Illustrated day on the reef, dawn to night — a smiling rising sun, a snorkeller over a manta ray and turtle at midday, and a crescent moon over the sunset

A day on the reef

Daily guide

What's good around Exmouth, hour by hour — each in-season experience placed in its best window by the real sun, moon, tide and sea breeze for the day. Step through dates to scout a trip.

Monday 17 August

Solid bars are pinned to the real sun, moon, tide and sea breeze for this date; faded bars are a looser part of the day.

6am81012pm246810
Sundawn 6:24 · sunrise 6:47 · solar noon 12:28 · sunset 18:10 · dusk 18:33
Breeze➤➤calmreef➤➤➤calmtip➤➤➤calmtowncalm all day — under 20 km/h (max 16)
Tide▽▲▽low 7:54 (0.5 m) · high 14:01 (2.2 m) · low 19:49 (0.5 m) — Exmouth gauge, above LAT
Mandu Mandu Gorge loop6:07–8:07 · sunrise 6:47 · dawn for rock-wallabies — and no shade laterMandu Mandu rock-wallabies6:07–8:07 · sunrise 6:47 · most active in the soft early lightCharles Knife sunrise drive6:07–8:07 · sunrise 6:47 · low light throws the canyons into reliefBadjirrajirra Loop walk6:07–8:07 · sunrise 6:47 · start at first light — fully exposedVlamingh Head sunrise6:07–8:07 · sunrise 6:47Yardie Creek rim walk6:47–8:00 · cooler ends of the dayWobiri reef break6:47–8:00 · calm all day (≤16 km/h) · light easterly mornings, before the sea breezeTurquoise Bay drift snorkelcalm all day (≤10 km/h)Lakeside reef snorkelcalm all day (≤10 km/h)Yardie Creek paddlecalm all day (≤10 km/h) · the gorge funnels windSandy Bay swimcalm all day (≤10 km/h)Sandy Bay SUP & flat watercalm all day (≤10 km/h) · the wind crowd takes over once the breeze buildsBundegi reef snorkelcalm all day (≤16 km/h) · a good fallback when the west coast blows outBundegi SUPcalm all day (≤16 km/h)Tantabiddi lagoon snorkelcalm all day (≤16 km/h)Exmouth scenic flightbook a morning flight — calmest air and best lightDunes surf breakmid tide ~10:58 · calm all day (≤16 km/h) · mid tide — the left gets shallow on the dropOsprey Bay drift snorkelrising to high 14:01 · 2.2 m · calm all day (≤10 km/h)Oyster Stacks coral snorkelaround high 14:01 · 2.2 m · needs ~1.2 m of water over the coralBundegi kayak trailaround high 14:01 · 2.2 m · calm all day (≤16 km/h) · snorkel the moorings with water over the reefVlamingh Head sunset17:25–18:30 · sunset 18:10Jurabi dune sunset17:25–18:30 · sunset 18:10Milyering dark-sky stargazing22:35–late · dark once the 26% moon sets ~22:35 · let your eyes adjust ~20 min

Sun and moon are computed for Exmouth; times are AWST. Tides are computed from the Exmouth gauge (20.3 km away; TICON-4 constituents, CC BY 4.0, DGFI-TUM) — astronomical tide above LAT, no weather surge. Not for navigation. Wind is an Open-Meteo forecast at 3 points across the cape (reef, tip, town): hours shade darker as the wind builds (hatched = 20+ km/h sea breeze), arrows show where it blows toward, and hovering an hour gives the number.