Another update, another national park! Between the 11th and 14th of February Justyna and I were in Motueka, the gateway to Abel Tasman National Park and home to lots of apple orchards. The hostel we were staying in was mainly frequented by people on working holidays who were in the region for the fruit picking season - Kiwifruits and Apples. We also met up with a Maltese couple who have been on the road for over two years now - something to aspire to!
Abel Tasman NP is situated in the north west of the South Island, to the north of Marlborough Sounds. It is the place where Abel Tasman, the first European to sight New Zealand, came close to land. He was greeted by a Maori war party and mistook the Haka for a song of welcome. Needless to say lives were lost on both sides and the traveling Dutchman beat a hasty retreat, but not before christening the land he saw after his hometown back in Holland. The park is a beautiful mixture of native forest, golden beaches and crystal clear turquoise waters.
On our first day in Motueka we just explored the small town on foot, walking along a small river then out onto the local sandspit and estuary, home to many waterfowl. The weather wasn't too good but we kept our fingers crossed for a nicer weather over the next few days when we would be going to the actual park.
Friday dawned with a lots of moody clouds overhead, and as we made our way to Kaiteriteri for our boat pickup the weather didn't get any better! By the time we were on the water taxi it was pouring down, but at least we were in the covered boat. The cruise took us past Split Apple Rock, a very interesting granite rock standing out in a bay that is split down the middle, just like an apple. Maori legend is that two gods were fighting over the rock and decided to halve it to end the quarrel. Further up the coast we sailed close to some Fur Seal pups then in and out of lots of nice little coves that make up the park. We were dropped off about half way down the walking track, for what is said to be the nicest part of the Abel Tasman coastal track. With our waterproofs tightly secured we set off in the drizzle to our rendez-vous point about 7km down the track. The walk was very easygoing, the highlight of it being a narrow swing bridge suspended about 10-15m above the rushing river below (no photos though, it was raining too hard). On the boat ride back to Kaiteriteri the weather took a turn for the better, we got loads of sunshine and by the time we landed in Kaiteriteri it was a really hot afternoon :/ If only the timing of the weather had been reversed!
On Saturday we woke to a windy but clear day and caught a bus to Marahau, from where we were to pick up our kayak for a day of paddling along the Abel Tasman coast. During our two hour safety briefing the winds howled, the rain poured down, and we were worried about not being able to go out because of the bad weather. The guide didn't help our nerves at all by constantly reminding us of how easy it would be in this weather for the kayak to capsize! In a positive turn of events the pouring rain actually helped us out as the low clouds suppressed the winds, so even though we were paddling in the rain the sea was very calm.
We set out along the coast towards some secluded beaches and by the time we had our first landing for lunch the rain had stopped completely, though the clouds were still there. The cloudy weather was actually a boon as we were getting quite hot from the effort of paddling the kayak along, it would have been unbearable in direct sunlight. After our lunch stop we crossed the Astrolabe Roadstead towards Adele Island where we had seen the seals the day before, though with it being the afternoon the seals had moved around to other parts of the island. We did hear lots of birdcalls though - Adele Island is one of many "predator free" islands in the park that are encouraging the growth of many of NZ's endangered bird species.
After Adele Island we struck a course south towards Split Apple Rock for a closer look and a couple of photos. After seeing the rock up close we headed back to Marahau beach, which had now grown to four or five times its original size because the tide was out! We saw out the time we had left till our pick up taking in the weak sunshine that was making its way through the clouds.
Photos of our time in Motueka and Abel Tasman national park are on my Picasa web album
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