27km Day and Under 200km to Go

Back in the water after two weather-forced days ashore at Ākitio, Jono has pushed south and broken through the 200km-to-go milestone, bringing the final stretch of Swim4TheOcean firmly into view.

On Sunday, 22 March, he left base camp with a clear sense of what lies ahead. 

“This could be the last big push before we get to Wellington. It’s going to be hard and we’re going to be tired by the end of it I’m sure… but it could be the last one. 

“One of my reminders, and it’s something that I always come back to – is the saying that ‘this too shall pass’. 

“Whatever good you have, whatever bad you have – this too shall pass. Of course, I’m going to be thinking about that when I’m cold and I’m tired. 

“Let’s think about that through the course of this week,” he said to his Swim4TheOcean support crew.  

It proved one of the strongest distance days of the mission, setting the tone for what Jono has billed as a defining push towards Wellington. 

Swim one began at 8am, with four hours in the water and 11.6km covered. 

Before jumping into the cold Wairarapa coastal waters, he said: “It never gets any easier.” 

Early in the swim, conditions turned into what he described as “a high stakes video game” navigating dense salp and constant jellyfish encounters. 

“The first 60–90 minutes… I was dodging jellyfish, trying to pick my way through all of this thick salp around me. It was pretty hard work. I got a couple of lashes to the face – one tentacle wrapped around my torso and up my arm, it literally got stuck so I had to pull it off.” 

Adding to the mix were bluebottle jellyfish – “small but mighty,” he said, though he managed to avoid a direct hit. 

There were lighter moments too. At 10:42am, during a short feed break: “Unreal! 20 minutes of pure dolphins. 

“You guys must be sick of hearing about dolphins at this stage, but just amazing once again. This time I just kept swimming and they seemed to like that, they stayed with us for quite a long time. Very, very cool. It never, ever gets old.” 

Swim two started at 2.24pm, and it was here, in glassy calm conditions, that Jono pushed through the 200km-to-go mark. 

He swam for four and a half hours, covering nearly 16km and coming ashore to a warm welcome just before 7pm at Rangiwhakaoma Castlepoint, a remote coastal outpost along the Wairarapa coastline.

By day’s end, he’d logged more than 27km – one of the biggest days of the entire mission. 

The milestone brings the finish line closer, but also sharpens the challenge ahead. With around 200km remaining, this final stretch is expected to be the toughest, physically and mentally, as he works his way towards Wellington carrying the weight of a growing national call for change. 

Jono’s effort continues to gain attention. Followers are growing, and so too is the number of signatures on the mission’s call for action to end bottom trawling. Close to 35,000 people have now signed, showing they agree it’s time for New Zealand to stop being an outlier and protect the ocean’s most vital habitats. 

Follow Jono’s progress on the live tracker and add your name at Swim4TheOcean. 

Projected distance to go: 185.85km

Total distance covered: 1,179.72km 

Swim at a glance – 22 March 

Swim 1

Time: 4 hours  
Distance: 11.65km 
Average speed: 2.9km/h 

Swim 2

Time: 4 hours 30 mins  
Distance: 15.71km 
Average speed: 3.5km/h