Wainui Falls (Almost) in Abel Tasman National Park

Kia ora, campers! We moved campsites yesterday, from Collingwood at the top of Golden Bay to Pohara at the bottom. We're getting ready to clean the caravan and drive it over the Takaka Hill to return it. And then make our way to the ferry and the North Island, where fresh vistas await.

Today we set out on a little road/walk trip to Wainui Falls in Abel Tasman National Park.

Here's a map (click here to view if reading in email).

As always, the drive is part of the fun, this one wending its way past gorgeous Wainui Bay.

Like so many other treks in NZ, this one begins in the midst of a farm.

What's this? 

Still, we persisted. We'll walk the path to the obstruction and be reminded it's the journey, not the destination.

Out of the farmland and up into a forest dense with ferns, nikau palms, and rata trees, the Wainui River frothing below.

 

We didn't spot this region's carnivorous giant snail, Powelliphanta, but you can read more about them and see a photo here (scroll down at that link and you can even see one of them them scarf down a worm).

A sign well-told

We knew it was coming...

...but still. Never underestimate the damage that can be done by a single well-positioned rock.

Art tells the story in a vid (click here to view if reading in email).

I'm in love with NZ's farmland/national park convergence.

Good night from dreamy Golden Bay.