to 30.4°C.
Tide and currents (15%): best around slack/high-tide windows.
Daylight (10%): visibility is better in daylight, so night hours score lower.

Detailed hourly data table

Time	Wave (m)	Wind (m/s)	Sea temp (°C)	Status
Wed 12:00	1.36 · high	5.88 · high	18.50 · out of range	Poor
Wed 13:00	1.34 · high	5.89 · high	18.50 · out of range	Poor
Wed 14:00	1.34 · high	5.59 · high	18.50 · out of range	Poor
Wed 15:00	1.32 · high	5.20 · good	18.40 · out of range	Poor
Wed 16:00	1.30 · high	5.22 · good	18.40 · out of range	Poor
Wed 17:00	1.30 · high	4.95 · good	18.40 · out of range	Poor
Wed 18:00	1.28 · high	4.65 · good	18.40 · out of range	Poor
Wed 19:00	1.28 · high	4.29 · good	18.40 · out of range	Poor
Wed 20:00	1.30 · high	4.31 · good	18.40 · out of range	Poor
Wed 21:00	1.30 · high	4.43 · good	18.40 · out of range	Poor
Wed 22:00	1.34 · high	4.67 · good	18.40 · out of range	Poor
Wed 23:00	1.40 · high	4.90 · good	18.40 · out of range	Poor
Thu 00:00	1.44 · high	4.85 · good	18.40 · out of range	Fair
Thu 01:00	1.42 · high	4.16 · good	18.40 · out of range	Fair
Thu 02:00	1.40 · high	4.17 · good	18.50 · out of range	Fair
Thu 03:00	1.38 · high	4.37 · good	18.50 · out of range	Fair
Thu 04:00	1.46 · high	4.49 · good	18.50 · out of range	Fair
Thu 05:00	1.54 · high	4.34 · good	18.50 · out of range	Fair
Thu 06:00	1.62 · high	3.72 · good	18.50 · out of range	Fair
Thu 07:00	1.70 · high	2.67 · good	18.50 · out of range	Fair
Thu 08:00	1.78 · high	1.83 · good	18.50 · out of range	Poor
Thu 09:00	1.86 · high	2.13 · good	18.50 · out of range	Poor
Thu 10:00	1.84 · high	1.97 · good	18.50 · out of range	Poor
Thu 11:00	1.84 · high	1.32 · good	18.50 · out of range	Poor
Thu 12:00	1.82 · high	1.25 · good	18.50 · out of range	Poor
Thu 13:00	1.78 · high	1.99 · good	18.50 · out of range	Poor
Thu 14:00	1.74 · high	2.84 · good	18.50 · out of range	Poor
Thu 15:00	1.70 · high	3.21 · good	18.40 · out of range	Poor
Thu 16:00	1.68 · high	3.21 · good	18.40 · out of range	Poor
Thu 17:00	1.68 · high	3.45 · good	18.40 · out of range	Poor
Thu 18:00	1.66 · high	3.41 · good	18.40 · out of range	Poor
Thu 19:00	1.66 · high	3.37 · good	18.40 · out of range	Poor
Thu 20:00	1.66 · high	3.22 · good	18.40 · out of range	Poor
Thu 21:00	1.66 · high	3.11 · good	18.40 · out of range	Poor
Thu 22:00	1.66 · high	2.71 · good	18.40 · out of range	Poor
Thu 23:00	1.68 · high	2.28 · good	18.40 · out of range	Poor
Fri 00:00	1.68 · high	2.44 · good	18.40 · out of range	Fair
Fri 01:00	1.68 · high	2.54 · good	18.40 · out of range	Fair
Fri 02:00	1.66 · high	2.88 · good	18.50 · out of range	Fair
Fri 03:00	1.66 · high	3.16 · good	18.50 · out of range	Fair
Fri 04:00	1.62 · high	3.16 · good	18.50 · out of range	Fair
Fri 05:00	1.60 · high	2.76 · good	18.50 · out of range	Fair
Fri 06:00	1.56 · high	2.62 · good	18.50 · out of range	Fair
Fri 07:00	1.54 · high	2.29 · good	18.50 · out of range	Fair
Fri 08:00	1.50 · high	2.13 · good	18.50 · out of range	Poor
Fri 09:00	1.48 · high	1.63 · good	18.50 · out of range	Poor
Fri 10:00	1.48 · high	1.67 · good	18.50 · out of range	Poor
Fri 11:00	1.46 · high	1.96 · good	18.40 · out of range	Poor
Fri 12:00	1.46 · high	1.57 · good	18.40 · out of range	Poor
Fri 13:00	1.46 · high	0.76 · good	18.40 · out of range	Poor
Fri 14:00	1.46 · high	1.03 · good	18.40 · out of range	Poor
Fri 15:00	1.46 · high	1.55 · good	18.40 · out of range	Poor
Fri 16:00	1.48 · high	1.81 · good	18.40 · out of range	Poor
Fri 17:00	1.48 · high	1.57 · good	18.40 · out of range	Poor
Fri 18:00	1.50 · high	0.99 · good	18.40 · out of range	Poor
Fri 19:00	1.54 · high	1.46 · good	18.40 · out of range	Poor
Fri 20:00	1.56 · high	1.18 · good	18.40 · out of range	Poor
Fri 21:00	1.60 · high	1.39 · good	18.40 · out of range	Poor
Fri 22:00	1.62 · high	2.21 · good	18.40 · out of range	Poor
Fri 23:00	1.64 · high	1.46 · good	18.40 · out of range	Poor
Sat 00:00	1.66 · high	1.75 · good	18.40 · out of range	Fair
Sat 01:00	1.70 · high	3.29 · good	18.40 · out of range	Poor
Sat 02:00	1.72 · high	3.92 · good	18.40 · out of range	Poor
Sat 03:00	1.76 · high	4.12 · good	18.50 · out of range	Poor
Sat 04:00	1.78 · high	4.46 · good	18.50 · out of range	Poor
Sat 05:00	1.80 · high	4.45 · good	18.50 · out of range	Poor
Sat 06:00	1.82 · high	4.23 · good	18.50 · out of range	Poor
Sat 07:00	1.84 · high	3.55 · good	18.50 · out of range	Poor
Sat 08:00	1.86 · high	3.71 · good	18.40 · out of range	Poor
Sat 09:00	1.88 · high	3.96 · good	18.40 · out of range	Poor
Sat 10:00	1.88 · high	3.59 · good	18.40 · out of range	Poor