Have you ever had a day that suddenly one moment made all the effort worth while?
We made our way to Totaranui campground in Able Tasman National Park – a narrow windy road to get there, but staying two nights would give us time for a full day hike. We got up later than planned, breakfast took longer than expected, a weka bird tried to eat Mindy’s toe while she sipped her coffee, finding the sunscreen and bug spray, etc. We finally set out for our walk about noon. Though this walk was not nearly as challenging as the Tongariro Alpine Crossing, it had a good share of ups and downs, one challenging scramble up and over the rocks, and walks along the sand (which is harder than one imagines). I kept thinking we would never have enough time to make it to Separation Point even though this was the goal Paul had in mind for the day. The sign near the end of Separation Point says something like “leave your packs here because the rest of the trail is steep and treacherous.” They weren’t underestimating it – although it was OK with just day packs – narrow and big steps down. One of those times I just keep my eyes on the trail ahead and don’t look left or right. But we did make it down to the rock platform and over to the left – there they were. The happy, playful seals enjoying them selves sunning on the rocks and swimming in the pools. Such a joy to watch! We settled in the sun to have some lunch and watch the show. I could have stayed there all day, but sunset was calling and we needed 3 1/2 hours to walk back to camp. But all the sweat and challenge was worth it!
– Mindy
(I hope the video embeds here as planned, if not click on the link to see it on Vimeo)
Separation Point / Seal Heaven from Paul thompson on Vimeo.
Beautiful hike!! But who took that photo of the two of you? A seal? 😉