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New Zealand Trip

Picton to Marahau ( Abel Tasman )

As said on the previous page we took a ferry from Wellington to Picton, uppest city of the South Island. From then we went for wine tasting. The vines themselves were incredibly high, almost 3 metres. I still don't know why...

And then later in the afternoon we did a BIG supermarket stop in Nelson, as in Marahau we are in a NAtional Park, and there is nothing but a little convenience store over-expensive. The idea is we are to go in the middle of the uncivilised world...

Abel Tasman National Park

In that splendid place I chose to stay 2 days to take time to enjoy all the features of this National Park. Therefore I took a water-taxi ( yes, it does exist... ) up to the uppest point of the cost, to get back to Marahau following the cost all the way south. During the water taxi ride we went to see the seals colony in Tonga Island. They are extra-friendly and it was for them a sort of contest to show us they were really clever.

PHOTOS

We landed in Totaranui. Some agressive birds with red beaks welcomed us by chasing us. And then started the walk. I went all the way up toWhariwharangi Bay, and enjoyed the lowering of the tide.

The tide is a big factor to take into consideration when walking the Abel Tasman track : some sections take 20mn at low tide and 1h30 at high tide, when you can take a detour which is not always guaranted...

After chilling out for a while, I went back south to The Reef ( picture on the right ) for snorkeling. The spot was good, but not the bes I ever visited ; meanwhile I saw some sea-eggs, sea-cucumbers, starfish, crabs, hosts of big grey fishes...

Then the end of the day was drawing near and I had to get to a campsite. So I walked to Bark Bay, and settled there for the night. Just sitting on the beach in front of the crystal-clear water was a real enjoyment, a real taste of paradise.

The next day of my trip I just walked back to Marahau. It was a long day, starting at 9 untill 6 in the afternoon, and walking at a quick pace. But the track and the views were definitely worth it.

Every beach I discovered were postcard-like. The water was warm and not too salty, so at midday I took a break and went for a swim.

In the afternoon I had to rush not to get caught by the tide while crossing some sections. The appearance of certain zones was totally different from what I saw the day before in the water taxi, due to a different level of the water.

The track went mostly up and down but wasn't really hard as the Tongariro Crossing had been. The vegetation was huge, as it was protected from being spoiled by the Department Of Conservation for years, as all the National Parks in New Zealand.

A rule available for all the National Parks in New Zealand is that you have to "carry out what you carry in". It sounds as a problem not to have rubish bins at hand, but at the end of the day it is way better for everybody.

Something really big in Abel Tasman is Kayaking. I chose not to do it because the frst day was not really sunny, and I found the activity a bit over-rated regarding the price.

But I must admit that it is really tempting on a good day to do some canoeing or kayaking in the Abel Tasman, as the water is so clear, it is more than inviting conditions for such a sport.

End of the track, and back to the camping spot - which was a farm, the Mac Donald's Old Farm, I could see what they call "Geeps", a crossing between girafes and sheeps. Apparently the wool produced is very smooth and of a high quality. At least they are funny-looking animals. Pretty much like lamas.

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