The Golden Bay is rich in exotic landscape: wild and rocky shore, paradise like beaches, green hills, dolomite rocks, bush, fields and vineyards. You find it all in the area of Nelson and Abel Tasman National Park. One of the valleys here was a filming location of Fellowship of the ring. Do you remember the scene when Frodo and Sam depart from the Shire? That’s the very one shot here! Takaka Hill was also a background to the scene when Aragorn leads the Hobbits into the Chetwood Forest. I simply couldn’t limit the Golden Bay and describe it in one post! So here is another one that tells you about Farewell Spit: a wonder of nature. A Natural Wonder In the early afternoon – after a delicious lunch at the local Penguin Bar in Pohara – I drove to Collingwood. A home made bus was waiting for us here. Seriously! This was a vehicle constructed out of at least 3 old military trucks. Before the tour I met the owner and he told me the story of this amazing adaptation. It’s mainly because the tour crosses large distances covered with very fine sand and other obstacles. The only way to visit the spit is with Farewell Spit Eco Tours. Its schedule is fit into the Tasman Sea tides and restrictions of the area protected by Department of Conservation (DOC). What is a spit? Spit is a form of peninsula, created with large piles of sand brought by wind and sea current. Farewell Spit is 32 km long and it is located in the North West corner of South Island. The spit is believed to be caused by the strong prevailing winds and currents bringing sand eroded from the Southern Alps of the South Island and depositing these into Golden Bay. In three words: huge sandy beach. This is not a frequent formation and the Farewell Spit is not only very large but also extraordinary. The whole area is strictly protected because this is an important bird sanctuary. Every year thousands of birds come here regularly along their migration routes so the protection of this area is crucial. Waders and gannets, black swans, little blue penguins, herons, stilts, oystercatchers and shags feel here like at home. Also huge, fat and very lazy fur seals were just laying at the beach. The tour goes through the outer part of the spit as the inner beach is closed to the tourists and left exclusively to the birds. The Tour The views along the spit are stunning: depending on tide and the time of departure from Collingwood you’ll see sunrise or sunset at the beach. The cliff and green pastures at the Cape Farewell are sharply contrasted with sandy dunes and desert landscape. The wind always blows here, carrying fresh sand and shaping the twelve or thirteen dunes along the spit (numer of dunes depend on the strength of wind and hundred other conditions that our guide was aware of). Some of the dunes are really high – up to 30 meters! We climbed one of them which was marvelous. It reminded me my childhood and time spent with my family at the beach. As the tour is run by the locals they provide a unique insight into this place. A guy who was our guide remembered historical events related to the Farewell Spit lighthouse but also knew the local context of natural disasters (flood) or the whales stranded. You need to dedicate a considerable time in order to hear the story, like at least half a day. The majority of people participating in this tour were retired and the whole tour makes an impression of slow and careful observation. If you’re used to run through places you visit this might be challenging. My blogger mate Laurence found the area of Golden Bay enjoyable so read his story and the way the approached wildlife here. The lighthouse is no longer run by a lamplighter but there was time when people with their families were living in this extreme place. Our guide took us to one of the old buildings and prepared tea so we could appreciate this place. I like lighthouses very much but this one was somehow disappointing in terms of its look. The whole trip ended in darkness and just before night covered the bay we witnessed spectacular sunset. Good advice is this: take time and be very patient to benefit from this trip. If you prefer high adrenaline and speed come back here at Christmas time: next post is about extreme sports I experienced in New Zealand (which after lazy and very holiday like Golden Bay is a change!). Disclosure: Farewell Spit Eco Tours provided generous discount for me. Thank you!  

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Warning: this post is FULL of photos. It’s simply because the Golden Bay area is so beautiful that I find it impossible to describe. Rather, I prefer to show you how does it look like. Golden Bay is a stunning place: the whole area is very much paradise like. White sandy beaches, crystal clear water, deep bush, rich population of seals and penguins, and mild climate. Golden Bay was a perfect place to relax, catch some sun and meet the locals. The legendary New Zealanders’ chill out was so obvious here: we went to a local bar and found somebody’s shoes left under the table. The waitress allowed us to take our seats and after an hour we were sitting there an old lady just came to pick them up. She smiled and said: I was sitting here before but switched tables because of the sun and I forgot the shoes. I just felt like at home. I found this short phrase an essence of the New Zealanders’ attitude towards many things and their walking bare feet – which is very popular here – is a good example. Ratanui I liked the Golden Bay so much that instead of one day I stayed there four days and I think that’s the best prove of attractiveness of this place. I started my stay here from accommodation at the Ratanui Lodge. This was the best thing that could happen to me in such a place: Steve – the co-owner – is amazing manager and when I told him a list of attractions I would like to plan he organized everything in 5 minutes! I felt like I don’t need to do anything, just relax and enjoy my holiday. So that was really great. So, first thing I did next day after arrival was sea kayaking. Golden Bay Kayaks Early morning, before 8:00 a.m. I went to the near Tata Beach. A family run company Golden Bay Kayaks was a provider of one of the most spectacular attractions in New Zealand: sea kayaking. If you have never done this before I think you should try. This activity involves so many pleasant things! Great views, proximity of the exotic flora and fauna, amazing fun when the waves are big, a variety of coast line (even in a relatively short distance), good company and delicious snack at the beach you can’t reach any other way! I embedded a short clip below to share the splendor of this place. A half day guided tour around the Abel Tasman National Park was excellent way to get closer to the nature and get in touch with the locals. Our guide – Pip – was a young girl, full of enthusiasm and joy. She showed us marvelous places where the birds, seals and penguins have their sanctuary. All participants could simply swim as close as possible to many sites unreachable in any other way. Kayaking is an excellent idea to get closer to the wildlife. Check out how Laurence from Finding the Universe did it. We paddled around granite and limestone rocks, enjoying the waves and the sun. After 1h30 min we landed at the sandy beautiful beach to have our lunch there. This was so thrilling! Just when we finished our lunch the tide was high again so we rush back in really nice waves. Ari – a blogger fellow – had very similar experiences to mine. She went for a full day of kayaking in Abel Tasman too. I am happy to report about her delight! Read her story here. I think that these guys are doing great job: they provide excellent kayaks, good quality equipment, including dry bags for anything you want to keep with you, and a genuine knowledge of the area. I felt totally safe with them and I could fully enjoy the time spent in the Bay. My delight was shared by the other participants of this tour but who wouldn’t be happy? Kayaking is a perfect way to appreciate this amazing place. Just the very same day we enjoyed a local nature wonder: The Farewell Spit tour. Click here to read the second part of my adventure in the Golden Bay. Disclosure: both, the Ratanui Lodge and Golden Bay Kayaks, provided generous discounts through the programme Explore New Zealand.  

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