Category: Uncategorized

April 24, 2016

Technically this walk is considered the Pitt Head Loop Track (the Te Pukatea Track is just a section of it). The entire walk takes about 1 1/2 hours or more, depending on how much a person cares to linger in any given spot before their husband tells them enough already! It’s a bit lengthy, but the beautiful views, singing birds, coastal forest, and gorgeous Te Pukatea Bay make it well worth the effort.

(You can click to enlarge/scroll through the galleries that follow.)

Our trek began with an uphill climb amid trees and a chorus of bellbirds (rare outside bird sanctuary areas)…

Eventually we split off onto the Te Pukatea Track, which took us down a hill to the much-photographed Te Pukatea Bay. There’s a good reason for this: Te Pukatea Beach is the quintessential perfect Abel Tasman beach with forested hills and a rim of golden sand surrounding clear turquoise and green water…

From this beautiful beach we climbed a hill, rejoining the Pitt Head Track to its spectacular viewpoints near the tip of the peninsula…

On the walk back we took a small unmarked trail, a bit overgrown, and were surprised to find a sizeable wooden platform with impressive views of the entrance to Torrent Bay. Wow, they ought to consider putting up a sign up let people know it’s there…

This walk was a great way to cap off our visit to Torrent Bay. We next planned to take advantage of the nice weather and head south as soon as we got back to the boat.–Cyndi

April 24, 2016

Below, a close-up map of Torrent Bay.

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We decided to make our way to the beach at the head of the bay, hugging the shoreline where pretty white rock formations surrounded tiny green coves…

We then rode along Torrent Bay Beach, a long stretch of golden sand, to its east end where we landed the dinghy…

We wanted to find a trail called the Te Pukatea Track, a hike along the peninsula that forms the east side of Torrent Bay. When we asked a local where the trail was, he told us how to find it, then gave us what turned out to be great advice: make sure to take the trail all the way to the lookout at the end of the peninsula. Since it was already a 40-minute walk to begin with, I’m not sure we would have walked the extra distance if we hadn’t been urged to.

While I’ve been taking swipes at some of the bad advice we’ve gotten from locals, I’d like to express appreciation for the great advice we’ve gotten, too, usually delivered in the form of an offhand, casual suggestion that ends up making all the difference. Below are a couple of photos locating the trail, across a small bridge over a riverbed.–Cyndi

April, 2016

Isn’t it nice when nature is kind enough to provide the perfect cleat!? This one was in the Abel Tasman, by a trail we wanted to walk on. We were able to step from the dinghy to the bottom step of a staircase leading up to the trail without getting our feet wet. Thanks Nature! And, oh yea, thanks NZ for another great trail. -Rich

April 24, 2016

This “township,” as the Murray guide terms it, has two beaches to choose from. There’s the inner beach at the lagoon . . .

Then there’s the outer beach along Torrent Bay . . .

Both are pleasant enough, although not as special as other beaches in the park. Our main reason for visiting here was to look for a place to get a coffee drink. All we found, though, were a few vacation homes and a camping area. Apparently “township” is code for “forget about finding any coffee here!” –Cyndi

April 24, 2016

In our dinghy ride around Torrent Bay’s lagoon, we came across a small cove with an intriguing path leading up from the water. We decided to tie off our dinghy and follow it to see where it might lead. It turns out we’d found a route off the Able Tasman Coast Track. It’s the track hikers take if they opt to cross the lagoon at low tide instead of going all the way around it. Wow, it was hard to imagine our “lake” would become so dried out that people could trek across it.

For now, we followed the trail up and over the small area of land separating the lagoon from Torrent Bay. We found ourselves at the far west end of Brown’s Beach with a view of the boats across the bay. Our curiosity satisfied, we headed back.

It was tempting to take the main trail to an area called Cleopatra’s Pool, one of the many highlights in the park, but it would take an hour and we had a lot more to do yet. Next up, we planned to visit the “township,” whatever that means, and see if we could find some coffee. Below, a gallery of photos from our little walk (click to enlarge/scroll) –Cyndi