Woke up and, after viewing Farewell Spit from our Puponga campsite (not much to see from where we were), drove to Wharariki Beach. It's a short walk from the carpark through hilly green fields dotted with sheep. Soon we were on a pristine beach with sand dunes, all to ourselves. After a bit of tramping around and getting quite sandy the rain drove us back to the camper. Stopped next door at Cape Farewell (the Northernmost point of the South island) where there was a great rock arch in the sea. By now the rain had stopped again. And started and stopped again.
The last thing in the area is Farewell Spit itself, a long thin stretch of sand that goes on for miles. You can do a tour or walk 4km but we did neither, so we didn't get a proper view of the spit. Still, the whole area round here has definitely been worth the detour.
One of the amazing things around here is the difference between high and low tide. There are huge wetlands at low tide which get completely covered over. There are plenty of birds making the most of this avian paradise.
Moving back towards Abel Tasman National Park we stopped at Takaka for a bit of playground action and to visit the dump station. Soon it was getting on in the day so we headed to Totaeanui in the heart of the park, without stopping at Wainiu Falls (we'll see them on the way back tomorrow). What we have seen of the park on the way looks very promising, with a lovely beach right on our doorstep.
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