Nelson
& Golden Bay
West
of the Marlborough Sounds are two large bays, Tasman Bay and
Golden Bay. Bisected by a bulge of land which is the Abel
Tasman Nation Park.
The
main centre for the Tasman Bay is the city of Nelson. Known
for it's artisans, potters, glassblowers, woodworkers
sculptors and painters.
There
are several documented craft trails which guide you to various
studios and retails outlets depending on your interest.
The river valleys provide picnic spots and nature
trails and the beaches are popular. Rabbit Island,10
minutes north of Richmond is a lovely spot with a long sandy
beach with lots of shells. The focal point of the town centre
is the Christ Church Cathedral which stands on raised ground
at the end of the main street, once the site of a Maori
village. The Suter Gallery has four exhibition
galleries and is operates
as the regions public art museum. It has a permanent
collection of historic and contemporary works by important
Nelson and New Zealand artists.
The
road from Richmond to Motueka leads you past wineries, orchards
and studios (including the acclaimed glass-blowing studio of Hoglund
Art Glass in Lansdowne Road). Mapua is a coastal village,
it has a small fishing wharf with cafe.
Motueka
is at the heart of an area rich in cropping, fruit and hops
are the mainstay, vines are becoming more popular whilst
tobacco has dwindled.
From
Motueka you can branch off to Marahau at the start of
the Abel Tasman Walk, a settlement with accommodation
and bases for kayaking and Abel Tasman water taxis. or go to Kaiteriteri
Beach which is a very popular beach resort or continue on
to Golden Bay, passing over the Takaka Hill.
Known
as Marble Mountain, it does have a marble quarry and some
fascinating caves which can be explored on a guided tour.
There are spectacular views of the Golden and Tasman Bays and
the flora and fauna varies from native bush to paddocks strewn
with weird and wonderful rocks, near the top. Coming down the
hill into Golden Bay you can see the crescent of coast that is
Golden Bay all the way to Farewell Spit, across the Takaka
Aorere river valleys.
Takaka
is the main centre for Golden Bay which is made up of many
small, mainly coastal, settlements such as Pohara, Patons
Rock, Collingwood and Pakawau. The river
valleys support farming and as with many isolated areas of the
country craftspeople abound, with some well known potters.
Just out of Takaka is Pupu Springs which has walkways
with interpretational plaques that take you to the springs
area where massive quantities of extremely pure and clear
water rise up out of underground aquifers into crystal clear
pools.
The
eastern access point to Kahurangi National Park via the
Heaphy Track is from the head of the Aorere River
Valley, inland from Collingwood.
Farewell
Spit
is a 35km sandbar , much of which is a restricted wildlife
reserve, there is a Department of Conservation Office at
Puponga Farm Park
near
the beginning of the spit which has information on the birds
and other wildlife to be seen.
Also information on where you can park and how far you
can walk along the spit, the DOC brochure giving these details
should also be available from the Visitor Centre or DOC office
in Takaka. There are also commercial operators that can take
you out in 4 wheel drive vehicles on guided excursions.
The
end (or start if you wish) to the Abel Tasman Walk is
at Totaranui east of Takaka. Much of this road is
winding and unsealed. At the end of the road is a Department
of Conservation Camping Ground, (no shops and no petrol). This
camping ground is so popular that during the summer school
holidays supply exceeds demand and many sites are filled by
ballot. Commercial operators provide transport between the
track entrance and Takaka with connections back to Nelson.
Nelson
Lakes
National Park
The
lakes Rotoiti and Rotoroa are the main features
of the area, which is popular for fishing, hunting hiking and
skiing. The lakes are quite different in that Rotoroa is very
enclosed with steep bush clad shores, and whilst the bigger of
the two, has a
feeling of true remoteness, whilst Rotoiti is more
open, popular for boating and water skiing with the township
of St Arnaud on its northern shore. Both lakes are popular for
trout fishing, but the true fly fisher seems to prefer the
peace and isolation of Rotoroa. Highway 63 passes through St
Arnaud and access to Rotoiti is right there, to get to lake
Rotoroa the most direct access is from Gowanbridge on Highway
63, from where you turn off south down the Gowan River valley
for approx 11 kms.
Both
lakes have shore side walking tracks, Rotoroa along its
eastern shore only (6hr each way) Rotoiti has a circuit track
of one and a half hours
There
is a ski field located at Rainbow Valley, 26 km down a side
road south into the valley. There are many scenic and historic
reserves along this route, Six Mile and Tophouse
Scenic Reserves just east of St Arnaud and Hope Scenic
Reserve south of Kawitiri.
Highway
63 follows the scenic Buller River to its Junction with
Highway 6 at Howard Junction. Highway 6 continues to follow
the Buller River all the way to Westport, passing through Murchison,
another popular base for activities mostly focused around the
Buller River, including white water rafting and kayaking and
of course fishing.