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Key facts
- Distance
- 0.8 km return via same track
- Walking time
- 30 min return via same track
- Track grade
- Easy
- Location
- Abel Tasman National Park
- Dog access
- No dogs. Other pets on conservation land rules.
Checked against official sources on 8 October 2026. Rules and conditions are set by Department of Conservation — confirm with them before you go.
Route overview
A short walk from Tōtaranui that takes you into magnificent pukatea forest with glades of tall nīkau palms.
This DOC directory entry covers Pukatea Walk in Tasman, within Abel Tasman National Park. Where DOC groups several walks, times and grades refer to the listed options rather than a single continuous itinerary.
Distance, time and grade
- Distance: 0.8 km return via same track
- Walking time: 30 min return via same track
- DOC grade: Easy
Access and alerts
Source checked 2026-10-08. This page is a dated snapshot, not a live track-status report. Check current DOC route information immediately before travelling. An absence of listed alerts does not establish that a route is open.
Dog access
No dogs. Other pets on conservation land rules.
Description
The Pukatea Walk is a short botanical ramble that will take you no more than 30 minutes to complete.
Head north from Tōtaranui on the Coast Track. The walk leaves the Coast Track at the bottom of Anapai Hill and runs through a kānuka/gorse shrubland typical of local abandoned farmland.
Next it follows a curving boardwalk through a raupō swamp, then a dry ridge forest of beech trees, and on into magnificent pukatea forest with glades of tall nīkau palms and the occasional massive rātā tree and tall black mamaku treeferns.
The walk ends on a promise for the future. Under tall kānuka forest are dense thickets of pukatea, rimu and kahikatea, pointing to the time some decades ahead when traces of last century’s destruction will slowly fade from the landscape.
Getting there
Nelson to Tōtaranui is about two and a half hours. Take SH6 south out of Nelson and turn onto SH60 (the Coastal Highway) once past Richmond. Follow SH60 over the Takaka Hill to Takaka.
From Takaka follow signs to Pohara and Tata Beach, which will lead you past the Abel Tasman Memorial and onto Tōtaranui. The last 12 km is a narrow, winding, unsealed road.
Know before you go
Wasps
Wasps are a possible hazard and are more common from December until April. Carry antihistamine if you are allergic to their stings.
Rubbish
Day visitors must take out their own rubbish.
Giardia
Giardia has been found in some park waters. It can be removed from drinking water by boiling, filtering or chemical treatment. All tap water at Tōtaranui is filtered.
Sources and reuse
Route descriptions and practical information reproduced from the Department of Conservation, Crown copyright, under CC BY 4.0, subject to DOC's copyright policy. Formatting has been adapted, including flattening page sections; follow the original DOC page for maps, section-specific layout, current notices and linked documents. Outdoor Next is independent and is not endorsed by DOC.
The accompanying photograph is a licensed general hiking illustration, not a photograph of this route.
