Gisborne Region, Tairāwhiti, runs from Poverty Bay north around East Cape. It is in MPI’s Central area, which starts at Cape Runaway, and its crayfish limits differ from those south of the Wairoa River.
Reports current for Thursday, 8 October
The one Gisborne water we cover has a live read this morning. It sits in the middle of the scale today. Water is around 14 °C. Pressure is holding steady here, so the day comes down to water temperature and wind. 1 has a better-than-even chance of rain.
Best right now: Gisborne 3/5
Live verdicts from this morning's reports.
Species activity across the covered waters, written for the southern year. Peak of the year: January.
1 = slow, 5 = peak. Current month highlighted.
Seasonal surface curve for the dominant water type here, in degrees Celsius (estimated, not a reading).
Read from the agency page named on each row, on the date shown, and calculated for 2026 from the rule as written: a date written as a day of the week is computed, not copied. Species with no published closure are not listed, which is not the same as open.
| Fishery | 2026 | Rule | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whitebait season | Open 2026-09-01 to 2026-10-30 | Whitebaiting is allowed only from 1 September to 30 October inclusive, 5 am to 8 pm (6 am to 9 pm in daylight saving). The West Coast has its own gear rules, not different dates. | Department of Conservation, whitebaiting regulations, read 2026-10-07 |
| Scallop season | Open 2026-07-15 to 2027-02-14 | Scallop season 15 July to 14 February. | Fisheries (Amateur Fishing) Regulations 2013, read 2026-10-07 |
| Water | Type | Live data | Peak month |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gisborne fishing report | Coast | modelled tide | Jan |
MPI sets the rock lobster limits from Cape Runaway to the Wairoa River at three spiny and three packhorse per fisher per day, and between Cape Runaway and the East Cape lighthouse every spiny rock lobster kept must be telson-clipped. Cape Runaway is closed to set netting. MPI’s 2025 temporary closures at Tangoiro/Waihirere and Motuoroi shut both to finfish and shellfish, rock lobster included, and Te Tapuwae o Rongokako, which DOC says holds eight marine habitats, is a no-take marine reserve.
Gisborne District Council’s Tairāwhiti Navigation Safety Bylaw 2024 covers the district’s waters: lifejackets worn on vessels under 6 m while under way, a name or number on vessels over 4 m, and at least two means of communication on board. The council gives Gisborne Coastguard’s VHF working channels as 3 and 5.
Gisborne is a LINZ standard port, and LINZ refers Sponge Bay, Young Nicks Head / Te Kurī, Tolaga Bay Wharf, Tokomaru Bay, Waipiro Bay, Wharekahika / Hicks Bay and East Cape to it. Lottin Point / Wakatiri, in the Gisborne land district, is referred to Tauranga instead. For trout, Eastern Fish & Game’s area runs south as far as Wairoa, and a Fish & Game licence is required.
Between Cape Runaway and the Wairoa River MPI allows three spiny and three packhorse rock lobster per fisher per day, with the minimum sizes on our Gisborne page. Check the MPI Central page before each trip, as limits change.
No. It is a marine reserve on MPI’s Central list of closed areas, and DOC manages it; the temporary closures at Tangoiro/Waihirere and Motuoroi are separate, and MPI publishes their maps.
Yes. The council’s 2024 bylaw requires lifejackets to be worn on any vessel under 6 m while it is under way.
The facts on this page were checked against these pages, from the agencies, park services and operators that manage the water on 7 October 2026; anything we could not verify was taken out.