The common mistakes made when crossing the Whanganui River bar

Whanganui Coastguard is warning people that conditions can change suddenly on the river entrance bar. Photo / Bevan Conley

Whanganui Coastguard are reminding people to stick to the basics when crossing the river entrance bar over summer.

Coastguard treasurer Garry Hawkins said there hadn’t been many incidents recently of boats tipping over on the bar, but it was always a concern.

“It can change quite quickly. You could go out in the morning and it could be dead flat, then by 1pm, the wind’s got up and the tide’s going out, and you could be roughed up quite badly.”

Weather conditions on the West Coast could get very severe, Hawkins said.

It was important to check the weather, the tides, and to be familiar with your local bar.

“If in doubt, don’t go out.”

A common mistake made on the bar was powering into a wave when it was breaking, which could cause the boat to flip, he said.

When returning to shore, boats could be sucked into oncoming waves if they weren’t sitting properly on the waves.

“As they say, there are three types of bars: dangerous, very dangerous and extremely dangerous bars.”

The Whanganui bar is difficult to cross in low-tide conditions, when there is floodwater in the river, and in bad weather.

“I think boaties are more educated than they were 20 years ago, and the boats are a lot better.”

It was about good planning and risk assessment, Hawkins said.

It is vital to communicate where you are planning to go to someone on the shore, and to radio the Coastguard’s marine radio channel 64 to notify the team.

Whanganui boaties were often fishing further away now, he said.

“They’re fishing 10 or 20 miles up the coast, just chasing the fish and trying to find better spots.”

Heading into summer, the Coastguard are hoping to make sure people are well-informed about how to keep safe on the water.

“We’re going into El Nino, so we’ll be experiencing more westerly winds.”

Important messages heading into the summer months were to wear a life jacket at all times on the water, and to not command boats while under the influence, he said.

Whanganui Coastguard is holding a bar awareness seminar at Club Metro on October 28.

To register for the event, you can visit boatingeducation.org.nz/courses or email barsafety@coastguard.nz and phone 0800 408 090.

Eva de Jong is a reporter for the Whanganui Chronicle covering health stories and general news. She began as a reporter in 2023.