Days 6-9 Hiking the Abel Tasman by ES

  Marahau, New Zealand
Friday, March 7, 2008

We left Nelson at 8 AM and took a bus to the trail head.  It was a beautiful sunny day and we were able to get on the trail around 10 AM. The first day was a steady climb along the Tasman Coast with breathtaking views of the sea. We were able to stop at beaches along the way for rest and snacks.  Our first night at camp was at a large campground along the beach.  Lots of kayakers and trampers were enjoying the nice day.  We were a bit tired when we arrived so we set up our tent, changed out of our sweaty clothes and then relaxed in the hammocks we had packed.  After a couple hours we took an hour side trip along the coast to take in the new views. Upon return we had a yummy freeze dried meal and ate it on the beach. The sand flys were a bit bothersome so we did not hang out to long.

The next morning we set off for another day on the trail. As we walked around the curvy coast we once agian had viwes of the sea and when away from the waters edge walked inside thick rainforest.  It was amazing how quickly the scenery changed.   

In order to reach our next camp site we had to walk a long way on the beach which was not easy considering we had on 50 lb packs and boots.  We finally made it to our next camp and set up and had a meal.  Although the water was a little chilly we went for a swim and read books ont he beach until sundown. 

The next morning we had to take the high -tide trail so we did not have for the water to go out and continued through the rainforest.  This added an extra hour on our journey but at least we did not have to wait.  One section of the trail was really muddy and I had a little fall but luckly I landed on my pack instead of my butt!  We had another water crossing after passing through a randon air plane landing strip and had to take off our boots and roll up our pants again.  We finally made it to our luch destination and then had to cross another water area!  As we were eating lunch we were able to watch people try and cross this huge water area and a couple got stuck because they tried to go when the water was too high still.  They ended up just standing waiting until the tide went out because they could not go any farther. We had a long luch while waiting for the tide to go out and chatted with people who made the crossing from the other side and others who were about to cross.  One guy who came across walked past a 3 foot sting ray!  I certainly would not have expected that!  We waited until the ground was nothing but mud and muck and walked across.  Huge areas of the seas floor were covered with great piles of mussels and one man was out collecting them to eat. After naking it to the other side we tried to wipe our feet off without getting eaten by sandflies and the made our way to camp.  This area actually has drving access and a boat launch.  It was a HUGE campground and we set up our tent in a open clearing and then enjoyed another dinner on the beach and read more.  We planned our route for the next morning in order to make it to the end of the trail on time where a bus was suppoed to be picking us up.  We would have to leave at 6 AM in order to get their on time so we wen to bed early with nothing but clear skies.

The next morning we got up to leave but found ourselves confused because the trail was not marked exactly with the trail name were looking for.  After we dropped our packs..Carolyn ran one way down a trail and I ran down the other in hopes of a sign.  We met back up with no sign to be found and took our best guess.  It turns out we were right and continued inland up to Gibbs Hill.  It was a NON-STOP Incline!  Just when we would get around a corner and hope to be at the top it would keep going.  I think we went straight uo hill for 2 hours!     Finally we got to another fork in the road and took what we thought was the right way.....sure enough after 2 hours of walking we came to a road and realized we had completly gone the wrong way.  We walked each way downt he road for a bit trying to see where we should go and then a car came by with a young Alaskan couple and they tried to help us but did not know where the car park was either.  They went on their way and we decided to stay on the road in hopes that it would run into the carpark or that we may run into someone who could give us a ride.  After about 20 minutes of walking a car came up the road and it was the Alaskan girl!  She found out where the car park was and left her husband on the side of the road so she would have enough room in the car for us and our packs!  She drove us all the way to the car park and we ended up being there an hour before the bus!!!  What a savior!!!  Once we looked on a better map we were able to see where we made a wrong turn and we had actually gone totally out of the way!  

Our bus then took us back to Nelson where we spent the night again in order to prepare for our next adventure!