The Abel Tasman National Park and Trail Guide - South Island, New Zealand Holiday Guide.
We "tramped" or as we say walked several
parts of New Zealand's Abel Tasman Trail and visited Farewell Spit and the Pupu
Springs and it's excellent Walkway whilst on Holiday.
The Abel Tasman Tramping Trail on South Island is one of the best walking areas we have ever used -
the scenery which is semi-tropical plus the scenic rocks and streams and bridges make this a must
do walk even if you can only do one section.
The 51km long Abel Tasman coastal tramping trail is located in the Abel Tasman
National Park and runs from Marahau to Wainui Bay and is easily the most beautiful and scenic walking areas we have
ever been on. The track goes over 4 estuaries which are only able to be crossed
at low tide. One huge bonus with this trail is that you do not have to commit
yourself to walking the entire length which means 4 or so days camping in huts.
Instead you can get a water taxi out to various parts of the track, walk a
section and be picked up at the end of the walk. Generally speaking the track is
in excellent condition - and apart from having perhaps a steep climb out of
beach the track stays reasonably flat for most of the time. The foliage - trees,
ferns, mosses and shrubs - plus lots of birds plus scenic rocky streams and
waterfalls - sandy beaches - the whole walk is terrific.
We did two sections by using a water taxi and one other section up in the North
of the Naitonal Park which was just a "there and back". Whilst up in this area
we also took the opportunity to drive over to Farewell Spit and had an enjoyable
walk there too - there were loads of birds around the Spit which was an added bonus.
Vertigo. Some people suffer from this (including me) and it's worth noting that the sections of the Trail we walked were mostly quite high up and on sometimes a quite narrow pathway - with
considerable drops on the left although these were often quite disguised by heavy foliage. You also cross a narrow suspension bridge on the Bark's Bay section which also might give some people a problem.
Directions to places mentioned on this page.
The "Anchorage" Abel Tasman Track
sections are reached by taking the SH60 from Motueka and turning off on the road
to Marahu. ( note their are two roads going out this way - the first one on a
bend is via the coast and Kaiteriteri - quite scenic but is futher, very narrow
and slow to drive), the second is just a little further down the SH60 and is much easier and quicker to drive.
Totaranui, Wainui Falls, Pupu Springs and Farewell Spit. From Motueka head along SH60 - continue on
through Riwaka to take the enjoyable 15km drive up and over Takaka Hill - there
are 365 bends on this road but there are several passing places. Having dropped
down into the valley you pass Upper Takaka and then eventually get to Takaka
itself. Turning right takes out along the Abel Tasman Drive via Pohara and
Wainui Inlet and on to Totaranui for the Trail and the waterfalls. Turn left at
Takaka for Pupu Springs and Farewell Spit.
Abel Tasman Trail Sections Walked.
Anchorage to Marahau. To walk day sections of the Abel
Tasman Track you have to make use of taxi-boats - there are several companies
offering this at Marahau When we did the walks in late November we just turned
up and were able to get a ride with boats going out from around 0900hrs. It may
be that as the summer in New Zealand gets going properly you would want to
pre-book though. The trip out to Anchorage included a close look at the Split
Apple Rock - the whole trip out took about 45 minutes. The trail section is
around 12kms to walk but you have an additional walk of about 2kms back across
bridges and then road to the taxi-boat car park.
When you arrive at Anchorage the boat crew will indicate where the trail starts - this is
because you are not always dropped off at the same place on the long beach.
Once you have found the trail's start point (it's near a picnic area and some buildings and washrooms) the
trail is clearly marked and starts flat as it takes you through wetland and just inside the beach
but you shortly have a really steep long climb to do. Once up however the trail basically
just undulates it's way through really gorgeous tropical forest - the ferns are
magnificent right along the trail.
There is no point in any instructions - you
cannot go wrong on this well made track - you can and should try to divert down
onto some of the beaches as you pass them - all you have to do is just enjoy it all.
Barks Bay to Anchorage. Again this involves getting the
taxi-boat from Marahau - the trip to Barks Bay takes about an hour. In this case
of course you also have to be booked on the return from Anchorage - take note of
where the taxi-boat crew say when and where on the beach they will pick you up at Anchorage.
Note the time this walk takes is dependant on the tide - if the
tide is out at Torrent Bay then it's only a 20 minute walk however if high tide
then you have to walk all the way round which involves quite a lot of up and
downs and takes about 2 hours. This is of course an important issue regarding
your water taxi pickup time at Anchorage - the boat crew will tell you the tidal conditions to expect.
We thought the previously mentioned section was really good for it's foliage,
rocks and scenery - in fact this section was even better - it was just
totally beautiful to walk. You don't have to start off with a steep climb this
time but don't worry - one turns up eventually and with a vengeance.
The track is impossible to go wrong on - however when the track gets down to Torrent Bay
and having walked along the beach you have to decide if you can safely cross or
have to go the long way round. One advantage of taking the long way round is
that you can visit Cleopatra's Pools which are clearly signposted and take around 20 minutes
to get to. The really scenic pools, rocks and streams are really worth diverting too but you have
to bear in mind your boat pick-up time of course.
Totaranui to Awaroa Bay and back. This was the third of our
Abel Tasman walks - this time we did not have to use a ferry boat and we could
only go so far because of the high tide. We wanted to do this section because
you do really have to go and visit somewhere called Goat Bay don't you?. The
once again excellently scenic walk was 11 kms return and visited two
particularly nice beaches - Goat Bay and Waiharakeke Bay - the path was
generally in good condition however in one short part the path had almost
vanished, was slippery with sand and stone and there was an enourmous drop
clearly visible on the left...
The trail starts off at Totaranui camp site and visitors centre - goes along a
track for a while and then becomes a path. When you reach Goat Bay you turn right to walk
along the beach and if the tide is high have to make educated dashes to
get along in front of rocky outcrops before the waves get you. You also walk the
beach at Waiharakeke but this is usually straightforward. From this latter beach you continue
along through lovely forest crossing bridges and streams to eventually reach the
Awaroa Crossing Point - this was the end of our walk as the tide was high.
Other Abel Tasman Area Locations to Enjoy
Wainui Falls. The walk to the
falls takes about 30 minutes and starts off on a farm track for a short distance
but then becomes a pleasant wander on a nice path through woods, ferns and
mosses with the stream running alongside.
There is a bit of a climb to get to the falls including having to cross a really nice suspension bridge (note this
is quite high up above the river) but when you get to these lovely waterfalls this is well worth a little effort.
Pupu Springs. New Zealand's famous Pupu Springs (Te Waikoropupu Springs) are located on the western edge of
the Abel Tasman National Park - near Takaka. The Springs discharge around 14,000
litres of water a second most of which is emitted into the main pool via eight
vents.
Although there are larger such springs in other parts of the world
Waikoropupu Springs are the second clearest freshwater springs known - with only greater clarity to be found in Antartica.
From the car park it is only a short walk down a well made path to the springs
where there is a veiwing platform etc. from where you can watch the water
bubling up - you can also walk a little more round the area through forest if you wish.
Pupu Hydro Walkway.
Vertigo. It should be noted that you are very high up on the actual
walkway and although there are guardrails the height could easily be an issue
for some people. Having viewed the Springs many people just return to the main road and head off
elsewhere - however shortly after leaving the car park you join another track -
if you turn left and follow this for several kilometres you arrive at the beautiful Pupu Walkway.
This is a great place for a walk to see an historic
gold-miners water race which runs along the hillside through gorgeous forest.
Follow the signs which will take you on a steep 100 or
so metre climb up the hillside through beech/podocarp forest on a beautiful
rocky zig-zag path. At the top of the climb the path goes sharp left and from now
onwards stays level - soon reaching the penstock where you get an excellent view
of the valley as well as the Hydro Powerstation way below. The penstock is
a 450mm pipe which drops water over 350 feet down to the Powerhouse - creating
152lbs/sq.in of water pressure to turn the turbine.
The water-race itself starts from here and continues along the hill side for
about 1.7km - the whole area is amazingly rich in foliage - beautiful moss and
ferns clinging to the rocks on the right and beech/podocarp forest on the
left with silver pine and prolific mountain Toa Toa and cedar further below.
The water-race ends at the Campbell Creek where there are gates
controlling the water flow - cross over the bridge and continue very steeply up
a rough track. After a short while the track levels and there are great views of the
forest below - also you can see parts of the water-race in places. The track
soon descends - all the time there is excellent scenery - trees, moss, rocks and
ferns - the foliage is so dense that although you can hear the Waikoropupu River
below on the right you cannot see it very well. The track comes out by the
powerhouse - you can walk up a stairway and look inside via a window at the
turbines. From here follow the signs to return back on path and walkway crossing several streams
to the parking area.
Farewell Spit. Located at the
northern end of New Zealand's South Island Farewell Spit goes eastwards from
Cape Farewell and stretches for 26km above sea level and 6kms underwater
- it is the longest sandspit in New Zealand (and the spit is still growing).
At low tide there is around 80 square kilometres of mud flat exposed - needless to say there
are many sea birds to be spotted on these extensive flats - they are designated a seabird and
wildlife reserve. You can only walk a small section of the spit by yourselves - otherwise if
you want to get to the lighthouse etc. you have to use an organized tour.
Note
there are other walks you can do in this area - also that there is a cafe and
information/visitors centre at the car park by the start of the Spit which has leaflets
for some of the available walks.
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Local Resources:
Equestrian Lodge Motels close to New Zealand's Abel Tasman Motueka motels,
great accommodation close to New Zealand's Abel Tasman.
www.New-Zealand-Travel-Guide.co.uk
Instead you can get a water taxi out to various parts of the track, walk a
section and be picked up at the end of the walk. Generally speaking the track is
in excellent condition - and apart from having perhaps a steep climb out of
beach the track stays reasonably flat for most of the time. The foliage - trees,
ferns, mosses and shrubs - plus lots of birds plus scenic rocky streams and
waterfalls - sandy beaches - the whole walk is terrific.
