We arrived in the town of Marahau which sits on the shores of Sandy Bay in the Abel Tasman National Park (named after the first European to sight New Zealand). We wanted to kayak along the coast and visit some of the islands and golden beaches which run through the park but the price for a half day was the same as a full day so we decided to book ourselves into a kayak for the following day and spend today walking along the coastal path.

Having got as far as Tinline Bay we stopped for lunch and a little nap after which we found that the tide had gone out allowing us to walk around to the next bay which was a lovely quiet golden beach, encouraged by the beauty of the area and having checked with a local the tide wouldn't strand us we clambered round the rocks of Gilbert point to reach the even quieter and beautiful Appletree Bay. After a little time enjoying the tranquility we headed back to Marahau along the coastal path (doing the 1hr 45min walk in under an hour!!) picked up Muriel (as our campervan was now to be known after some debate) and found the first layby outside the town.

The next morning we were again up early to get to the kayak hire place. After a fairly detailed hour long safety briefing we headed off in our two person kayak. It was a lovely day, just the two of us alone on the emerald seas which washed up against the forest and golden beaches. We kayaked to and around Fisherman's and Adele islands, where we saw seals and lots of birds, before crossing a fairly large expanse of water to head further up the coast. After some debate as to where we were we realised we had already got further up the coast than we had been told we would be able to and while tempted to continue we decided to turn round and find a quiet beach for lunch and a little sunbathing, observation beach fitted the bill perfectly.

After an hour or so lunching and lying in the sun we headed back towards Marahua to make sure we were there before the tide went out and we would have to drag our kayaks up the beach, no small undertaking as Sandy Bay had the same tide as Golden Bay and went out miles. All in all we had kayaked approximately 25km and despite the exertions felt really relaxed as it was such a perfect place to be on the water.