NZ-kayaking in Abel Tasman park
After a night in Nelson, we were to take a bus close to Abel Tasman National Park where we hired Abel Tasman Kayaks to take us on a 3 day kayak trip through the park.
Well, we almost didn't make the trip! We woke up a little later than we should have, and we arrived at our bus station at 7:45 AM. After about 5 minutes, we still didn't see a bus and called Abel Tasman Kayaks to find out what happened. Oops... the bus actually came on time at 7:35 AM! So we rushed to find a taxi and catch up with the bus. Phew! They actually waited for us.
Luckily that was the only major hiccup on this trip. We arrived at the kayak place, met our guides, and packed our kayaks. Let me tell you it is amazing how much stuff fits into a kayak! We packed several jugs of juice, bags of cookies, a propane tank, our tent, 2 sleeping pads and bags, and all our clothes. All the other kayaks in our trip, 5 double kayaks, were also packed full.
No matter... when you're in the water, you hardly notice it! Plus, we had spectacular views of the park as we paddled along. Shortly after enjoying this scenery, our guide pulled out a big tarp and had us set up a sail! Huh? Well, they have everyone hold onto each other's kayaks and form a big raft-like mass, then 4 people hold each corner of the sail and off we go!
Our entire 3 days were fantastic. We lucked out with the weather - no rain really, and generally clear blue skies. We would paddle into beautiful little sandy bays for lunch or for our campsites, and even paddled a little ways up a river or two during the afternoons.
We felt spoiled by the gourmet camping. We camped in the same campsites as the hikers, but our guides would set up a tarp above the picnic benches to keep rain/tree junk from falling on the food. We'd have proper teatime with biscuits (aka cookies), and later that evening a gourmet dinner including wine! We even had eggs & bacon for breakfast once, and then pancakes another day - yum!
One of the highlights of the trip was a last-minute kayak out to an island nature refuge for sea lions. We decided to go late one afternoon and paddle hard to make sure we got back before dark. Our guides got us to within 5 feet of the sea lions and cormorants hanging out on the rocks - quite amazing really - and even up close to some young sea lions playing in the water!
Well, we almost didn't make the trip! We woke up a little later than we should have, and we arrived at our bus station at 7:45 AM. After about 5 minutes, we still didn't see a bus and called Abel Tasman Kayaks to find out what happened. Oops... the bus actually came on time at 7:35 AM! So we rushed to find a taxi and catch up with the bus. Phew! They actually waited for us.
Luckily that was the only major hiccup on this trip. We arrived at the kayak place, met our guides, and packed our kayaks. Let me tell you it is amazing how much stuff fits into a kayak! We packed several jugs of juice, bags of cookies, a propane tank, our tent, 2 sleeping pads and bags, and all our clothes. All the other kayaks in our trip, 5 double kayaks, were also packed full.
No matter... when you're in the water, you hardly notice it! Plus, we had spectacular views of the park as we paddled along. Shortly after enjoying this scenery, our guide pulled out a big tarp and had us set up a sail! Huh? Well, they have everyone hold onto each other's kayaks and form a big raft-like mass, then 4 people hold each corner of the sail and off we go!
Our entire 3 days were fantastic. We lucked out with the weather - no rain really, and generally clear blue skies. We would paddle into beautiful little sandy bays for lunch or for our campsites, and even paddled a little ways up a river or two during the afternoons.
We felt spoiled by the gourmet camping. We camped in the same campsites as the hikers, but our guides would set up a tarp above the picnic benches to keep rain/tree junk from falling on the food. We'd have proper teatime with biscuits (aka cookies), and later that evening a gourmet dinner including wine! We even had eggs & bacon for breakfast once, and then pancakes another day - yum!
One of the highlights of the trip was a last-minute kayak out to an island nature refuge for sea lions. We decided to go late one afternoon and paddle hard to make sure we got back before dark. Our guides got us to within 5 feet of the sea lions and cormorants hanging out on the rocks - quite amazing really - and even up close to some young sea lions playing in the water!
Labels: Abel Tasman, camping, honeymoon, Julie, kayak, New Zealand, sea lion, Xavier
posted by Xavier at 2:40 PM
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