YEAR 11 students Charlotte Holmes and Lorcan McCallun took advantage of a break in their exams to enjoy the unseasonably warm weather at Newcastle Beach.
There were clear skies and bright sunshine across Newcastle and the Hunter on Wednesday, to continue the region's recent run of stunning September weather.
The mercury reached 24 degrees in Newcastle, while temperatures rose to 25 degrees at Cessnock.
The ocean water temperature in Newcastle was a pleasant 17.9 degrees, and Holmes and McCallun took the opportunity to hit the waves.
"It [the water] was bloody beautiful and the sun is so nice," Holmes said. "It's not too hot, but it's about to get really hot, right in time for the school holidays."
Holmes, 17, attends Hunter Valley Grammar and said the beach swim was a chance to freshen up before her final year 11 preliminary exam, biology, on Thursday.
"This time a year ago I was still wearing jumpers and trackies, while now it's bikinis and shorts," she said.
Newcastle and the Hunter is set to receive an early blast of summer in the coming days. The Bureau of Meteorology is predicting temperatures to hover between 29 and 31 degrees in Newcastle from Saturday through to next Tuesday.
In the Hunter Valley, the mercury is expected to soar up to 33 degrees by Sunday.
