April 25, 2016
This day started as merely another jump down the coast; the fact that this would turn out to be our final day here was a surprise.
My initial hope was for us to stop at one or more of the following: Adele Island, Frenchman Island (a tiny island just south of Adele) or an anchorage called Coquille. But alas the breeze from last night lingered, not very strong but enough to nix anchoring in those areas. It looked like we’d need to head straight to our final planned anchorage: Kaiteriteri Bay, which would take us 3 miles south of Abel Tasman National Park.
Below, a gallery of photos from our trip south towards Kaiteriteri Bay, including the famous Split Apple Rock, a fitting name for a large round boulder split cleanly two (click to enlarge/scroll).
Kaiteriteri Bay is one of the main tourist destinations for the Tasman area, popular for its golden sand, clear blue-green water, and touristy seaside town. It’s also considered the southern gateway to Abel Tasman National Park and is the main place to catch a water taxi or hire a kayak. We knew there would be boat traffic and private moorings there, but there was reported to be some room for anchoring.
Not so much. When we turned into the bay, the entire north side was filled with private moorings for professional boats and handful of locals. We didn’t see one recreational boat! The middle area was reserved for water-ski lanes, while the south side was way too shallow for anyone. To say this was a disappointment was an understatement. It had looked like a fun place to visit for a couple of days, plus now the wind was starting to pick up. We now had no place to go but the city of Nelson, nearly 20 miles away.
Rich called the Nelson marina and our slip was reserved and waiting for us. We decided to go ahead and head over there. But I have to say it seems rather annoying and unfair that no area of Kaiteriteri Bay is reserved for recreational boaters. –Cyndi
Note from Rich: The wind came up so much that this is what the ocean looked like as we entered Nelson…
This is a photo we found of Legacy when we looked ourselves up on MarineTraffic.com.
