THE PARK
Located between Golden Bay and Tasman Bay in the north end of the South Island, the Abel Tasman National Park is renowned for its golden beaches, sculptured granite cliffs, and world-famous coast track.
At 22,530 hectares, Abel Tasman is New Zealand’s smallest national park. It is also one of its most visited – with an estimated 300,000 visitors annually. With its beautiful beaches, secluded bays, stunning waterfalls, seals and dolphins; it is no surprise the park is so popular.
Add to this a stunning coastline, rich network of landforms and habitats, unmodified estuaries, and a number of threatened or endangered species and you have an exciting opportunity for ecological restoration and learning.,
Webcams
Check out the park right now
Our webcams provide ‘real-time’ views of Anchorage, Astrolabe, Torrent Bay and Awaroa. Each camera takes a photo every 10 minutes. You can scroll through 24 hours of vision. Click on one of the webcams below to see what’s happening in the park right now.
WILDLIFE
Meet the locals
Abel Tasman is home to a wide variety of native animals – from weka and kereru to weta and giant land snails. Human activity and introduced pests have seen a decline in many of the park’s native species. However there is still a lot to see if you know what to look (and listen) for and where to find them. If you see or hear anything interesting, let us know via the Abel Tasman App.
“The bird song at Awaroa last weekend was truly magnificent. It is only about five years since there was little dawn chorus at all. Our group saw weka and pukeko this weekend, boldly walking around. Only your dedicated programme of pest control could have achieved this. Thank you, thank you, thank you for rescuing the park and making Awaroa even more of a beautiful place to be.”
Catharine Franks, Awaroa bach owner
PLANTS
Meet the natives
Abel Tasman’s landscape has been modified perhaps more than any other national park in New Zealand. Its plant life and distribution reflects the park’s history of fires, logging and land clearance. However, the forests are regenerating well in parts – and Project Janszoon has a number of planting projects to help nature on its way.
history
The Abel Tasman National Park has a rich human history dating back over 600 years.
Māori were first to arrive. The park’s namesake, Abel Tasman, sailed past in 1642 but never landed. French explorer Dumont D’Urville and his crew were the first to document the unique flora and fauna back in 1827.
Over the years human activity has seen the Abel Tasman burnt, farmed, logged and mined. From the late 1800’s areas began to be protected so future generations could enjoy its beauty. What you see now is a park that is going through quite a process of restoration. .
