Tossing About in The Tasman Sea

Abel Tasman National Park – Tossing About in The Tasman Sea

Summer continues to be warm and at times very humid here in New Zealand. But today the chilly south wind is blowing and I have had to get my jumper on (aka sweater). It is nothing near as cold as it sounds back in the Sonoma! Snow? I guess those false spring days got you all in the mood that winter was over. Looks like winter has come storming back!

At the end of January, my brother, Todd, and his partner, Barbara arrived in New Zealand for a brief visit. We showed them around our little village, took them out to Tiritiri Matangi Island where I volunteer, and then sent them off to tour the Bay of Islands on their own. They returned the following Friday evening, and we heard all about their adventures in the Northland. The next day we ferried over to Waiheke Island and did an interesting art/sculpture walk along the coastline. Todd & Barbara seemed to have had a great visit here in NZ. Barbara especially loved combing the beaches for beach glass…what a collector she is!

Just a little over a week after Todd & Barbara left NZ, Ross flew in from SFO. We had been planning a trip down in the South Island in the Abel Tasman National Park. We signed up for a combination 3 day/2 night kayak/tramping trip with a company called Wilson’s Abel Tasman National Park. Ross arrived at o’dark thirty on the 10th of February, and Rob & I drove out to AKL airport to pick him up. Back home in Devonport we finished our last minute packing and left on the 11th for Nelson. Rob had to pack two different kinds of bags, as he was travelling on to Amsterdam as soon as we finished our kayak/tramping trip.

The company that we booked with to do the Abel Tasman Trek with picked us up at our hotel bright and early on Saturday. We weren’t sure when they were going to arrive…hoping to be the last pick up…but we were the first, so we scrambled downstairs to check out and hop on the bus. Luckily, we could keep our extra luggage at the hotel, because Ross & I were going to return to the same hotel. After multiple stops at the various hotels/motels and bus stops, we headed out to Motueka. Motueka is about a ½ an hour drive from Nelson on the way to the gateway to the Abel Tasman National Park. There were 21 in our group including 3 guides…2 guides for the kayakers, and one guide for the trampers.

We arrived in Kaiteriteri about another ½ hour out of Motueka, where those of us who were kayaking departed the bus. Mike and Gina were are fearless kayak guides, and in a very short time they had us briefed on technique and safety…and off we went…into the Tasman Sea. We were all in double kayaks except Mike, who had a single kayak. Considering none of us had any experience kayaking, I was pretty impressed that we all looked to be doing well as we got into our trip. The wind picked up a bit before we paddled ashore for lunch, and Mike instructed us to go straight into the waves to avoid capsizing. He and Gina also instructed us on how to land a kayak on the beach without toppling out of the boat. We all passed our landing lesson onto the beach at Stillwell Bay… joining our group of trampers .

As we were getting ready to continue our journey to the next destination where we would stay at Torrent Bay beachfront lodge, Mike and Gina gathered us up to talk seriously about safety again, as the wind was starting to pick up. They told us about a stretch of coastline known as the ‘Mad Mile’…and they wanted to make sure that we were all prepared to paddle hard. They also told us that once we got going, we would not have an option to pull out…so we really better make our paddling count. Head into the waves, and not let your boat get hit by a side wave. We all thought that the Mad Mile was going to be over when we reached a prominent point that we could see from our lunch spot. So…it did not seem like it would be such a horrible challenge. I don’t think any of us realized that after our trip to that point was when the Mad Mile began… and around that point was where the wind was HOWLING heaps!!

We were taking wave after wave after wave…head on. Our skirts that were supposed to keep us dry as the waves hit were leaking. After what seemed like eons, Rob yelled up to me and asked if I had water in the boat. Well, yes I did…I had a bath. He thought we should not have so much water in the boat, so he asked Gina about it. Gina and Ross, were towing an elder couple from Germany, who were really struggling to stay up with the group. I am not sure what Gina said to Rob, but within a minute of her answering, we got slammed by another wave that had us going sideways, and then BAM! We were upside down under water. Thankfully, we paid attention to how to release the skirt if you were to capsize. Out of the water popped Rob…and then me. Both sputtering, and remembering to hold onto the boat and the paddle. Unfortunately, we were getting blown about by the waves and it made it very difficult to swim to Mike’s kayak. I am a very strong swimmer, but I felt like I was not going to make it the way we were being tossed about. I completely panicked…swallowed water…and started hyper ventilating. And I thought there was no way we were going to be able to get back in that kayak without further distress. We were losing ground rapidly, that had taken us ages to paddle. Once we were able to get the water out of our cubbies, Mike flipped the kayak, and rafted up to our kayak. At this point, time was of the essence, as we were continually hammered by wave after wave. Mike had a line that he secured over the lip of my seat that was long enough to create a step for me. He was yelling at me to just get on the step and pull myself into the boat. Sounded so easy…but I was stuffed, and I was still panicking, and I felt like my arms would not move. Adrenaline kicked in as I thought of a shark coming to get me… I catapulted from the water into the seat. My knee was bent wrong, and it took further strength to wrangle myself into my seat. Whew! Mike helped me snap my skirt back on, and then he moved on to get Rob in the boat. Rob was up and in a lot easier than me, and as soon as he was in Mike attached a tow line from his kayak to our kayak …and we started paddling as fast as we could to shore. An Aqua Taxi came by to check on us, and help out with some of our debris that came loose from our kayaks. Mike and Rob both assured him that we would be fine, and that we could make it to shore…they didn’t give me a chance to beg for a ride…

The rest of the group was struggling as well…luckily, no one else had capsized. The German couple had started paddling alone, and they were paddling to the wrong cove. So, again, Ross, and Gina had to paddle like mad towing another kayak to get to the German couple and get them to head toward the Torrent Bay beach. Finally, Rob & I were back in our kayak with 95% less water sloshing under our skirts…we were still crashing up and down through the waves, but we were making some progress. At some point Mike unhooked the tow rope, and we began paddling in toward the beach. Instead of hitting the waves head on, we were surfing the waves in…I was still terrified that we would be swamped again. I just wanted to get to land and collapse. Our paddle into land on the beach was classic…I ended up face first in the sand thanks to Rob jumping out first before I could get out. Hmmn…I had serious doubts about any further kayaking…especially if it would be in rough seas. The rest of the kayakers landed safely, and we all pulled our kayaks up to the racks outside the Torrent Bay Lodge. The only things on my mind at that point were a shower, and a nap…in that order. Got the shower, and felt revived enough to skip the nap.

That night after an amazing dinner, Mike & Gina wanted to have a little download on the day with the Kayak group. It was pretty evident that once we started on that Mad Mile, we were all pretty overwhelmed by the power of the raging ocean. Everyone spoke of their real fears and experiences…and Mike wanted to make sure we were all ok with kayaking on the next day. It took quite a bit of persuading to get me to concede that I would go out on a raging ocean. My concession was…if it was calm on the water in the morning, I would go with the kayakers…otherwise, I would be a tramper, and join the other group. I was truly traumatized out there in that tossing sea, and there was no way I was going to repeat that experience.

Before going to bed, I packed my pack as if I would be tramping the next day. I don’t think I moved an inch after my head hit the pillow that night...my arms felt like concrete, and everything was swaying. I slept like a brick. The morning arrived and lo and behold…there was not a ripple on the ocean. So…now my pack had to be repacked, as I was once again going out into the ocean with my team mates. We had an easy peasy paddle compared to the day before…went around two islands that were teaming with fur seals & rafted up with Mike & Gina to get a history of the coastline that we were kayaking through. The baby seals were adorable, and Mike had a special call that they answered back to him. We also had a little blue penguin pop up in front of us. It was a totally different experience than the day before. And…no capsizing today! We kayaked in to our lunch spot, Onetahuti Bay, had some swims, and waited for the trampers to catch up with us. The water was definitely refreshing, but once you got in, you could stay in for a good bit. The colors of the ocean were amazing green blue, aqua blue, turquoise…just amazing colors!

An Aqua Taxi arrived at the beach to pick up Gina and the kayaks, as we were now going to be tramping for the rest of our stay. We bid farewell to Gina …we were going to miss her! Eventually, the trampers arrived and we joined them on the last bit of their tramp to the Meadowbanks Homestead Lodge. Now we had Mike and John as our guides as we tramped up through the Tonga Saddle and the bush toward Meadowbank Homestead Lodge. All along the way, the guides imparted a lot of their knowledge of the flora and fauna, and the history of the area. Another long day out in the open air and sea, had me plum tuckered once again. That shower felt like a true luxury! Once again we were treated to a delicious dinner and great socializing with our group mates.

Day three had us tramping to Totaranui…the end of the trek. After breakfast, we all boarded a barge and were taxied up the estuary at Awaroa Bay. Getting off the barge into the mud flats was quite textural experience as the mud gooshed through our toes until we reached the trail head. It was almost like walking through a pot of porridge…but mud colored and full of clam shells. We tramped in and around a number of coves with green glistening waters and golden sand beaches…through the bush until we arrived at Totaranui. The scenery on this trek was outstanding…I guess it helped that we had perfect weather…except for the first day in the kayaks… Our ferry taxi picked us up at Totaranui, and ferried us down the coast to Anchorage Bay where we got off and ate lunch and had the option of a walk with our guide, John, or a swim at the beach. Rob & I joined the walkers as he was going to be going right to the airport for a flight to Amsterdam. Thankfully, he was able to find a shower when he got to AKL. Ross & I were delivered back to our hotel and spent two very relaxing days in Nelson. The day Ross flew home to SFO, Rob arrived back from Amsterdam. We had a lovely lunch together, and then took Ross via the ferry to the Airbus.

Two days after Ross left NZ, there was a devastating earthquake in Christchurch, which is on the South Island. Christchurch is a city in ruins, and today they announced that the rescue of the missing has become a recovery effort. They continue to have pretty significant aftershocks, and recently there was a news story about a guy predicting that another big earthquake will hit the region in March or April. Enough already for those poor people!! Please rest assured…we are fine, and far away from the area that was affected. This earthquake has really shattered us all here in NZ.

Here’s hoping you all are gearing up for a gorgeous Springtime in the States!