On Tuesday, we reluctantly said our goodbyes to Kaikoura and its abundance of seals and headed on to our next stop in the beautiful Abel Tasman area. We were originally going to stop in Nelson for a night on the way, but we decided our time would be much better spent in and around the golden beaches of Abel Tasman, so we pressed on. This was our longest journey so far, reaching our holiday park in Kaiteriterie at 2:30, some 5 hours after leaving Kaikoura (including a break for lunch in a rather scenic spot!).
Abel Tasman is a national park on the north west edge of the South Island, consisting of large forest, contrasted by some truly beautiful bays and beaches that run along its edge. Road access is restricted to the outer parts, with many visitors choosing to continue through the national park by foot. This is a 3-5 day trek and is one of New Zealand’s great walks, frequently completed by travellers and families alike.
However, there are many others ways to see the beauty of the national park, mainly via a variety of water activities, most of which are based in Kaiteriterie (often shortened to Kaiteri); a small township on the edge of the national park. This is where our holiday park was located, right next to an absolutely stunning beach!
Very soon after arriving, we booked our first activity; a cruise right up the Abel Tasman coast and back down to Kaiteri. A more accurate term for this cruise though would have been a large water taxi, as it dropped people off at the various beaches along the way, with access to these beaches being limited to either boat or foot.
After enjoying the first leg of the cruise up to the top (which included a brief sighting of a few more seals!), we stopped on the way back at a small beach called Medlands Beach. Then we had a short 5/10 minute walk down to Bark Bay, which was nothing short of stunning. The golden sand which merged effortlessly with the amazingly clear blue sea was simply perfect aesthetically. Together with the palms and other vegetation, it all combined to form a scene fit for any brochure cover!
From Bark Bay, we did a ~40 minute loop walk which took us through some rather scenic bush and past a couple of waterfalls and foot bridges – a very pleasant snippet of the full, multi-day Abel Tasman walking track.
The following day we took to the water again, but for a rather different experience this time. We hired a two person kayak for a couple of hours, in which we were allowed to paddle right up to the unique Split Apple Rock, which looks very much like – you guessed it – an apple split in half!
There was a lot more preparation, safety talk and techniques to learn than I had anticipated, but it was all good. After the initial learning curve, we got the hang of things and got into our paddling rhythm! Kayaking appears very relaxed and pedestrian from afar, but it is actually much more hard work than it looks! It took around 45 minutes to reach the Split Apple Rock, which is a couple of bays over from Kaiteri, but it was really enjoyable. We managed to get a few action shots too!
Later that day, I finally made the decision to do something that I’d been mulling over for a while. Something very different to what I’d done so far – very different to anything I’ve ever done in fact! It was the opportunity to actually pilot a stunt plane, with no previous experience required! Extremely daunting, but also the coolest thing ever! It was an incredible experience, so much so that it deserves its own blog post, so you’ll have to look out for that soon.
Having booked the flight for the following morning, when the time came we actually had to postpone it for the next day as the wind had levelled up to some ferocious gales. So instead, we drove up to Riwaka Valley; a nice 20 minute return walk along a very picturesque river which was, again, a stunning blue. The walk and river came to an end at an interesting cave type spot where a much deeper pool seemed to form, clearly visible through the crystal water.
Our stay in Kaiteriterie was for just 3 of our 4 nights in Abel Tasman due to availability, so for the final night, we headed to the next settlement up the coast, called Marahau. Again, this is a major base for those wanting to explore the national park either by foot or boat. The first thing we noticed having visited the previous day, was the extreme difference between the low and high tides. When we first drove into the town, the beach was vast and extended out from the mainland considerably; however, when we came back, the water came right up to the rocks next to the roadside – it was really surprising how different the scene was just a few hours later.
Marahau was also home to the Fat Tui, a quirky trailer offering some top quality grub, including a wide selection of interesting gourmet burgers. We had to wait around half an hour for our food, but it was worth the wait. The burgers – a beef ‘cow pat’ for me and a lamb ‘ewe beaut’ for Hannah – were absolutely huge (just how I like them) and packed with meat, salad and sauces. Top stuff.
With our four night stint in Abel Tasman now at an end, we just had one more bit of unfinished business to attend to concerning a certain stunt plane! More on that soon.
From there it was onto our next destination; a three hour trip down the west coast for a short stop in Punakaiki to see the famous Pancake Rocks.