Tag: Great Walk

Port William Day Walk

On By exploringthelongwhitecloudIn RakiuraLeave a comment

So far, we have been incredibly lucky with the weather and it’s been amazing exploring Rakiura in the sun. However, today we get to experience what it’s like in the rain.

This morning we are heading out to do a self guided, half day walk from Port William. But before we venture out on a walk, we need to fuel up with some breakfast, so we head back to The Snuggery, it’s a shame they aren’t doing dinners at the moment, we would have loved to have come back here for that. Today, breakfast is a bagel with cream cheese and jam. Delicious. I love that combo! It’s a bit of a rushed breakfast as we need to get down to the wharf to catch the water taxi.

On our way to the wharf, we stop at the supermarket to pick up our pre-ordered lunches, then meet up with Dan, who is our skipper this morning. We get chatting and find out that he is also our guide for the kiwi tour this evening. We are joined by a group of 6 and then get on the water taxi. The water at the wharf is so clear. Although deep, you can easily see the bottom.

Dan tells us we are lucky that it’s a pretty calm day so our trip will be nice and cruisy. As we leave the wharf, we are treated to brilliant views of a huge rainbow stretching right across the bay. We are in a prime position and can see both ends. Gosh, this is a magical place.

For a calm, still day, our water taxi is bumping up and down a lot. There are a number of times we rise up and then slap back down into the water. I am fortunate not to have much of an issue with sea sickness, but my tummy is reminding me of the bagel sitting in it. I’m not too sure I want to know what a ride out here would be like on a rough day. We follow the coastline around and Dan makes a couple of stops on the way, the first being Lee Bay, to show us where the walk ends and instructions on how to call for a taxi (You have to stand in a certain spot to get reception). The second stop is at Maori Bay which he informs us is approximately half way and with today’s tides, if we arrive there after 11am we should take the high route. Useful information!

We arrive at our first destination, Port William, and get off the boat. We will spend the next 3- 4 hours walking back towards Lee Bay.

Port William is situated on another picture perfect bay surrounded by bush, which we venture straight into. And like a lot of New Zealand bush, it is lush and green. The walk we are doing makes up part of the 3 day Rakiura great walk. Although I really enjoy walking, neither Daniel or I are really trampers and I love that we can experience some of this Great Walk without having to carry packs and sleep in tents.

This Great Walk is very popular and can be walked all year round. Because of its popularity, the track is really well maintained and signposted. We trek up for a while, getting quite high and then drop back down into the valley. The forest is beautiful. I love the forest when it rains, it becomes even more alive. The little dewy water droplets and the smell makes it magical. In some ways I prefer it to a walk on a hot sunny day.

I love looking at all the layers in the forest too, the way all the different plant species support one another and the birds. The forest canopy is doing a great job of protecting us from the rain, but every now and again a gentle breeze blows through, rustling the leaves and dumping heavy droplets of water on us.

After a couple of hours walking, we reach Māori Beach. Another gorgeous bay. I really had no idea how gorgeous the Rakiura coastline was. On the beach I notice some tracks that I think might be kiwi, so I take a photo to show our guide tonight.

It’s still raining so we take shelter at the DOC kitchen (Department of Conservation) and decide to stop for a snack. It’s amazing how quickly you can cool down. I was very warm while we were walking but now we have stopped, it’s not long before I am feeling the cold and reaching for my sweater.

After having a bit of a rest, we carry on with our walk, taking a short detour up to the old sawmill site. Back in the day, there was quite a large Scottish logging settlement here. Now all that remains are the relics of their sawmill equipment. This would have been a beautiful place to live but very challenging, remote and cold in the winters.

Back in the forest, I am glad for the shelter it provides us, but am also loving the cool, misty rain that manages to get through and land on my face. When I am not distracted by my heavy breathing, I am listening to the forest. The soft pitter patter of rain on the canopy, rushing water from the nearby stream, the rhythmic rolling ocean, the tui’s melodic song and the little peeps from a fantail. Even the trees are speaking, creaking as they sway in the wind. I love it when I slow down and take in what’s around me. There is so much to notice and so much that’s missed when we rush through life.

As Daniel said, it looks like New Zealand forest. But there is also so much variety. Some areas are dotted with tall, lanky trees that sway in the wind. Other parts are thick and dense. Large trees are covered in smaller plants and some low lying areas covered in ferns and moss. It’s pretty special.

When we emerge from the bush at Lee Bay, the rain has stopped. We decide to sit at the picnic table and have some lunch. We are joined shortly after by more rain and a little bird. I am not sure what it is, she is black with a white chest, shy but also curious. I am sure our guide for Ulva Island tomorrow will be able to tell us what sort of bird it is.

As we head to the car park, we see ‘The Anchor’ sculpture. It is inspired by the story of Māui who fished up Te Waipounamu (The South Island) and anchored it with Rakiura (Stewart Island). There is a matching sculpture in Bluff (the bottom of Te Waipounamu) which we saw on a previous trip. This sculpture is a lovely end to our half day walk exploring Rakiura National Park.

Abel Tasman National Park – Day 2

On By exploringthelongwhitecloudIn South Island, Tasman Region, Uncategorized1 Comment

It rained persistently all night and into the morning. Will it ever stop? My visions of basking in the Abel Tasman sunshine are quickly fading.

But I get up and am greeted with a hot cup of mint and matcha tea. It’s so good and makes the weather seem not that bad. The ladies are up. They are eager to know what the plan for the day is and ask their very patient guide Kyle about 100 times what they will be doing. Our guides are waiting for a weather update before they make any decisions.

Breakfast is toasted muffin splits with jam and banana. A nice way to start the day. Red then gives us the options. First, he lays down the facts. The wind out on the water is too strong today so kayaking is off the table. But, it is meant to stop raining around lunchtime.

Our 2 choices, we can walk to Anchorage Bay, around a 4 hours walk and the water taxi will collect our gear and kayaks and drop it off. Or, we stay at Bark Bay and do some walks in the afternoon. Regardless of where we go, we will need to tent tonight as there is no room at the inn. But it shouldn’t be raining.

Our group decides to walk to Anchorage. Its not often you get to do one of the great walks, without having to carry all the gear!

Kyle suggests we take a walk to see the waterfall again, in this weather it should be more impressive. So we head out to take a look. The water has gone very brown, but otherwise it doesn’t look much different. Still, the walk in the bush is nice. The rest of the morning is spent in the hut, chatting and warming ourselves around the fire.

We have lunch and as promised, the rain stops. We pack up all the gear and take it down to the beach. It’s probably only a 3 minute walk but we have to do several trips and the items get heavier and heavier. We get everything down to the beach, only to find the boat is anchored at the other end of the beach and can’t get down to us. So we then each make a couple of trips back and forth along the beach in the soft squishy, so hard to walk in sand with all the heavy items. Then followed by a river crossing to finally get to the boat. It’s fast flowing water and up to my knees so I take it slowly and manage to not fall in.

That done, we are ready to start our walk to Anchorage Bay. We set off and my fitbit buzzes. I have just completed my goal of 10,000 steps for the day! There are going to be a lot of steps done today!

The walk is beautiful. It’s so nice to be able to explore without having the weight of a tramping pack. Initially I was disappointed, I wanted to kayak Abel Tasman, but I think this worked out for the best. We got to see the park from the sea, now we get to experience it from the land. They are quite different view points.

We then come to a small detour to a lookout point. The group decides not to do it, I’m disappointed, but we agree we will go to the next one. The next one comes around pretty quickly. It’s a 5 mins detour to take us to see Sandfly Bay. Its a steep path down, not a nice, smooth track. We have to almost climb down, finding footing among the tree roots. All I can think about is how we are going to have to come back up this! It takes us way longer than 5 minutes but we finally end up on a golden sandy beach with huge granite boulders that have been smoothed over by the sea. It also lived up to it’s name, although, most beaches in this area have a mass of sandflies. We spend a little while on the beach, I close my eyes and try to soak up the peacefulness, the waves, the birds and cicadas. Lovely.

Then it’s time to head back up. All you can do is place one foot in front of the other and set your own pace. When we reach the top, we all need a break to catch our breath. We notice on the other side of the sign, pointing to Sandfly Bay, someone has scratched a 1 in front of the 5 minutes. 15 minutes, that seems more like it.

We carry on, the track does have some elevated sections, but for the most part it is pretty easy walking. I do find the hills pretty challenging. I walk a lot, but mostly on the flat. Its a well maintained track, it’s probably one of the most walked tracks in the country. It’s mostly through the forest, but every now an again, there is a break in the trees where you can see the ocean and little secluded coves.

We eventually arrive at Torrent Bay. It used to be a farm that then got subdivided. Now there are baches (holiday homes) everywhere. Some are small, modest, olde fashioned kiwi baches, others are a bit more upmarket. It’s a pretty sweet place for a holiday house! Regardless of their size, they would all be worth a fortune!

At Torrent Bay, we are again given 2 options. Anchorage is the next bay over. We can do the low tide walk, which involves river crossings, or, take the high tide route, which takes an extra hour and a half, but takes you past the 10 minute detour to Cleopatra’s Pool where there are large smooth rocks you can slide down into the pool. We have been walking for a while, I might be tempted to take a dip.

The group decide on the low tide walk, they want to get to the campsite, but Red lets Daniel and I take the high tide walk. I am here to see and experience the park. I am taking the opportunities as they come. As we set off, my fitbit buzzes again. 20,000 steps!

It’s nice having this time with just Daniel. We can set our own pace and I can stop when I want to take in my surroundings and enjoy the nature. I don’t mind at all that it’s adding all this extra time to our walk. While the others are walking straight through the lagoon, our track follows it circumference, snaking in and out.

We get to the detour for Cleopatra’s Pool and follow the track alongside the river. The forest here is stunning. Low growing fern, punga, black beach and rimu densely fill the sides of the river. It’s layered and textured and so exquisite. The photo’s just don’t do it justice.

Then the track stops. We have reached the pools but the river has forked and we are on the wrong side. On the other side of the riverbank we can see the sign for Cleopatra’s Pool. We look around but can’t find any track to get us there. There are some big boulders in the river so we decide to cross there. We jump across on the rocks. The last ones are quite far apart. I’m not sure I will be able to make that. Daniel of course does it with ease, then steadies himself, ready to catch me.

One. Two, Three. I jump. I almost don’t make it, but Daniel grabs me and pulls me onto the rock. As I land though, feel something go pop in my leg. I do a quick assessment of my body, I am shaking but I can still walk, good. I am limping a little, hopefully it will be ok. We still have 1.5 hours of walking to do.

The jump across has got us to the pools, but the water is high and fast flowing, it’s also pretty brown. There is no way we will attempt to slide down those rocks, it wouldn’t be safe. So we take some photos, admire the view and then hop back across the rocks to the track. I take a different route, but again, the last step looks too far for me to jump. I am not risking that again. So it’s off with the shoes and socks and I walk the last part. It’s fast flowing water up to my knees, but it’s only a couple of steps and Daniel is right there to help me.

We walk the rest of the track. My leg is a bit sore, but I am managing. I think I will be pretty stiff though once I cool down and my muscles are no longer warm. The track finally leads us out to another beautiful beach. Anchorage Bay. A huge, crescent stretch of golden sand. The sea is green, reflecting the colour of the trees and boats have docked in the quite bay. The water looks so inviting. Again, it is quite a long beach, so we start our walk to the camp. Today’s walk has started and ended on the beach. As we set off, my fitbit buzzes again. 30,000!

We arrive at camp to find the rest of the group have put up our tent. How sweet! There is also a delicious looking spread of wine, chips, cheese, crackers ready for us to dive into. The chips almost hold me hostage, but there is one thing I must do first. Go for a swim.

No one else is keen to join me so I head down on my own. The water is cold and gets deep very quickly (not like at Bark Bay) but it is incredible. I become weightless and my tired, sore, achy muscles are loving it. I am the only one on the beach. The water is so clear and flat, apart form the little circles forming on the surface from the light rain. This is magical. A little perfect moment just for myself. It’s things like this that make life so sweet.

I stay in much longer than I intended because my muscles feel so soothed but I am also starting to get rather cold and we are in a tent tonight so getting warm is going to be a bit harder. I actually find it really hard to get out, I almost fall over twice, my legs are groaning as they are forced to support my weight again. I slowly hobble back to camp, change into warm clothes and sit myself down right in front of the chips and cheese. I’ve earnt this!

The rest of the evening is spent around the picnic table, chatting with our group and enjoying some local wines. Red cooks us dinner and we watch some weka having a stand off. They are such cheeky birds. Not at all afraid and very keen to try and get into the cooking equipment and food. There are lots of fantails at this campsite too. They are such sweet little birds.

Tonight we sleep in our tent. It’s not the most comfortable sleep, but I am exhausted enough that it doesn’t really matter. I fall asleep to the rhythmic sound of the waves and a morepork. It’s been a good day.