On a slightly grey day in February we set off over the mountains towards Golden Bay. Climbing up over the Lewis Pass much of the route was through heavy skies, with clouds lying low over the mountains. As we dropped down towards the northern coast of the South Island the clouds started to lift and we decided to make a quick stop at Maruia Falls.
The falls don’t necessarily look spectacular compared to some for the taller waterfalls we have found on our hikes around New Zealand, however what is fascinating about this waterfall is that it was created as a result of an earthquake in 1929. The earthquake caused a landslide which blocked the river, causing the channel to shift into an adjacent field. It turns out that this shift actually just forced the river back into an ancient riverbed. The river rapidly eroded the sediment that had filled the old river channel and in so doing reestablished the ancient waterfall. The current falls appeared rapidly in the few years following the earthquake.
After our quick detour we continued on to the town of Pohara Beach where we had rented a holiday cottage for the week. With a beautiful ocean view waiting for us at the house we were keen to start exploring some more of the area.
The next morning we started out with a quick walk to the nearby Wainui Falls. Parking at a small farm close to the marshland of the Wainui Inlet, we set off across the pasture we set off on the track that paralleled the Wainui river. It wasn’t long before the pasture gave way to dense native bush, and the track climbed through a dense forest of nikau palms, rata trees and ferns.
Occasionally the forest would thin just enough to give us a glimpse of the river. Like so many of the rivers here, the water was clear enough that we could easily see all the way to the rocks that made up the riverbed.
After a while we came to a large swing bridge over the river, we made our way across the rickety bridge, stopping briefly to admire the view up the valley from the middle of the bridge.
Shortly after leaving the swing bridge we turned a corner in the track to find the falls in front of us. Surrounded by every shade of green you could imagine, the rain in the mountains meant that the waterfall looked really spectacular. The sound of the water echoed of the surrounding rocks and the entire area was noticeably cooler. Leaving the waterfall, we made out way back down to the car and continued on into Abel Tasman National Park.