Wharariki Beach

Wharariki Beach is a beach west of Cape Farewell, the northernmost point of the South Island of New Zealand.

The north-facing sandy beach is accessible only via a 20-minute walking track from the end of Wharariki Road. The road end is approximately 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) from the nearest settlement, the small village of Puponga. A camping ground is located along Wharariki Road, but the area surrounding the beach is devoid of any development. Wharariki Beach is bordered by Puponga Farm Park, with the wider area more or less surrounded by the northern end of Kahurangi National Park.

The beach is flanked to the east and west by cliffs, but due to the flat topology of the area behind it, the beach area and the grassy dunes behind it are quite exposed to winds.

Wharariki Beach is perhaps best known for the Archway Islands, featured frequently in photos in New Zealand landscape calendars.

Archway Islands

The Archway Islands are a group of four rock stacks or small islands, with even the largest one of them measuring only about 300 by 200 metres (980 ft × 660 ft).

Phormium colensoi

Phormium colensoi (syn. Phormium cookianum; mountain flax, lesser New Zealand flax, or wharariki in Māori) is a perennial plant that is native to New Zealand. It is less common than the other Phormium species, P. tenax. The greenish, yellow or orange flowers are followed by twisted seed pods.

Description

The leaves are under 2 metres in length while those of P. tenax range from 1 to 3 metres in length. The scape is much shorter than that of P. tenax, rising up to 2 metres in height while that of P. tenax is around 5 metres in height. The colour of the inner tepals is green while the outer tepals are yellow to red. In contrast the tepals of P. tenax are a dull red, with the tips of the inner tepals being less strongly recurved. The capsules of P. colensoi, unlike those of P. tenax are twisted and pendulous, and may be twice as long (up to 20 cm in length).

Phormium colensoi has two distinct geographic forms, one occurring in lowland parts of the North Island, and the other in the southern and mountainous areas of the South Island as well as ranges in the North Island. The lowland form has green or yellow tepals and the mountain form has red tepals. In the Cook Strait area, both forms and intermediates can be found.