Nydia Track
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If you want a long and moderately challenging do walk that gives you a good feel for the Marlborough Sounds, you can't do much better than this. From end to end it's some 27 km - about 9 hours walking in total - so most people take a break halfway, either by camping in the Nydia campsite or by staying at the Lodge. Frustratingly (and in the case of the campsite, one feels, wholly unnecessarily) both are non-dogs, so if you're dog-walking the whole way, then you've no choice but to keep walking.
The walk can be done from either end, but the most pleasant way is from the north, starting in Duncan Bay, since this avoids some steep uphill sections. Likewise, if you want to do a shorter, there-and-back walk, the best option is to start at Duncan Bay and walk to Nydia Saddle (about 7km each way), from where you can look down on what you'll be missing. That's all I can claim to have done, and it makes for a very satisfying day out. |
From Duncan Bay, the walk starts as a flat but rather over-trodden (and cycled) track on a bench above the Sound. In dry weather, this section is reasonably easy, but in the wet it can be a bit of a slog through mud and puddles. After about 10 minutes, you reach a side-turn to Pipi Beach, which is a pleasant spot, but probably best saved until the return journey, where it provides a good chance to cool the feet and relax. From here, the track climbs gently as it follows the headland around Te Mako Bay. The track now is drier, but there's an abundance of quite thick tree roots to negotiate which can make the walking seem harder work than it ought to be, but just about when you're getting fed up with the roots they disappear, and the track drops down to the rough beach at the head of the Ngawhakawhiti Bay.
From this point on, it's a climb all the way to the top of Nydia Saddle. The walking, though, suddenly seems easier than it has before . The gradient is gentle, the track in good condition for the most part, and the shady bush is a delight. The only catch is that the saddle is further away than at times you're led to believe. That ridge up there, ahead of you, isn't the top of the climb, nor is that dip you think you can see. Instead, you follow the long valley up to its head until you reach a small cascade, after which you sidle around another bushy bluff, catching views back down the Sound, until - suddenly - the track twists, steepens slightly, and you're there. The saddle is a beautiful spot. There are old, epiphyte covered trees offering vantage points down into Nydia Bay and the next ridge (header photo). There are green glades, adorned with lichen and moss and strange fungi. There's a sense of timelessness in the place. If you're doing the full trek, you're about a quarter of the way at this point, with a long downslope section ahead to the campsite. If you're doing a day walk, there-and-back, then its downhill just the same, back to Duncan's Bay. In this the return seems easy. In an hour you are back at Pipi Beach. Twenty minutes later you'll be back at your car, wondering if you shouldn't have done the full trip after all.
From this point on, it's a climb all the way to the top of Nydia Saddle. The walking, though, suddenly seems easier than it has before . The gradient is gentle, the track in good condition for the most part, and the shady bush is a delight. The only catch is that the saddle is further away than at times you're led to believe. That ridge up there, ahead of you, isn't the top of the climb, nor is that dip you think you can see. Instead, you follow the long valley up to its head until you reach a small cascade, after which you sidle around another bushy bluff, catching views back down the Sound, until - suddenly - the track twists, steepens slightly, and you're there. The saddle is a beautiful spot. There are old, epiphyte covered trees offering vantage points down into Nydia Bay and the next ridge (header photo). There are green glades, adorned with lichen and moss and strange fungi. There's a sense of timelessness in the place. If you're doing the full trek, you're about a quarter of the way at this point, with a long downslope section ahead to the campsite. If you're doing a day walk, there-and-back, then its downhill just the same, back to Duncan's Bay. In this the return seems easy. In an hour you are back at Pipi Beach. Twenty minutes later you'll be back at your car, wondering if you shouldn't have done the full trip after all.