He spent nine hours in the water and added close to 25km, bringing his total distance to just over 570km since starting at North Cape.
From Maketu towards Matatā – Swim4TheOcean rolls on
By Live Ocean
09/02/2026
Read time: 3 min
Article Summary
Main Points
With land logistics becoming more challenging ahead, the team now turns south toward Matatā, Whakatāne and Ōhope.
After the excitement of an orca visit and an Olympian support swimmer the day before, Sunday, 8 February was a less eventful day on the Swim4TheOcean mission – but calm, hot conditions meant Jono was able to complete another two long swim sessions.
Setting out from base camp at Pukehina Beach, Maketu in the early morning the swim route is tracking across the Bay of Plenty with a total distance of 570km now covered since 5 January.
Jono logged nine hours in the water across the day’s two swims and close to 25kms – mild adverse current in the afternoon and some surface chop meant his average pace was down a touch.
The team checked into Murphy’s Holiday Camp just north of Matatā for the overnight base with a small crew of followers and interested campers welcoming them in.
Up ahead land logistics are looking tricky – road closures and remote locations are on the horizon. From here they head towards Matatā, Whakatāne and Ōhope.
Total distance covered: 570.32km
Yesterday’s swims – at a glance
Swim 1
Time: 4 hours
Distance: 12.18km
Average speed: 3km/h
Swim 2
Time: 4 hours 59 mins
Distance: 12.48km
Average speed: 2.5km/h
1,000 Miles. 90 Days.
A Swim For The Ocean.
The Live Ocean
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