O'Neills Reef / North Island / New Zealand

Just to the north of Tacapuna and into Milford is this little spot. It doesn't break very often but can be decent when it does.  The location itself is quite interesting, with a volcanic landscape and even some fossilised trees if you look carefully.

There isn't much beach to speak of here, you reach the end of O'Neill Avenue and you are more or less in the water.  There should be plenty of parking on the Avenue itself and from there it is only a couple of minutes walk to the beach.  Air temperatures in summer will be in the mid-20s, and if you're here in winter you are looking at around 15° C.

Working only when the tide is low, this is best when the swell is from the north-east and the wind is from the north-west, west or south-west. The waves here will start at about 1 m and hold up to 2.5 m or maybe a little more.  It is a reef break, only to the left, and the waves are pretty fast but a lot of fun. The length can be quite good to, certainly better than a lot of places around here, as it can reach up to 150 m on most days.

Milford is a suburb of Auckland, and as such it is fairly well appointed and has a decent choice of facilities including accommodation, places to eat, and nightlife.

The only hazards here are the rocks that make up the bottom, and they often have sharp edges that can easily cut.