Warmer than usual November temperatures heat up the Bay

Theo McKay, 13, and Ieuan Pope, 13, cooling off in Mount Maunganui. Photo / George Novak

How good was today's weather? It's been a scorcher for the Bay of Plenty with many experiencing their first swim of the season at the beach at Mt Maunganui today. Journalist Zoe Hunter hits the sand to find out how the locals enjoyed their day and catches up with a meteorologist to find out how long it's expected to last.

The weather is starting to heat up, with warmer than usual temperatures recorded in Tauranga this weekend.

Tauranga recorded a high of 28C today and 23C yesterday , which was higher than the average temperature for the month.

MetService meteorologist Andy Best said the warm weather was due to a "big pulse" of warm air coming from Australia moving across the Tasman Sea and towards New Zealand.

"It is beginning to warm up," he said.

Best said the average temperature for November in Tauranga was 20.1C.

"It is a little warmer than normal because of that unusual pulse of warm air moving across the Tasman Sea," he said.

However, Best said people would really start to feel the heat from December, with the highest temperatures usually recorded in January and February.

Surf Lifesaving New Zealand eastern regional manager Chris Emmett said the warm weather was definitely bringing people out on the beaches.

However, he said the water was still a little chilly.

"There is a lot of people sunbathing and using watercraft out on the water in the Bay," he said. "It has been a really good start to the season."

The Pope family and friends enjoyed their first swim of the season on Saturday in Mount Maunganui.

Karen Pope said the family knew the forecast was for hot weather and had already scheduled in a day at the beach before the weekend had begun.

"The kids wanted to go to the beach," she said. "We knew it was going to be hot and we had already decided that we wanted to go."

Her daughter Carys Pope, 12, and son Ieuan Pope, 13, had invited their friends Theo McKay, 13, and Jersie Ottaway, 12, to join them for some fun in the sun.

The group spent time playing frisbee on the sand and surfing the waves on their boogie boards.

"It was such a nice day," Karen said. "It was their first swim of the season. Roll on summer."

Tomorrow and Tuesday was expected to be a little cooler in Tauranga, with Monday's high forecast to reach 27C and 26C on Tuesday.