Beaches in Tasman

The region at the top of New Zealand's South Island, holding Abel Tasman National Park and Golden Bay, with the most reliable weather in the country and its most sheltered coast. The Abel Tasman shore is a series of golden beaches inside a bay, separated by granite headlands and reached on foot, by kayak or by water taxi, because there is no road along the park's length — which is why the coast track is New Zealand's busiest Great Walk. The granite is what gives the sand its colour and coarseness, and the bush comes down to the high-water mark. Beyond the park, Farewell Spit curves thirty-five kilometres into the sea as a bird sanctuary and a recurring site of whale strandings, and the exposed west coast reverts to Tasman Sea conditions of swell, wind and no swimming. Practically: the coast track depends on two tidal inlet crossings passable only around low water, so a day here is planned around the tide table rather than the clock; huts and campsites must be booked well in advance for summer; and water taxis run to a schedule worth building a day around. The sandflies in the bush behind the beaches are a genuine consideration.

Both are castaway beaches. The sand is golden sand throughout, and both are reached by a walk in. Together they account for 3 km of shore. · computed from the 2 records below