Golden Bay - Cape Farewell and Farewell Spit

If you look at a map of this north west corner of the south island you can quite easily imagine that the shape of the land here is reminiscent of a kiwi. The long sand spit of Farewell Spit is its beak, the Wainui inlet on the west coast makes the shape of its head; the shading of the mountains shows its wing and the pale low land of the valley, its breast.

Is it a bird? Is it a map?

The most northerly point of the south island is here and is called is called Cape Farewell, as named by Captain Cook when he left New Zealand at the end of his first visit. I wonder if he had seen it on arriving, he might have named it Cape Hello and presumably over the decades, in the way that language changes, it would now be known by Kiwis as Cape G’day.

Cape Farewell

I like the simple principles the explorers and early settlers applied to the naming of places: what am I thinking of now - as in Captain Cook’s case; what does it look like – as in Grey River; in honour of a famous person or event – as in Nelson; or to remember something from home – as in Ashburton. Sue, Keith and Andrew will appreciate these principles, as when we are walking together at home we chortle happily while looking for the property with the most obvious name, such as Church View, or Riverside. On the other hand, I think the explorers and settlers had an excuse for keeping it simple, in that they had a hell of a lot of stuff to name.

West coast view

Just south of Cape Farewell is a spectacular beach, which has managed to retain its Maori name – Wharaniki Beach. Here there are arches through the rock and in the calmer sea pools seals play and lounge round.

Wharaniki Beach views

Farewell Spit is the longest sand spit in New Zealand and is an important habitat for birds. The bay side of the spit provides salt marshes and mud flats and the ocean side, enormous sand beaches and sand dunes. People are only allowed to walk along the spit for 4km on each side, to protect the environment.

View of Farewell Spit disappearing into the distance

Bay side of the spit

Black swans in the bay

Sand dunes

Ocean side of the spit

Oyster catchers